Location
Earth
Areas of Expertise
Expert Bio Misha Byrne is a social-cognitive neuroscientist, behavioural strategist, and Singularity University expert in Neuroscience & Performance, specializing in the intersection of brain science, human behaviour, and organizational transformation. As Head of Consulting at The Future Academy X in Munich and Partner at NeuroPower Group in Australia, Misha helps business leaders accelerate digitalisation and AI adoption by leveraging neuroscience insights to drive behavioural change, enhance team performance, and design more human-centred organizations, products, and communities. With a research background in the brain mechanisms underlying self-monitoring and performance improvement, he has applied his expertise across a diverse range of high-impact projects, including prototyping a human-like AI personality for autonomous vehicles with one of Japan's largest car manufacturers, leading digital transformation initiatives in healthcare, coaching senior executives through organizational change, and facilitating peace and nuclear disarmament alliances between Indian and Pakistani medical professionals. Misha is also an invited editor of NeuroPower: Leading with Neurointelligence, a leading reference in applied neuroleadership. His current work is focused on bringing science, soul, and common sense to the Future of Work, harnessing technology, diversity, and collaboration to build high-performance cultures that are resilient, adaptive, and deeply human.
Sessions Exponential ethics – A leader's guide to the ethics of Artificial Intelligence at work and home
Artificial Intelligence is rapidly moving from 'proof-of-concept' to 'powerful disruptor'. A major transformation is underway, and it's bigger than any one profession, industry, community or country. But just because we can disrupt with AI, does it mean we should? Are there side-effects or unintended consequences to AI deployments?
In this session, we'll talk about the good and bad of AI – what's been learned from AI fails, the true costs of AI-based solutions and some of predictions of leading thinkers in AI. Finally, we'll explore what all this means for leaders and business decision-makers, and share a working model for ethical decision-making around your AI projects.
How to stay human in an exponential future
300 years ago, the industrial revolution split human life into work and home and we have been struggling ever since. Now, neuroscience research gives us hard evidence that our complicated mechanical systems of leadership performance etc. hold back human performance by forcing us to work in ways that just don't suit the brain. This provocative talk challenges assumptions around what it means to be professional and a leader and presents the evidence that human relationships and tribe-based performance must be the foundation for the future of work as we accelerate towards an exponential future.
Leadership at a distance: practical techniques for virtual and hybrid teams
How you can use neuroscience to help your distributed team to thrive. Once we all get used to our new 'home offices', what comes next? For some teams, it will be a waiting game – keeping minimum functions running until quarantine ends and things get 'back to normal'. Put simply, that may never happen. Innovation is born from necessity. What's almost inevitable is that the world is racing towards a new normal, with remote work at the centre. This session will share the lessons learned by our team as we have established our remote working over the last five years. Guided by the latest insights from neuroscience, we have trialled and refined simple practices that help remote working teams to thrive -- even when they're not face-to-face. We're looking forward to sharing how we got there, and how you can build on these practices to get your tribe in shape as quickly as possible.
The future of mindfulness: meditation, brain science and exponential technology
In the last 3,000 years, humans have been experimenting with how mindfulness practices and training can improve the quality of our lives and for the last 20 years neuroscience has also shown the incredible impact of mindfulness on the functioning and structure of the human brain. Meanwhile, biohackers and performance experts have been quietly revolutionising technology to help track how your brain is functioning and can provide real-time feedback to boost performance. The result: a wave of new technologies and practices that focus in on the very core of brain training and can bring a unique set of benefits - increased happiness, increased performance and increased health.
The Neuroscience of Performance
Telecommunications, Change Management, Resilience, Digital Identity and Relationships, Future of Work
The human brain is the one piece of technology that we all have access to. But too many of us still understand our smartphones more than our neuro-capabilities or our own 'NeuroPower'. In the last decade, we have learnt more than ever about how the brain works, and what it needs to function at its very best. The biggest insight: we're not designed to perform alone, but instead we're hard-wired to work in groups. In this session, Misha will share findings from the field of social-cognitive neuroscience, which has helped understand the deep, universal needs of the human 'social' brain. He will introduce six building blocks of human performance and how you can harness these to improve how you manage yourself, support your colleagues and build high performance teams across any organization.
