Strategy · Innovation · Writing · Speaking
25 years of building startups and tech companies.
Bill O'Connor is a strategist, writer, and innovation advisor who has spent thirty years at the intersection of technology, business, and human systems. He is the founder of Futurity Systems and creator of the Innovation Genome Project — a research framework built on the study of the top 1,000 innovations in world history, published in the MIT Press Innovations journal and used across industries worldwide.
He has conducted 600+ innovation engagements with 250+ corporations across more than 50 countries, working directly with 8,000+ professionals, 4,000+ executives, and 25+ CEOs — from Google and Apple to NASA, the U.S. Department of Defense, the Nobel Foundation, and the World Bank.
Beyond the frameworks, Bill is a writer and operator. He served for a decade as lead speechwriter for the CEO of Autodesk, crafting 325 speeches and presentations. He was Editor-in-Chief of Autodesk: POV, the company's emerging technologies journal, writing and editing 290 articles on AI, future of work, and emerging technology. His work has been featured in The Economist, Forbes, and Fast Company.
Today, Bill works with founders and executives on strategy, narrative, and the thinking that connects the two. He is based in Wellesley, Massachusetts.
For 25 years, Bill has worked with governments, Fortune 50 companies, intelligence agencies, military academies, global banks, and the Nobel Foundation — across more than 50 countries.
A research framework built on the study of the top 1,000 innovations in world history — identifying the seven fundamental questions that underlie all creative breakthroughs. Published in the MIT Press Innovations journal and deployed across 250+ organizations.
ResearchFrameworkMIT PressA multi-agent AI collaboration architecture combining the Innovation Genome with De Bono's Six Thinking Hats. MACRO gives AI systems structured cognitive roles — enabling organizations to use AI as a genuine thinking partner, not just a productivity tool.
AI SystemsFrameworkAn invitation-only global conference for practitioners at the frontier of AI and innovation. Staged at Norrsken House, Barcelona — 100+ senior practitioners, two days of structured provocation, and the talk "The Swans Don't Care" on multi-agent AI collaboration.
ConferenceCommunityA collaborative research effort with the Nobel Foundation in Stockholm — 11 in-depth interviews with Nobel Laureates on how they think, discover, and innovate. One of the most unusual and rigorous innovation research projects ever undertaken.
ResearchNobel FoundationBill works with a small number of clients at a time — founders, C-suite leaders, and leadership teams who need clear thinking, sharp language, and someone who has actually built things at the frontier.
Half-day or full-day session using the Innovation Genome and MACRO frameworks. Leaves the team with a real map — not a deck of slides that ages in a drawer. Designed for teams of 8–25.
High-level ghostwriting and speech development: keynotes, investor letters, op-eds, board presentations, LinkedIn thought leadership, and vision documents. Strategic thinking that becomes sharp language.
Two weeks. One clear story. Covers investor pitch narrative, positioning, messaging hierarchy, and the language that makes people say yes. Delivered as a structured document and working session.
"I've always written to understand what I think. The essay is the most honest format I know — longer than a tweet, shorter than a lie."
Bill has delivered keynotes and workshops at Autodesk University, Google conferences, Singularity University's Global Summit, business schools on five continents, and the invitation-only Future/Faster/Today conference in Barcelona. He speaks with practitioners in mind: no theory without application, no idea without a path forward.
"Good innovators need to have vision. And they need to have guts."
Whether you're thinking about a keynote, a consulting engagement, an advisory role, or a conversation — reach out directly.
bill@oconnor.works