Matt Klein Keynote Speaker

Head of Global Foresight & Research Methods at Reddit
Leading Media & Cultural Theorist and Digital Anthropologist
Featured in WSJ, NYT, VICE, The Atlantic & The Guardian

Matt Klein's Biography

A Webby-winning writer and “Top Voice in Market Research,” Matt Klein is a trusted advisor, empowering organizations to make sense of and stay ahead of cultural change. With a decade of experience in trend forecasting, innovation research, and strategic communications, Klein partners with brands, the UN, government agencies, investors, philanthropies, and the press to provide provocative, alternative explanations of the zeitgeist and author future-proofing strategies.

He’s worked with McDonald’s to The Met, exploring topics spanning: the global mental health crisis for UNICEF, fandom for the NBA, and cultural implications of AI for Google. The harder the better.

With +1M cumulative reads, his award-winning publication ZINE, critically researches our relationship with technology and media. ZINE offers executives, government officials and academics alike cultural intelligence, analyzing overlooked trends.

Effectively explaining emerging social shifts, he’s a relied upon source for the WSJ, DAZED and VICE, and former contributor to Forbes where he served as a media critic. He’s also a speaker at SXSW, Fast Company and MoMA, and guest lecturer at universities including NYU and The New School.

He’s the author of the META Trends Report, an annual meta-analysis commenting on the zeitgeist, Audience Capture, a zine exploring the dangerous dynamics of audiences, co-founder of The Tiny Awards, honors for the cozy web, and creator of The Understanding Media Seminar Series in partnership with The McLuhan Institute.

Klein’s focus is to increase cultural fluency and digital literacy, empowering autonomy.

The META Trend Briefing: The Only Cultural Forecast You Need

Drawing upon an unprecedented analysis of 500+ global trend reports over the past decade, what can we learn about our future? This rigorous, data-driven trend briefing delivers cultural intelligence you won't find anywhere else. As creator of the world's most widely-read annual trend forecast, I'll share distilled wisdom from thousands of cultural predictions, the largest emerging social shifts, and most importantly, the strategies organizations can use to better resonate within the zeitgeist. This briefing is ideal for executives, strategists or innovation teams which require reliable cultural intelligence to inform business decisions. Attendees will gain confidence in what's really worth paying attention to in culture and how to both navigate social change accordingly.

Foresight as Activism: How to Resonate in Culture by Authoring the Future

Stop passively analyzing trends and start actively shaping culture. As a veteran trend forecaster for the largest organizations in the world, I challenge conventional wisdom with the truth: "Trends are BS." This keynote reveals how organizations can transition from sideline observers, to developers of meaningful social change by engaging with online communities. Here, we'll dive into a powerful alternative to traditional trend analysis with case studies and thinking that teams can apply that very afternoon. Perfect for forward-thinking executives, strategists, and innovation teams ready to stop chasing culture and begin creating it. Attendees will leave with practical tools to immediately transform their approach to cultural relevance and market positioning.

Audience Capture: How to Reclaim Creative Integrity Amidst Algorithmic Fatigue

Are you creating for yourself or for the algorithm? This eye-opening creator therapy session exposes the hidden psychological forces and agendas manipulating creators, turning them into soulless content machines. Creators were once in control, taking risks and moving culture. Today, metrics, audiences and platforms dictate how we show up. We must strike equilibrium again. Drawing from cutting-edge social science research and media theory, we'll unpack how "Audience Capture" is risking our creativity and sanity online, affecting everyone from institutions to everyday social media users. Essential for creators, marketers, creative professions and everyone with online presence who feels increasingly controlled by likes. Audiences will walk away creatively empowered, more diligent of platforms' dangerous dynamics, and equipped with a refreshed sense of autonomy to build more meaningful audience relationships.

Matt Klein Speaker Reel

Articles, Media & Podcasts

Is Creativity Dead?

The New York Times

Interview with Matt Klein

Copenhagen Institute for Future Studies

How Cognitive Biases & Shortcuts Hinder the Human Condition with Matt Klein

The ADDA Deep and Meaningful Consultancy

Trend reports repeat keywords (and do not predict the future)

Fast Company Brazil

Comments & Testimonials

What a privilege to host Matt as a speaker. He's open, collaborative and fully switched on. It was an informative, inspiring session. The team was so engaged.

Pam Dune, Consumer Insights & Foresight Logitech

A brilliant cultural analyst.

Douglas Rushkoff, Media Theorist, Professor & Author

Matt empowers us with perspective and agency to right the ship to our own likings.

Dr. Marcus Collins, Author & Professor