Food, technology, and design touch each of our lives every day. And, the link between the three is becoming even stronger. For the past four years, The Culinary Institute of America in collaboration with MIT Media Lab have convened reThink Food, a three-day event that gathers innovators from across the food, design, technology, and media sectors. This year’s conference will be held November 1–3 at the CIA at Copia in the Napa Valley. The thought-provoking program is designed to help leaders drive change in an uncertain future, as well as better understand likely short-term impacts of long-range, highly disruptive trends.
“In just the first half of this year alone, we’ve seen everything from e-commerce giants purchasing brick and mortar food powerhouses to self-driving pizza delivery cars, and a continued shift toward plant-forward menus and increasing aspiration for a more sustainable food supply,” says Greg Drescher, vice president of strategic initiatives and industry leadership at the CIA. “Our appliances and gadgets can now anticipate our needs and compile our grocery lists, and there is a continued exploration of the role of design in how we choose and consume our food. reThink Food will help leaders understand the current intersection of food and technology and prepare for what’s next—the challenges and opportunities that will define our industry in the next few years and beyond.”
Confirmed presenters include: Michiel Bakker, Google; Ali Bouzari, Pilot R+D; Kyle Connaughton, Singlethread Farm-Restaurant-Inn; Debra Dunn, FEED Collaborative/Stanford University d. school; Danielle Gould, Food+Tech Connect; Gerd Leonhardt, The Future Agency; Linda Deakin, IDEO, and John Foraker, Once Upon a Farm. school; Danielle Gould, Food+Tech Connect; Gerd Leonhardt, The Future Agency; and Chioma Ume, IDEO.
Sessions will provide insight into topics such as rapid product creation, consumer values and corporate citizenship in the age of consolidation, harnessing digital innovation to thrive, mapping out the future across the next five, 10, and 20 years, and much more.
