Bio
Adam Bly is the founder and CEO of System, a Public Benefit Corporation developing a systems-based approach to organize the world’s data and knowledge. He previously led data at Spotify. Prior to that, he founded and was CEO of Seed Scientific, the data analytics firm, which was acquired by Spotify.
Named a Young Global Leader by the World Economic Forum, Adam has lectured at the United Nations, MIT, NASA, Ars Electronica, MoMA, The National Academy of Sciences, The Royal Society, the World Economic Forum (WEF), and before the U.S. House of Representatives on the role of data and science in society. He was a Visiting Senior Fellow in Science, Technology & Society at Harvard Kennedy School, has advised Fortune 500 companies on data strategy and national political campaigns on science policy, and has served on the WEF Global Agenda Councils on Complex Systems and Data-Driven Development.
Deeply committed to modernizing and spreading science literacy, Adam founded and served as Editor-in-Chief of the National Magazine Award-nominated science magazine, Seed; co-organized Design and the Elastic Mind, the landmark exhibition at The Museum of Modern Art; and edited Science is Culture: Conversations at the New Intersection of Science and Society (HarperCollins). He served as a Trustee of the Society for Science, the organizer of world's largest pre-college science fair (which he won in 1998 — Best of Category, Biochemistry). For his efforts to advance the public's understanding of science, Adam was awarded the Queen Elizabeth II Golden Jubilee Medal.
Born in Montreal, he studied at McGill University and began his career researching the genetics and biochemistry of metastasis at the National Research Council of Canada. He lives in New York City.
NEWS
Some thoughts I wrote on the state of the modern world order: All the Institutions I Was Taught to Trust Are Crumbling All at Once
I have an essay out in The Boston Globe on the epistemological risks of generative AI, and what that could mean for truth, trust, and democracy. Amy Brand and I offer some new (and some very old) ways to think about building more responsible AI -- including the approach we're taking at System.
I have an op-ed out in The Information on how I think we must strengthen Congress to legislate AI and the science and tech issues of our time.
InformationWeek covers some of my thoughts on generative AI
I did a Data Science Hangout
I joined Paola Antonelli in Design Emergency on IG Live to talk about the why behind System.
We announced our Series A.
We announced the first product release from System.
I’ve joined the Board of Trustees of the Society for Science.
I’ve written A Thought Experiment in AI Infrastructure
My essay for Broken Nature, titled “Redesigning the System,” has been published.
I'm proud to be a coalition partner of Future Congress, working together with many wonderful organizations to ensure that Congress is equipped to legislate the science and technology issues of our era.
I spoke with public servants in Canada about the place of science literacy in the age of data, AI, and complexity. The talk and Q&A are now online.
As a lifelong supporter of science fairs (and 20-time competitor!), I'm thrilled to be joining the National Leadership Council of the Society for Science & the Public.
I've started a petition to restore science and technology advice to Congress. You can read more here and sign here.
I am hiring data, ML, and backend engineers for my new startup, including a Senior Data Engineer.
Brian Feldman wrote a very nice article in New York Magazine about Your Time Capsule, entitled Spotify Has The Only Algorithms I Don't Fear.