Neuroscientist behind the first brain studies on terrorists, Dr. Hamid equips leaders with research-driven strategies to understand, prevent, and counter the spread of violent ideologies and extremist movements.
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Experience the expertise of the cognitive scientist who has interviewed jihadists, white nationalists, and QAnon followers firsthand. As a trusted advisor to the UN, NATO, and global governments, Dr. Hamid translates groundbreaking neuroscience into actionable strategies that help organizations detect, prevent, and counter extremism. Featured on Netflix and in TIME, he empowers leaders to build resilience, safeguard culture, and navigate today’s polarized world with clarity and confidence.
Keynote Speaker Nafees Hamid is an internationally renowned cognitive scientist specializing in extremism, conspiracy theories, and political violence. As the Research and Policy Director of XCEPT in the Department of War Studies at King’s College London and a Senior Research Fellow at the International Centre for the Study of Radicalisation, he has built a reputation as one of the world’s leading authorities on radicalization.
Dr. Hamid is known for pioneering the first neuroscience studies on violent extremists and conducting rare face-to-face interviews with jihadists, white nationalists, and QAnon supporters. His research has shaped policies at the United Nations, NATO, the US State Department, and the EU Commission.
When you book Nafees Hamid for your event, you empower your organization with evidence-based strategies to counter radical narratives, foster resilience, and build cultures of psychological safety. His keynotes deliver actionable insights grounded in rigorous science, helping leaders recognize the early warning signs of radicalization and respond decisively to ideological threats.
As a frequent expert on platforms such as Netflix’s The Mind Explained, TIME, CNN, and the BBC, Dr. Hamid transforms complex concepts into engaging stories that captivate audiences. Book Nafees Hamid for your event to gain powerful tools for protecting your organization in today’s polarized world.
Keynote by Nafees Hamid:
In this talk, Nafees draws on his ground-breaking neuroscience research on countering extremism, and his practical experience helping governments re-engage disaffected members of society, to explain how businesses and organisations can turn their employees into ‘devoted actors’. With a Gallup poll showing 30% of employees are actively disengaged – not just disengaged, but resentful of their companies – this is a crucial issue for business and wider societies. He will explore why a business mindset of material carrots and sticks fails to motivate the actively disengaged; how companies can counter-engage, channelling employees’ energy and even their subversiveness into positive outcomes; and how you can turn your worst into your best.
Keynote by Nafees Hamid:
Governments across the world have called on Nafees’ expertise to improve their conflict negotiation – including the UK’s negotiation with the Taliban - and for every type of conflict a government faces there is an equivalent in professional life. Nafees sees business leaders making the same mistakes governments do, and shares the vital tools he’s acquired in resolving conflict, including the power of being heard, symbolic concessions, and acknowledgements, and the lessons he learned at a Buddhist monastery, and later supported by neuroscience, on avoiding emotional burnout and the vital difference between empathy and compassion.
Keynote by Nafees Hamid:
Does mass media persuasion actually work? The answer: not the way we think it does. When Western governments found their anti-extremist messaging was falling flat, despite the best efforts of the biggest marketing firms in the world, they turned to researchers including Nafees for an explanation. The truth is any kind of persuasion – whether it’s religious conversion, turning people away from radicalisation, or enticing them to try a new product – only becomes effective with an element of social interaction. In this talk, Nafees blends evolutionary psychology, neuroscience, and his practical experience to explain how companies can use harness social interaction to build community around them, and turn their customers into devoted actors – passionate advocates of their brand.
