Sam Rad

The Change Futurist

Sam Rad, also known as Samantha Radocchia, is a futurist, anthropologist, entrepreneur, and keynote speaker who has spent more than two decades exploring how technology transforms the way people live, work, and understand the world.

Known as The Change Futurist, Sam helps organizations make sense of rapid technological developments and recognize the underlying patterns connecting major shifts. Her signature keynote, Change Has a Pattern, draws on her firsthand experience inside technology revolutions to show audiences that change, however unpredictable it may appear, follows patterns that can be understood.

Sam has delivered keynotes for Fortune 500 companies, governments, and associations across five continents. Her approach combines the analytical perspective of an anthropologist, the practical experience of a technology founder, and the energy of a captivating storyteller.

Two Decades at the Forefront of Technology

Sam Rad has founded four companies across artificial intelligence, blockchain, and connected hardware, giving her a unique perspective on how emerging technologies develop and reshape industries.

Beginning in 2010, her first two companies used AI to map personal taste, exploring the potential of intelligent systems long before AI became a mainstream business conversation.

She later co-founded Chronicled, a San Francisco-based technology company focused on bringing trust and transparency to global commerce and supply chains. Serving first as Chief Product Officer and later as Chief Marketing Officer, Sam contributed to early blockchain protocol development. This work was subsequently open sourced into Ethereum standards, predating and paralleling ERC-721.

Sam went on to co-found NYOUM, a London-based generative AI communication platform. She is also the first-named inventor on four granted US patents covering identity and provenance.

Today, Sam serves as Co-Founder and CEO of MISTIC Systems, a causal AI platform dedicated to strategic foresight and decision intelligence. Her experience provides audiences with practical insight into how technological breakthroughs move from early experimentation to widespread adoption.

Understanding the Human Side of AI

With a background in anthropology and linguistics, Sam Rad approaches technology differently from many futurists. Rather than observing innovation exclusively through technical developments, she studies it from within, examining how people interact with technology and how those interactions shape society.

In 2009, she conducted ethnographic fieldwork inside the virtual world Second Life, exploring digital identity and human behavior in emerging online environments.

In 2020, she built a working AI clone of herself, an experiment that contributed to her research into perceptual security: what happens when individuals and societies can no longer agree on what is real.

This perspective is particularly relevant as generative AI, digital identities, and increasingly sophisticated technologies challenge traditional assumptions about authenticity and trust.

Sam is also a member of the Content Authenticity Initiative, reflecting her continued involvement in conversations about the credibility and authenticity of digital content.

Author, Researcher, & Global Advisor

Sam Rad is the author of two #1 bestselling books: Bitcoin Pizza (2019) and Radical Next: Reclaiming Your Humanity in a Post-Human World (2025).

Her writing explores the relationship between emerging technologies, human identity, and the profound changes reshaping society. She has also written for Forbes, which recognized her on its prestigious 30 Under 30 list in 2017.

Sam previously served on the faculty of Singularity University, sharing her knowledge of exponential technologies and their implications for the future.

Her expertise has brought her into conversations with influential international institutions. She has briefed the United Nations, the World Economic Forum, INTERPOL, the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago, and the OECD.

Beyond her work in technology and strategic foresight, Sam leads RAD Original Creations (RADOC), the creative studio behind Illicit Shadows, an investigative documentary series examining the global illicit economy.

These experiences allow her to connect technology with broader questions of economics, governance, security, culture, and human behavior.

Book Sam Rad for Your Event

Booking Sam Rad means bringing an experienced technology entrepreneur and compelling futurist to your stage.

Her presentations are particularly relevant for leadership conferences, corporate events, innovation summits, industry associations, and organizations seeking fresh perspectives on AI, technological disruption, and the future of business.

When you book Sam Rad for your event, your audience can expect to:

• Recognize patterns behind change: Understand the forces driving technological shifts and learn to approach disruption with greater clarity and confidence.
• Explore the future of AI and emerging technology: Gain insights from Sam's firsthand experience building companies across AI, blockchain, and connected hardware.
• Understand the human impact of innovation: Discover how technology influences identity, trust, and the way people interact with an increasingly digital world.
• Turn uncertainty into opportunity: Develop a fresh perspective on change and feel more prepared to embrace the developments shaping tomorrow.

With the calm confidence of a former competitive skydiver and the energy of a rock star, Sam delivers keynotes that balance intellectual depth with genuine excitement.

She understands the challenges of building businesses during periods of technological uncertainty because she has experienced those transformations firsthand.