Caleb Harper, Principal Investigator and Director of the MIT Media Lab Open Agriculture (OpenAG) initiative, will address LIGHTFAIR International 2019 Conference attendees in a keynote presentation on Monday, May 20, 2019. Alex Kanjeev, President of O’Leary Ventures, gives opening day remarks on Tuesday, May 21, 2019.
Harper is a National Geographic Emerging Explorer and a member of the World Economic Forum (WEF) New Vision for Agriculture Transformation Leaders Network. His research focuses on the areas of control environment design, actuated sensing, control automation and data-driven resource, energy and biologic optimization. His diverse group of engineers, architects and scientists, together with strategic partners, is developing open-source agricultural hardware, software and data common with the goal of creating a more agile, responsive and collaborative food system. Harper’s work has been featured by TIME, WIRED, The Economist, National Geographic, The Smithsonian, Huffington Post, Popular Science, IEEE and TED.
Prior to joining the MIT Media Lab in 2011, Harper worked professionally as an architect designing and developing data centers, health care and semi-conductor fabrication facilities. He has consulted with multiple international development agencies, including USAID, World Bank, Inter-American Development Bank and the Delhi Development Authority on high-density urban development projects.
In a no-nonsense, informative and uplifting opening day speech titled “Everything is Changing and So Should You: How to Crush It (or Be Crushed) in the Super-Economy of Tomorrow,” Kenjeev will unpack five unstoppable mega-trends to inspire LFI Conference attendees to see big opportunities on the horizon.
As president of O’Leary Ventures, Kenjeev is Kevin O’Leary’s right-hand man. He negotiates with, oversees and mentors a portfolio of rapidly growing businesses across many industries. He also co-founded a software company that was acquired three years later for more than $100 million, is an investor in CNBC’s "Make Me a Millionaire Inventor" and a frequent contributor on CTV.
Visit www.lightfair.com for additional information about the LIGHTFAIR International 2019 speakers.
For LIGHTFAIR International 2019, the pre-conference program will take place from Sunday, May 19-Monday, May 20 and the LFI Trade Show and Conference will run from Tuesday, May 21-Thursday, May 23 at the Pennsylvania Convention Center. For more information, visit www.lightfair.com.
