SingularityU Chapters around the world play a vital role in amplifying the SU mission to educate, inspire, and empower leaders to apply exponential technologies to help solve humanity’s grand challenges. Today, we're honored to announce 14 new Chapters and 12 Chapter renewals, bringing the total of worldwide SingularityU Chapters to 156 in 68 countries.
We award SingularityU Chapter licenses based on the passion of leadership teams to explore how exponential technology can create positive social impact and for their commitment to engage with their local communities. Chapter members represent a wide range of backgrounds and experiences—including entrepreneurs, policymakers, designers, academics, and business and NGO leaders. And through their involvement with Chapters, participants can tap into a growing network of impact-driven peers, mentors, and potential collaborators.Each quarter, we review applications for new and renewal Chapter licenses, so if you’re interested in upleveling the innovation ecosystem in your own community, consider applying to lead a Chapter! Our current application window is open from April 18th to May 9th. This year we’re also accepting combined Chapter and Global Impact Challenge license applications. To learn more or start your application, visit su.org/chapters/apply.
This quarter, we’re delighted to welcome new Chapters in 14 communities, including two new Chapters in the United States, bringing the US total to 24. It’s equally exciting to see the formation of new Chapters in places with no previous representation, such as Guatemala, Hong Kong, and Lithuania. And five countries have expanded from one Chapter to two: Austria, Colombia, Costa Rica, New Zealand, and Turkey. Finally, some Chapters have formed new leadership teams, and we’re excited to welcome these dedicated volunteers into their new roles.Now, it’s my pleasure to introduce the leadership teams and let you hear from some of them in their own words!SingularityU Amsterdam - The Netherlands (renewal)Alix Rübsaam, Jordy Egging, Maayke Aimée Damen, Peter Maarten WesterhoutSingularityU Ankara - TurkeyAykan Rasitoglu, Bahar Sen
"We would like to have a positive impact on Turkey’s digital economy by inspiring business and government leaders. For us, the Chapter means opening a digital channel for our local leaders to introduce them to exponential technologies and a global exponential mindset for people to create a better future—not just for our own good, but for rest of the world. We hope our community will replace long-held beliefs with abundance and inspire others into a 10x growth mindset."— SingularityU Ankara Chapter Leadership Team
SingularityU Asunción - Paraguay (renewal)Erick Dijkhuis, Liz González, Rodrigo Weiberlen, Santiago Campos
"We believe it's important to generate places that encourage conversations—where we merge key players of society to discuss actions we must take to advance the Paraguayan community and generate innovation. We´ve seen from past events that participants learned meaningful concepts and ideas, and they were happy to spend time with like-minded peers. We're happy to be part of the SU community!”— SingularityU Asunción Chapter Leadership Team
SingularityU Auckland - New Zealand Joanne Fair, Melissa Song, Vincent Vuillard
“We're very excited to create a community of SU alumni and other individuals who are passionate about exponential technologies, the future of work, and making a difference to New Zealand. Through networking, speaker events, and conversations, we hope to create an inclusive group that can impact Auckland and the wider New Zealand region in a positive way.” — SingularityU Auckland Chapter Leadership Team
SingularityU Brasília - Brazil (renewal)André Lago, Cristina Castro Lucas de Souza, Danielle Rodrigues, Gino Terentim Jr., Hannah Salmen, Juliana Martinelli, Juliano Lopes, Marcelo Almeida, Sephora Lillian, Thais Helena Nunnes Lodovico, Thiago de Aragao
“Our Chapter represents an important point of connection. It's our community's reference point for integrating into the global community. I see Chapters as 'nodes' in a large network. And so with each connection, we need to ensure that SU's shared purpose and values ??are preserved. The community can greatly benefit from the presence of a SingularityU Chapter because, in addition to participating in local events and discussions, they can actively contribute to the definition of critical themes for the country and the world.”— Gino Terentim Jr., SingularityU Brasília Chapter Leadership Team Member
“Brasília is a very peculiar city. Despite being the capital of Brazil, the city was built 60 years ago by open-minded founders with plans to host all major leaders of the country. Yet we only started to develop innovative minds to match our founders' plans in recent generations. I really like the quote 'Creativity is born of chaos, even if it is somewhat difficult to glimpse the possibilities in the midst of the confusion," from Charles Handy. To me, it represents Brasília's recent transformative movement. Somehow, having a SU Chapter here approximates our community to the speed of global change while encouraging the community to develop new projects. As for me, I am still part of the community! All the benefits we bring as Chapter leaders also impact me as a person and as an entrepreneur.”— Juliana Martinelli, SingularityU Brasília Chapter Leadership Team Member
