Peter Singer

NYT Bestselling Author, Founder & Managing Partner at Useful Fiction LLC, Strategist at New America, and a Professor of Practice at Arizona State University

Peter Singer

NYT Bestselling Author, Founder & Managing Partner at Useful Fiction LLC, Strategist at New America, and a Professor of Practice at Arizona State University

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Biography

Peter Warren Singer is a founder and managing partner at Useful Fiction LLC, a company specializing in strategic narrative, a strategist at New America, and a Professor of Practice at Arizona State University. He is also a noted keynote speaker, having delivered talks at venues that range from the White House to the Sydney Opera House. A New York Times bestselling author, described in The Wall Street Journal as "the premier futurist in the national-security environment" and "all-around smart guy" in The Washington Post, he has been named by the Smithsonian as one of the nation's 100 leading innovators, by Defense News as one of the 100 most influential people in defense issues, by Foreign Policy to their Top 100 Global Thinkers List, and as an official "Mad Scientist" for the U.S. Army's Training and Doctrine Command. No author, living or dead, has more books on the professional US military reading lists.

Singer has served as a consultant for the US Military, Intelligence Community, and FBI. He was coordinator of the Obama campaign's defense policy task force, named to the US Military's Transformation Advisory Group, NATO's Innovation Advisory Board (for unmanned maritime systems), the NSA's Advisory Board, and is an Associate with the US Air Force's China Aerospace Studies Institute. He is also an adjunct professor in the United States Air Force (USAF) Airman Development and Applied Research program. In addition to his work on conflict issues, Singer was a member of the State Department's Advisory Committee on International Communications and Information Policy, and an advisor to SITE 525, SkyDio, and Zignal. In the entertainment sector, he has advised a range of programs, including Warner Brothers, Dreamworks, Universal, HBO, Discovery, History Channel, and the video game series Call of Duty, the bestselling entertainment project in history.

His first book Corporate Warriors: The Rise of the Privatized Military Industry pioneered the study of the new industry of private companies providing military services for hire. It was named best book of the year by the American Political Science Association, among the top five international affairs books of the year by the Gelber Prize, and a "top ten summer read" by Businessweek.

Children at War was the first to comprehensively explore the tragic rise of child soldier groups and was recognized by the Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Book of the Year Award.

Wired for War examined the implications of robotics and other new technologies for war, politics, ethics, and law in the 21st century. Described as "awesome" by Jon Stewart of the Daily Show, Wired for War made the NY Times non-fiction bestseller list in its first week of release.

Cybersecurity and Cyberwar: What Everyone Needs to Know explores the key questions we all face in the cyber age. It was described by the Chairman of Google as "an essential read" and by the former Supreme Allied Commander of NATO as "the most approachable and readable book ever written on the cyber world."

Ghost Fleet: A Novel of the Next World War melds nonfiction style research on emerging trends and technology with a fictional exploration of what the future of war will be like. Described as "a modern-day successor to tomes such as The Hunt For Red October" by USA Today.

LikeWar explores how social media has changed war and politics. It was named an Amazon book of the year and reviewed by Booklist as "LikeWar should be required reading for everyone living in a democracy and all who aspire to."

His latest book is Burn-In: A Novel of the Real Robotic Revolution. It has been described by the creator of Lost and Watchmen as "A visionary new form of storytelling—a rollercoaster ride of science fiction blended with science fact."

Prior to his current position, Dr. Singer was the founding director of the Center for 21st Century Security and Intelligence at the Brookings Institution. He was the youngest scholar named Senior Fellow in Brookings' 102-year history. Singer received his Ph.D. in Government from Harvard and a BA from the School of Public and International Affairs at Princeton.

Speaker Videos

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Speech Topics

The Cyber Threatscape: What are the Key Trends in Cybersecurity

From ransomware to the collapse of cyber deterrence, a series of new threats are changing the cybersecurity landscape. A bestselling author described by The Wall Street Journal as "one of Washington's pre-eminent futurists," and a consultant for groups that range from the CIA and the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs to Hollywood, Singer uses an exciting speaking style to explore for an audience the key trends emerging today that will shape the world of cybersecurity tomorrow.

NextTech: The Future of Technology, Security, and Threats

Artificial Intelligence, Robotics, The Internet of Things, Social Media, and a new geopolitical competition; the 21st century is being shaped by a range of exciting, and scary, new trends and technologies. Described in The Wall Street Journal as "the premier futurist in the national-security environment," and a consultant for groups that range from the CIA and US military to Hollywood and the Call of Duty video game series, Singer will explore the key trends emerging today that will shape the world of technology and security tomorrow.

AI and Robots : As Science Fiction Turns Real, What Do We Need to Know?

Robots, Artificial Intelligence, and the Internet of Things. The next decade will see a range of exciting new technologies that all seem drawn from Science Fiction become our reality. They will drive a new industrial revolution, but also create political, economic, and security trends that will remake our world, challenging us like never before. P.W. Singer has been described by The Wall Street Journal as "the premier futurist in the national-security environment," an official "Mad Scientist" for the U.S. Army, and consults for groups that range from the CIA and the Pentagon to Hollywood.

Strategic Narrative: How to Use The Power of a Story Well Told

How do we better share new ideas and influence target audiences? How do we better understand and prepare for the future? How do we comprehend new trends and technologies? One answer may be to enlist the power of the oldest communication technology of all–story. Described in The Wall Street Journal as "the premier futurist in the national-security environment," P.W. Singer is a best-selling author of both nonfiction and fiction, whose work at the intersection of strategic foresight, discovery, and narrative has been featured in media like The Economist and Wired. He is also the founder of Useful Fiction LLC, a company that aids organizations in "telling their story" more effectively. Having worked for groups that range from the US military and CIA to Hollywood and the most popular video game in history, he will explain the "why" of narrative and "how" best to tell a useful story.

Testimonials

"Over the past several years, Dr. Singer has become a frequent and welcome guest here in our senior professional military education community. His unique insights bring great value to the thinking of our future senior leaders in the national security establishment, in what is invariably a highly rewarding learning experience."

- Commandant, National Defense University

"Singer really showed us that we were only scratching the surface of what we should be thinking about in the future. After listening to him, we have never been able to look at the world the same way again."

- Head of Game Developer Studio

"Simply outstanding...one of our best sessions in recent memory. Both right and left seemed more than satisfied (could be a first!)."

- Foreign Affairs Committee Organizer

"Given the midshipmen’s dense schedules and technological bent, required weekday lectures on ethics are sometimes a tough sell—but the response has been unprecedented! “Best lecture ever” has been the consistent feedback from students faculty, and staff alike."

- Director, US Naval Academy Center for Ethical Leadership

"Your thoughts on changes in 21st century warfare and shifts in power bases were thought provoking and a key aspect in a very successful Summit! You helped facilitate important discussions that lasted throughout the week."

- US Air Force Major General

"Outstanding feedback across the board: students, staff, faculty. Heard "best lecture ever" several times today from my students. Great job!"

- Conference Organizer

"The group really enjoyed your talk and wished they could have spent more time with you (always a good sign for the program planner!). They were truly honored that an individual of your stature would share leadership insights with them. The real world experiences you shared reinforced the learning objectives of the course. Your presentation was a highlight of the course and I hope you might continue to speak at our programs."

- Executive Education Course Organizer

"You were one of their favorite speakers by far—they were very interested in the information you presented, which was all new to them and got them energized for everything they would learn at the program. I couldn’t have asked for a better first speaker."

- National High School Student Leader Conference Organizer

"Thank you for giving our group the best presentation we have ever had on a very timely topic."

- US Army Colonel