Media agency’s annual event brings futurologist to explore the creativity and technology that will propel us into a ‘brave new world’

Jason Silva, the Emmy-nominated host of National Geographic Channel’s ‘Brain Games’, futurologist and renowned performance philosopher, will headline the 2014 edition of BrainScape, the annual conference organized by media network PHD UAE (Omnicom Media Group). Taking place on October 20 at Dubai’s Sofitel The Palm, the event is expected to attract more than 200 media and advertising professionals. Silva’s vision of the future is not only compelling but also particularly relevant as the rate at which developments surface and transform our everyday lives is increasing exponentially. This requires organizations to keep adapting their approaches in order to not only stay relevant but also thrive.

BrainScape is an event series created in 2010 to propel PHD’s clients, teams and business partners into the future. It is designed to help them stay ahead of the curve by being better prepared for emerging trends. In the 2014 edition, titled ‘Reboot: Meet the New World That Awaits Us’, Silva will be speaking on the need for marketers to re-evaluate the way they look at the world, preparing them to ‘reboot’ their consciousness for what’s to come. He will draw from his analysis of advances in GNR (genetics, nanotechnology and robotics) to sharpen the audience’s vision of the future. He will elaborate on how the GNR revolution will allow us to engineer our consciousness in the future and the impact this will have on the marketing and advertising industry.

Silva, who was a major hit at this year’s Cannes Lions Festival, said: “Every poster, every slogan, every tweet, every hashtag is fighting for that limited resource of attention, for that cognitive space in your brain, so that something can go viral, so that something can be the new conversation, the new brand that becomes the new part of the lexicon.” He is a highly sought-after public speaker, having appeared at TED Global and the Economist Ideas Festival among others. He also presented shows on Current TV and now runs a YouTube channel.

“We were so impressed with Jason’s presentation at this year’s Cannes Lions, his charisma and infectious optimism for the future, that we were compelled to bring him to Dubai for BrainScape,” explained Elda Choucair, managing director of PHD UAE. “The faster things evolve around us, the more questions are raised and Jason has a fascinating take to help us answer them. Standing still is simply not an option and the better prepared we are for what is around the corner, the less we will be victims of the future. We’d much rather be architects of the future and BrainScape is one of our contributions to this goal.”

PHD’s BrainScape conference is produced with Choueiri Group’s dedicated digital media representation unit, Digital Media Services (DMS), as strategic partner. DMS handles a premium portfolio of regional online and mobile media, aiming to strengthen the value and effectiveness of the digital communication solutions, which the Group extends to brands and advertisers.

“It’s very encouraging to see how well BrainScape was received last year. The future really does belong to those who can seize it before it appears,” Michel Malkoun, the COO of DMS, said commenting on his company’s association with PHD’s BrainScape conference. “A great deal of what we do at DMS is centered on delivering exactly the sort of “innovation” on which the conference focuses. From embracing technological advances and bold new ideas to developing ground-breaking partnerships, digital media is definitely all about looking ahead and beyond tomorrow.”