“I’m excited to discover more about new technologies and trends and how the human race is preparing the future. I believe we’re able to change the world. This SingularityU Chapter creation in Brasília offers our city important opportunities for people to join in global conversation. Brasília is the capital of Brazil—one of the most important economies in the world. Which means that our city carries an ever-increasing set of demands, which are important to discuss. It’s our role to call attention to these subjects. The Chapter wants to share our knowledge!”— Juliano Lopes, SingularityU Brasília Chapter Ambassador
"I believe that by applying disruptive technologies, we can make collaborative innovation possible. To compete in a global market of ideas, we need to empower talent everywhere to become creators—rather than simply consumers—of technology and ideas. I want to be a part of the change of world-building initiatives that impact with SU. With the SingularityU Chapter Brasília, I hope to create a community of people around Singularity University’s purpose—to learn, connect, and innovate using technologies that connect challenges, practices, and organizations. I think the Brasília Chapter can inspire the community to act and positively impact the world."— Thais Helena Nunnes Lodovico, SingularityU Brasília Chapter Team Member
SingularityU Escazú - Costa RicaAnthony Mora, Cynthia Esquivel, Esteban Vallejo, Eva Moreno, Percival Aguilar
SingularityU Frankfurt Am Main - GermanyFabrizio Gramuglio, Laura Muranaka, Nicole DeWindt, Pedro Ferreira
"The SingularityU Frankfurt Chapter is a local, community-driven group. Our vision is to create a positive impact on the local community, promote discussions around exponential technologies, and strategize how to successfully address local and global challenges. Our focus is on on the environment, social inclusion, resource democratization, and economic growth.We believe that the more people that can collaborate to address these issues, the higher our chance of success. Join us in the conversation if you're bright, passionate, action-oriented local entrepreneurs, innovators, executives, policymakers, optimistic dreamers, or if you are looking for a stimulus to change your mindset!"— SingularityU Frankfurt Am Main Chapter Leadership Team
SingularityU Guatemala City - GuatemalaAlessandra Menezes Rodrigues, Ana Isabella González Palma, Ana Sofía Hegel Peralta, Anapaola Fernández Lehnhoff, Erick Quan, Jose Antonio Monteros Figueroa, Leandro Mauricio Porras, Maria Isabel Nölck, Pedro Ruíz, Rafael Davini, Ximena Vargas Respreto, Yara Morales Trujillo, Ziomara Estrada
“SingularityU Guatemala City is composed of a committed team of individuals, focused on making an impact through fostering conversations and connecting entrepreneurs and innovators. Team members were chosen because they possess these characteristics: expertise in exponential technologies, diverse academic background, creative, committed to social causes, and willing to collaborate. We plan on raising awareness and making an impact on our local ecosystem through exponential technologies.”— SU Guatemala City Chapter Leadership Team
SingularityU Hong Kong - People’s Republic of ChinaBin Yang, Joanne Lai Na ChanSingularityU Innsbruck - AustriaClemens Munter, Florian Lang, Vesela Tanaskovic
"Our goal is to foster community interest in exponential technologies and future-thinking, while at the same time we plan to spark local interest by discussing ways to solve global grand challenges. We want to share SU knowledge of exponential technologies to create a dialogue around innovation. We want to offer a safe space in Innsbruck and the Alps region for members to contribute to the SU vision and the vision of the SingularityU Innsbruck Chapter." — SingularityU Innsbruck Chapter Leadership Team
SingularityU Medellín - ColombiaAndres Escobar, Carolina Alzate, Juan Chica, Sebastian Toro
"Medellin is a very special place. The transformation process of the city has been incredible. And we believe that one way to actively continue contributing to this beautiful transformation is to connect the best of exponential technologies with social impact initiatives that benefit the local community and the whole world. This is why we're so excited to bring the SingularityU Chapter to Medellín ... to cultivate the mindset of all the leaders who firmly believe that they can positively impact the lives of a billion people, starting small ... starting in Medellín." — Juan Chica, SingularityU Medellín Chapter Ambassador
SingularityU Neenah - United StatesPete Dulcamara
“In this dynamic world, there are two types of companies—those that grow at a linear pace and those that grow exponentially with technologies like augmented/virtual reality, IoT, machine learning, genomics, and blockchain. In order to help keep our communities and companies from becoming 'digital deserts,' it's important to connect SingularityU Neenah with the local region. Our goal is to give access to these exponential technologies and to incorporate them into local businesses, universities, and communities.”— Pete Dulcamara, SingularityU Neenah Chapter Ambassador
