Carl Lewis
9-Time Olympic Gold Medalist | World Athlete of the Century | World Record Holder in 100m & Long Jump | Track and Field Legend
Salim Ismail
Chairman, OpenExO | Bestselling Author of Exponential Organizations & ExO 2.0 | Co-Host, Moonshots Podcast | XPRIZE Board Member | Former VP, Yahoo
Salim Ismail wrote the playbook on exponential growth — literally. Author of Exponential Organizations and its acclaimed sequel, founder and chairman of OpenExO, and co-host of the Moonshots podcast with Peter Diamandis, he has helped corporations, governments, and institutions worldwide achieve 10x transformation. His keynotes give leaders a concrete framework for navigating AI disruption and building organizations that thrive at exponential speed.
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Salim Ismail biography
Salim Ismail is one of the world’s most influential voices on exponential thinking, organizational transformation, and the technology forces reshaping every industry on the planet. Born in Hyderabad, India, and raised in Toronto, he holds a B.Sc. in Theoretical Physics from the University of Waterloo and has spent three decades at the intersection of technology entrepreneurship, strategic advisory, and global education. His career spans founding and scaling technology companies, leading innovation at one of the world’s largest internet firms, and building institutional frameworks for exponential growth that have been adopted by corporations, governments, and universities worldwide.
Futurist speaker Salim Ismail is best known as the lead author of Exponential Organizations, one of the most influential business books of the past decade, and its acclaimed sequel Exponential Organizations 2.0: The New Playbook for 10x Growth & Impact, co-authored with Peter H. Diamandis and Michael S. Malone with a foreword by Ray Kurzweil. The framework introduced in these books — centered on a Massive Transformative Purpose and the SCALE and IDEAS attributes — has been adopted by organizations ranging from Fortune 500 companies to national governments seeking to achieve 10x growth rather than incremental improvement. The data shows that corporations following the ExO attributes deliver 40x shareholder returns compared to those that don’t. Prior to his authorship, Ismail co-founded PubSub Concepts, which helped lay the groundwork for the real-time web, and built Ångströ, an intelligent data-analysis platform acquired by Google in 2010. As VP at Yahoo, he led Brickhouse, the company’s internal innovation incubator. He later became the Founding Executive Director of Singularity University, the executive education institution co-founded by Peter Diamandis and Ray Kurzweil, and currently serves as its Global Ambassador.
Chairman of OpenExO & Co-Host of the Moonshots Podcast
Ismail is the Founder and Chairman of OpenExO, a global transformation platform with a community of over 36,000 educators, entrepreneurs, and enterprise leaders applying the ExO model. OpenExO has generated billions of dollars in documented ROI for clients including Procter & Gamble, HP, Visa, BHP, and Stanley Black & Decker. He is also the co-host of the Moonshots podcast with Peter Diamandis, delivering weekly insights on emerging technologies, AI, and exponential growth strategies to over one million entrepreneurs and innovators worldwide. He sits on the board of the XPRIZE Foundation, the organization behind the world’s largest incentive-based competitions for breakthrough innovation.
As a speaker, Salim Ismail delivers some of the most energizing and strategically consequential keynotes available to senior leadership audiences. He has addressed heads of state, Fortune 500 C-suites, and international policy forums, giving over 150 talks annually across dozens of countries. Audiences come away with a clear framework for navigating exponential change: how to identify 10x opportunities, redesign organizational structures for speed and adaptability, and deploy emerging technologies — particularly AI — before disruption arrives uninvited. His combination of intellectual rigor, entrepreneurial credibility, and on-stage magnetism makes him one of the most consistently impactful speakers in the global circuit.
Salim Ismail Speaking Videos
Salim Ismail - How do we fix civilization?
Salim Ismail - Exponential Organizations
Salim Ismail Keynote Topics
Major breakthroughs are occurring across a series of accelerating technologies — artificial intelligence, robotics, biotechnology, sensors, neuroscience, medicine, and energy — and they are not developing in isolation. They are converging, and the implications for every industry are profound. Ismail maps the trajectory of these accelerating forces and makes the case that disruption is not approaching: it is already here. This talk gives senior audiences a clear-eyed view of which technologies will reshape their sector, when, and at what speed — with perspectives tailored to each specific industry and audience. A strategic wake-up call delivered with clarity and hard data.
In an era of accelerating technologies, incremental improvement is a strategic liability. Drawing on the frameworks from Exponential Organizations and Exponential Organizations 2.0, Ismail walks audiences through the 11 ExO Attributes — from Massive Transformative Purpose to AI & Algorithms — that define the world's fastest-scaling companies. He translates the model into a practical implementation roadmap, showing how established organizations can restructure for speed, leverage emerging technologies, and unlock growth trajectories that leave traditional competitors behind. Clients including P&G, HP, Visa, and BHP have generated billions in documented ROI from these principles.
Drawing on insights from Exponential Organizations 2.0 and his frontline experience advising Fortune 500 companies and governments, Ismail delivers a compelling analysis of AI's seismic impact across industries. He explores how exponential attributes — interfaces, algorithms, dashboards, and autonomous teams — can be leveraged to harness AI effectively within any organization. The session covers practical strategies for building an AI-ready culture that promotes agility and innovation, preparing leadership teams to ride the wave of AI rather than be swept away by it. Essential for any executive audience confronting the reality that AI is not a future trend but an active force reshaping competitive landscapes now.
