Noted futurist and inventor Ray Kurzweil has been announced as a keynote speaker at the 2008 Game Developers Conference in San Francisco.
Described as “the restless genius” by the Wall Street Journal and “the ultimate thinking machine” by Forbes, Kurzweil was ranked No. 8 by Inc. magazine in its list of American entrepreneurs, calling him the “rightful heir to Thomas Edison.” Kurzweil has won many accolades for his work, including the $500,000 MIT-Lemelson Prize for innovation, the 1999 National Medal of Technology and an induction into the National Inventor’s Hall of Fame in 2002.
Entitled “The Next 20 Years of Gaming,” his address will take place on February 21 from 10:30 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. in the Esplanade Room of the Moscone Center’s South Hall. Other speakers scheduled for this year’s GDC include videogame pioneer Ralph Baer, Bungie engineering lead Chris Butcher, Crytek’s Cervat Yerli, 2K Boston president Ken Levine, Richard Bates of Entropia Universe and LucasArts Senior Producer Haden Blackman.
“Bringing the future to life has always been at the heart of the game industry, so it’s essential to have our vision refreshed by one of the greatest living thinkers,” said GDC Executive Director Jamil Moledina. “As a technology inventor and prophetic visionary, Ray Kurzweil is that rare individual who can inspire the next evolutionary step forward in what games do.”
The Game Developers Conference is the world’s largest industry-only event dedicated to interactive entertainment. This year’s conference takes place from February 18-22 at the Moscone Convention Center in San Francisco. More information and registration links are available at www.gdconf.com.