SingularityU Newcastle - Australia (renewal)Angelo Agresti, Dr. Brendan Smith, Christina Gerakiteys, Dave Eddy, Jamie Sy, Lisa Kernes
“We are incredibly excited to continue bringing the message of SingularityU to Newcastle and Australia. Each of us has been exposed to the possibilities of exponential technologies in different ways, but we all share a common motive—to empower everyone to access the abundance that comes with solving the world's most important challenges, and by coordinating with other Australian Chapters to open the SingularityU Universe door to the greater country and nation. We can’t wait to see what's both imagined and achieved by the creative human minds in our region!”— Angelo Agresti and Dave Eddy, SingularityU Newcastle Chapter Leadership Team Members
“We're thrilled to have our Newcastle Chapter License renewed. We're committed to the mission and credo of Singularity University and look forward to sharing these with even more members of our local community. What's possible when like-minded people who are optimistic about the future work together to create a better world for all? It starts with your community.In Australia, we're three Chapters big! We love working with our sister Chapters in Sydney and Melbourne and we are looking forward to more SingularityU Chapters being announced in the next quarter. We're grateful to be a part of a global network supporting the use of exponential technologies to solve humanity's grand challenges.”— Christina Gerakiteys, SingularityU Newcastle Chapter Ambassador
SingularityU Northwest Arkansas - United States (renewal)Brian Hughes, Seth Waite
“We'll work to help others be inspired by the possibilities of exponential technology; to gain hands-on exposure and experience to be able to see the possibilities; to map out plans to participate from whichever professional seat they are currently occupying; and to connect with others who can be catalysts, partners, and resources for having impact.2018 was our year of connecting and learning. We're excited to dial up more focus on the personal passion and impact of individuals in the Chapter, and to shape where we go in 2019 with a broader and deeper contribution from Chapter participants.”— SingularityU Northwest Arkansas Chapter Leadership Team
SingularityU Quetta - PakistanAyesha Abdul Majeed, Muhammad Shah, Rehmat Khan, Sadia Khan, Syed Nisar, Yumna Iftikhar
“We believe that if young minds are grown in an entrepreneurial environment, they will become more effective. We feel that if entrepreneurs, especially those focused in tech startups, have access to exponential learning tools paired with what SingularityU Quetta can offer, we have the ability to help them scale their businesses successfully.We plan to engage the local community through entrepreneurial events, to provide education about the importance of creating solutions to our most pressing problems—particularly in Balochistan and Pakistan—through the exploration of exponential technologies.”— SingularityU Quetta Chapter Leadership Team
SingularityU Rio de Janeiro - Brazil (renewal)Diego Julidori, Viviane Menezes
"Last year, we started this exciting journey with the SingularityU Rio de Janeiro Chapter, and it's been an amazing experience for us. Although we've dreamed about this, we're still impressed by how strong the SU message is and how we can connect people together and motivate them to innovate for a better world. We know Rio de Janeiro has great potential and is a unique place, but we also face challenges. We believe exponential technology can offer a path to discover our greatest values and strengths. Let's keep this energy and work hard to make 10x impact on what really matters."— SingularityU Rio de Janeiro Chapter Leadership Team
SingularityU Rome - Italy (renewal)Arturo Iannotti, Giulia Tatananni, Khaled Kilzie, Luca La Mesa
"We believe that the future will be extraordinary, and exponential technologies represent a unique opportunity to create a positive impact on people's lives. To make this positive change happen, we believe that creating awareness is fundamental. For this reason, we have created our Chapter with the aim of spreading knowledge about exponential technologies, global grand challenges, and entrepreneurship in the local community. Moreover, we want to continue facilitating the connection between people of various backgrounds and the creation of ideas that can create a positive social impact."— SingularityU Rome Chapter Leadership Team
SingularityU Rotterdam The Netherlands (renewal)Henk Koster, Kadri Nieuwmans, Murray Gray, Robert-Jan Opschoor
“The Netherlands is a country of great enterprise and industry with a significant focus on creating a positive social and environmental impact. It's important for us to use the force multiplier of exponential technologies to channel this interest and energy. The modern city of Rotterdam is the the Netherlands' and SU's intersection for ethos and energy. So we're excited to continue our work to inspire innovation in Rotterdam, connect people, and mobilize their collective energy to create impact.”— SingularityU Rotterdam Chapter Leadership Team