The barriers to building a company have collapsed. The tools available to a startup founder today — AI, cloud infrastructure, crowdfunding, global talent networks, and open-source platforms — have made it faster, cheaper, and more impactful than ever to bring an idea to market. Ismail explores what this means for corporations seeking to maintain entrepreneurial velocity at scale, for cities and governments building startup ecosystems, and for leaders who want to embed the founder mindset inside large institutions.
Speaker topics
FAQs on Booking Salim Ismail
Why Salim Ismail?
Booking Salim Ismail for your event is a strategic decision for any organization navigating technological disruption, organizational transformation, or the challenge of sustainable growth in an AI-driven world. As the author of Exponential Organizations and Exponential Organizations 2.0, Chairman of OpenExO, co-host of the Moonshots podcast with Peter Diamandis, and Founding Executive Director of Singularity University, Ismail brings a rare combination of intellectual authority, hands-on practitioner credibility, and a framework that has been proven across corporations, governments, and institutions on every continent. His keynotes do not just inspire — they deliver actionable models that leadership teams can implement immediately. With over 150 talks per year and a track record of engaging heads of state and Fortune 500 C-suites alike, Salim Ismail ranks among the world's most sought-after business speakers. Contact Aurum Speakers Bureau to check availability and secure Salim Ismail for your next conference or leadership event.
What is an Exponential Organization?
An Exponential Organization (ExO) is a new kind of company that leverages information-based technologies and a specific set of organizational attributes to scale at least ten times faster than traditional businesses with the same resources. The concept, developed by Salim Ismail and detailed in his bestselling books, holds that the fastest-growing companies in the world share a common architecture: a Massive Transformative Purpose (MTP) at their core, five external attributes (SCALE: Staff on Demand, Community & Crowd, AI & Algorithms, Leveraged Assets, Engagement) and five internal attributes (IDEAS: Interfaces, Dashboards, Experimentation, Autonomy, Social). Companies that implement this model have been shown to achieve dramatically higher shareholder returns, revenue growth, profitability, and return on assets than their less adaptable peers.
What is the difference between Exponential Organizations and Exponential Organizations 2.0?
The original Exponential Organizations (2014), co-authored with Michael S. Malone and Yuri van Geest, introduced the ExO framework and identified the organizational attributes shared by the world's fastest-growing companies. Exponential Organizations 2.0 (2023), co-authored with Peter H. Diamandis and Michael S. Malone, is a comprehensive update that incorporates eight years of implementation experience across Fortune 500 companies and governments, new case studies, and an expanded playbook for the AI era. It refines the original 10 attributes into 11 ExO Attributes and provides more detailed tools for implementation — making it the definitive guide for organizations seeking 10x growth in today's environment.
What topics does futurist speaker Salim Ismail cover in his keynotes?
Salim Ismail speaks on exponential organizations and the frameworks for 10x growth, the exponential potential of artificial intelligence, disruptive convergence across AI, robotics, biotech, and energy, and the future of entrepreneurship and innovation ecosystems. He draws on his role as co-host of the Moonshots podcast with Peter Diamandis and his decades of experience advising Fortune 500 companies and governments to deliver talks customized for each audience. To book Salim Ismail for your event, contact Aurum Speakers Bureau.
How to book Salim Ismail as a keynote speaker?
Aurum Speakers Bureau can help you book Salim Ismail as a speaker for your next event, conference, or board meeting. Simply fill out our contact form to inquire about Salim Ismail's availability for a speaking engagement. One of our booking agents will respond to your request immediately and contact the speaker to let them know you want to hire them. We will assist you with obtaining speaking fees, booking information, and confirming availability for Salim Ismail or any other top keynote speaker or celebrity of your choice.
How much is Salim Ismail speaking fee?
Salim Ismail speaking fees are determined by several factors, including the event's date, whether it's a virtual or in-person event, the duration, format, preparation required for their speech, and more. The same applies to the cost to hire any other top expert speakers and celebrities. The Speaker Fee Range listed on our website is simply a guideline and is subject to change without notice. If you would like to hire Salim Ismail to deliver a keynote speech for your event, please fill out the contact form or email us at info@aurumbureau.com with as much detail as possible. One of our experienced agents will get in touch with you and let you know exactly how much it will cost to book Salim Ismail.
How can I contact Salim Ismail?
We only work with Salim Ismail on paid speaking engagements. Aurum Speakers Bureau can assist you in booking Salim Ismail and will handle all negotiations, contracts, and logistics associated with having Salim Ismail speak at your event. We will be your sole point of contact throughout the process. Get in touch with Aurum Speakers Bureau today, and we will reach out to any motivational speaker or celebrity you want to enquire about speaking at your event. If you wish to contact Salim Ismail for any other reason, we will be unable to assist you as we are not authorized to provide personal contact information.
Can I book Salim Ismail for a virtual keynote?
Yes, Salim Ismail is available for virtual keynotes and webinars. To book Salim Ismail for a virtual event, please complete the contact form or send us an email to inquire about the special fees for virtual engagements.