Why Brains Hate Change and What To Do About It
The 'fear of change' is not just a throwaway phrase. The brain associates change with threat and, as such, the mind and body then automatically go into threat response mode. Our response to change starts in the brain; most of us look for some degree of safety, certainty and predictability in our lives. We tend to avoid anything that will activate a threat response in the brain, which is what happens when we perceive that our job, our daily routine, or our livelihood is at risk. Not knowing what will happen tomorrow causes most people to expend neural energy on the threat response rather than in more productive pursuits.
In this talk, we explore the neuroscience of why change can feel uncomfortable, even when you want it to happen, and introduces neuroscience-based self-management and team-management techniques that can help teams better adapt to exponential change.
Enhancing Human Potential: From Neural Interfaces to Intelligent Environments.
At the intersection of neuroscience and technology, we stand on the brink of a new era in human potential. In this keynote, Misha Byrne will explore how breakthroughs in neurotechnology—like brain-computer interfaces, real-time brain monitoring, and adaptive environments—are reshaping our workspaces, healthcare systems, and personal wellbeing. Through practical examples and case studies, you’ll discover how cutting-edge research and consumer-ready devices are optimizing cognition, accelerating innovation, and even reimagining collaboration across vast distances.
From intelligent workstation tools that adjust lighting and acoustics based on brain activity to wearable sensors that allow intuitive control of devices via thought alone, these advanced solutions promise transformative shifts in productivity, learning, and creativity. But along with unprecedented opportunity come profound ethical considerations around privacy, security, and equitable access. Join us for this forward-thinking keynote where you’ll see how neural interfaces and environment design can unlock new frontiers of human performance—while confronting key questions about the responsible deployment of these powerful technologies.
Pioneers' Perspectives: Charting the Future of Neurotechnology
n this dynamic panel discussion, leading experts from neuroscience, neurotech entrepreneurship, and industry will come together to examine how emerging innovations are redefining the boundaries of human potential. Together, they’ll explore everything from direct brain-computer interfaces and cognitive enhancement tools to AI-driven diagnostics and therapeutic devices. What do these breakthroughs mean for healthcare, workplace productivity, and everyday life—and how might they shape our understanding of intelligence, consciousness, and social connection?
With firsthand insights into cutting-edge research and startup development, panelists will share their visions of tomorrow’s neurotech-enabled world, revealing the biggest opportunities and most pressing challenges along the way. Key themes will include the ethical implications of collecting neural data, ensuring equitable access to advanced brain tools, and navigating the complexities of regulatory oversight. Attendees will discover how neuroscientists, entrepreneurs, and policymakers can collaborate to responsibly harness these powerful technologies for global impact. Join us for an in-depth exploration of humanity’s next frontier, where new paradigms of intelligence and connectivity are poised to transform nearly every aspect of life.
Hands-On NeuroTech: Experience Tomorrow's Technology Today
Are you curious about controlling devices with your mind or discovering how real-time neurofeedback can sharpen your focus? Step into the future of neurotechnology in this immersive, hands-on workshop, where you’ll explore some of the market’s most exciting brain-interface tools. From EEG headsets that track and optimize attention to wearable sensors that adjust environment settings in response to your cognitive state, these devices represent the vanguard of human-computer interaction.
No prior experience with neuroscience is required—just an open mind and a willingness to experiment. You’ll learn how these technologies capture and interpret brain signals, get tips for using them to boost productivity or relaxation, and see how they’re already changing the way innovators approach health, education, and creativity. Whether you’re intrigued by brain-controlled apps, personalized mental wellness solutions, or unlocking team collaboration through shared neural insights, this interactive session will spark fresh ideas for applying neurotech in work and daily life. Join us to move beyond the hype and experience the real possibilities—and limitations—of harnessing the power of your brain
Rewiring for Change: Harnessing Neuroscience to Drive Effective Transformation.
Technology is disrupting more than just our products and industries. It’s also transforming how we understand ourselves and your competitive advantage as a leader of humans. Brain scanners, EEGs, wearables and gaming tech have been democratising research and giving rise to deep insight into the drivers of human performance. And you can use what we’ve learned to help you and your organization adapt. Dive into the fascinating world of social neuroscience and discover why our brains instinctively resist change, even when we consciously desire it. This captivating session unravels the complex neural pathways that govern our responses to transformation, offering invaluable insights for personal growth and organizational leadership. Through an engaging blend of cutting-edge social cognitive neuroscience theories and real-world applications, you can center your leadership around an evidence-based understanding of the brain's deepest needs and the DNA of an effective “change-as-usual” culture. Armed with these insights, you’ll be prepared to navigate personal, professional, and organizational change more effectively, engage your talent, and convert exponential fear into passion for progress