SingularityU San Francisco - United States (renewal, new team)Bruno Bohn Lima, Luciano BuenoSingularityU Santo Domingo - Dominican Republic (renewal)Diego Torres, Frederic Emam-Zade, Roselyn Amaro B., Santiago CamarenaSingularityU Shenzhen - China (renewal)Joanne Chan, Jon Huang, Patrick MakSingularityU Tucson - United StatesWilliam Tatz
“Future literacy is the key to knowing what lies beyond us. It gives us the courage to be optimistic, the vision of what we can build together, and the path to the dignity of life for all. SingularityU Chapters are a unique way to connect the community and accelerate the transition to a mindset of abundance and systematic accountability, which will promote the creation and adoption of new technologies. By initiating the SingularityU Tucson Chapter, we wish to become a conduit for solving some of mankind's greatest challenges.”— William Tatz, SingularityU Tucson Chapter Ambassador
SingularityU Valencia - SpainOctavio Simini
English: “SingularityU de Valencia seeks to encourage discussion between all community leaders, entrepreneurs, and public and private entities. We want to support the development of innovation through talks with local experts. Our Chapter offers a platform for debate and open forum to share experiences and knowledge.”Spanish: “SingularityU de Valencia buscara dar una visión complementaria a entidades públicas y privadas, con o sin fines de lucro, para apoyar el desarrollo de la innovación mediante charlas y entrevistas con expertos locales, dando un espacio de debate y foro abierto para compartir experiencias y conocimientos.”— Octavio Simini, SingularityU Valencia Chapter Ambassador
SingularityU Vicenza - ItalyAlessio Alberini, Irene D'Agati, Lucilla Fazio, Paolo Festa, Tommaso Corà
“As Italians, we strongly believe in the power of culture. As world citizens, we're fully convinced that to positively impact people's lives we need to work hard to inspire and educate our local community. Our goal is to create a network of people who are aware of the potential of exponential technologies and want to create a better future for all. We think that politics, companies, economic, and social structures can help to solve humanity’s grand challenges. How? By taking action. Everyone can do something to change the world. Our motto is ‘Be the change.’”— SingularityU Vicenza Chapter Leadership Team
SingularityU Vilnius - LithuaniaAndrius Žilenas, Andželika Rusteikiene, Diana Garlytska, Dovydas Laukys, Gabija Skucaite, Jurgita Gintautaite, Kosma Gulbinskiene, Simona Simulyte
“I see the biggest asset for the companies in our country to scale only through the use of exponential technologies. Being part of the SU network, we want to create a community of changemakers who want to impact the world by solving humanity's biggest challenges”. — Gabija Skucaite, SingularityU Vilnius Chapter Ambassador
“Our Chapter Lead Team is excited to unite thought leaders, academics, and business representatives interested in being part of public activities to promote advanced technologies for exponential growth. Granting a SingularityU Chapter license to Vilnius allows us to create a platform for and significantly enhance science-to-business collaboration in our community.”— Diana Garlytska, SingularityU Vilnius Chapter Leadership Team Member
“Personal: Brilliant opportunity to check and compare our possibilities and competencies against global challenges and demand. Community: The SingularityU Vilnius Chapter should be a good opportunity for local businesses to feel the world's dominant business trends, flows, and winds.”— Andrius Žilenas, SingularityU Vilnius Chapter Leadership Team Member
“The SingularityU Vilnius Chapter launches the presence of a SU community in Lithuania—a country known for its high-profile IT experts, fastest internet, and entrepreneurial spirit. The city is located at the crossroads of Eastern and Central Europe. That's why we are happy to initiate a SingularityU Chapter here in a vital center of the Baltics region.”— SingularityU Vilnius Chapter Leadership Team
SingularityU Vitória - Brazil (renewal)Evandro Milet, Gilberto Sudré, Glícia Balestrassi, Leonardo Carraretto, Luciana Carraretto, Marcelo Lage, Rafael Lontra, Renzo Colnago
“Vitoria is a special city with characteristics that promote it as a center of entrepreneurship and innovation. The continuity and growth of the Singularity community are about leveraging development and new ideas that further promote life and progress.”— SingularityU Vitória Chapter Leadership Team
It’s thrilling to see the excitement and optimism of these leadership teams! Are you inspired to join them?If you’re interested in engaging members of your community in thoughtful conversations about exponential technologies and to start galvanizing positive change, maybe you’re ready to take the next step. Check out our current Chapter locations, and if you don’t see your city or country represented, apply to lead one! You’ll find more details about Chapters on our website.