Ari Wallach

Summary

I’m dedicated to one of the most urgent and hopeful challenges of our time: helping humanity—and the planet we call home—thrive over the long term. As host and executive producer of the PBS series A Brief History of the Future, I guide audiences through what’s possible when we reimagine tomorrow with clarity, courage, and creativity. Season 1 reached over 10 million viewers; Season 2 is currently in development. I co-founded Futurific Studios to pioneer protopian storytelling—future-forward narratives across media that resist dystopia and instead ask: What if we get it right? At Longpath Labs, we’re building tools, rituals, and frameworks to help people and institutions make decisions today with future generations in mind. Previously, I served as CEO of Synthesis Corp., where I led foresight-driven strategy labs for clients like CNN, the UN Refugee Agency, the US State Department, Pew, Ford Foundation, and Volkswagen. Think: systems strategy meets cultural intelligence. I’ve taught the future of democracy at Columbia SIPA, hosted Fast Company Futures, and co-created The Great Schlep with Sarah Silverman. Earlier in my career, I worked with the Democratic National Committee, United States Institute of Peace, and CORO, where I collaborated with leaders like Rev. Al Sharpton and Jonathan Tisch. Born in Guadalajara, raised in the Bay Area, I now build wood furniture inspired by Buckminster Fuller and Japanese design philosophies like wabi-sabi and kintsugi. Public speaking and thought leadership highlights include: TED, Aspen Socrates, Renaissance Weekend, DLD, Google Ideas, and reboot. I’ve also been honored as an ADL Steinberg Fellow, a Hillel Spitzer Fellow, and a Coro Fellow in New York City. The thread through it all? A belief that we must build a future that’s not only possible—but purposeful.