"Breaking News" Posts on ValleyZen

Imagine a collaborative and evolving art piece made of skies. Orphans, global leaders, students, scientists and teachers, alike — people from all races and backgrounds are participating in OneWorldSky.com and it is just beginning. Launched yesterday on the 100th anniversary of International Women’s Day, the project’s goal is to shine a light on the plight of women around the world. ABCNews.com featured the project today…

Last August, I was invited to attend and to present my art the World Economic Forum’s Annual Meeting in Davos. The overall theme for this Annual Meeting is Shared Norms for the New Reality.

I will present in 3 sessions: a one-hour solo session on my art, a panel discussion on art & illusion, and a cultural leaders dinner/discussion…

Last night we attended a special evening arranged by Peter Thiel and the Thiel Foundation entitled “Audacious Optimism.” Held at the Palace of Fine Arts in San Francisco, this unusual philanthropic summit brought together 8 organizations to present their visions for the future.

The evening began with a reception and cocktails and then a welcome from the Thiel Foundation and Patri Friedman, grandson of economist Milton Friedman and co-founder of the Seasteading Institute…

On Dec 12th, TEDx Silicon Valley brought together several hundred leading thinkers and doers to talk about Innovations for Social Change. A great lineup included Reid Hoffman (LinkedIn), Peter Thiel (Clarium Capital/Founders Fund), Thomas Goetz (Wired Magazine), Dr. Clayborne Carson (Martin Luther King, Jr. Research and Education Institute at Stanford University) and many more. [...]

“We used to have a manager and we got rid of them. We use to have a PR person and we got rid of them. We used to have a [inaudible] and we got rid of them,” Moonalice guitarist Roger McNamee (aka Chubby Wombat) said on stage to the enthusiastic crowd below at the Great American Music Hall in San Francisco.

Sound serious? Sure — the art of subtraction is not an easy one.

McNamee continued “So we turned it all over to Facebook and Twitter and …

Catherine Malandrino and Bernard Aidan invited us to Catherine Malandrino’s Spring Summer 2010 Collection at Mercedes Benz Fashion Week in NYC. Staged at the Chelsea Art Museum on the West side of Manhattan, Malandrino placed her models on pedestals instead of walking them down a runway. We arrived early to slip backstage and capture the pre-show mayhem and excitement. Recording star and hip hop diva Mary J Blige, Grammy Award-winning British R&B singer Estelle, Ralph Lauren supermodel and Host of Bravo’s “Make Me a Supermodel” Tyson Beckford, E! Star Kim Kardashian, TLC’s “Who Are You Wearing?” and TV Guide’s “Live from the Red Carpet’s” Keisha Whitaker, the fashion press, NY fashionistas, socialites, and buyers and guests from Japan and Europe all came to check out the show…

“It’s not brain surgery—It’s economics,” Meg Whitman recalled the take of her brain surgeon husband, Dr. Griffith Harsh, on California’s budget crisis. With a wry sense of humor, and authentic personal stories, Meg shared her impressive vision for a new California at the MEGa Women Bay Area Launch. Pumping up the audience was Statewide Chairwoman Jillian Manus: “there’s so much estrogen in this room, it could blow off the roof.” A diverse audience of female Silicon Valley influencers cheered when Jillian challenged them to go out and make MEGa Women a million strong…

Who are the most influential women in technology for 2009? You had to be with ValleyZen in the Fairmont San Jose last Thursday to be able not only to see but to experience the answer.

Women have gone a long way in tech, and the Anita Borg Institute for Women and Technology’s Women of Vision’s Award celebration and dinner presented ample evidence of the distances women have traveled. The event was beautifully emceed by CBS News Anchor, Sydnie Kohara with inspirational opening remarks by Telle Whitney, President & CEO of the Institute. The 2009 Women of Vision Awards honored three women who have made significant contributions to technology through outstanding innovation, leadership, and social Impact.

ValleyZen got full access to these inspirational women and the ambitious event. We interviewed the keynote speaker and the award recipients and spoke to numerous other accomplished women in technology, from…

You already know it all about the fabled “Über Entrepreneur” (as he was billed by the Churchill Club yesterday) Elon Musk. How he dropped out of the graduate program in Physics at Stanford after only two days, how he co-founded PayPal and was the largest shareholder when it sold to EBAY in 2002 for 1.5 billion, and all about his latest accomplishments and adventures with Tesla and SpaceX.

At ValleyZen we like to report on what we don’t know about yet, what’s new, what is in the imaginative space. In a Sumi-e painting that’s like the negative space, the space between brush strokes where all possibilities lie. People in Silicon Valley are comfortable with things that haven’t been defined yet and with what is uncertain. That’s exciting.

Yesterday we met with Elon and…

After his presentation today, Tom Siebel fielded audience questions.
A voice began speaking…

“What are you?” Siebel asked.
“A freshman,” the voice said.
“What are you studying?”
“Still figuring that out.”
“Me too,” said Siebel.

Silicon Valley gets Zen.

In the 80s and 90s, Siebel’s expertise in relational database theory helped him make Siebel Systems a global leader in software. Now he is becoming a Zen beginner—moving away from his domain, IT (Information Technology) into a totally new arena (Energy Technology). Even though Siebel has spent the last three years doing research on energy issues, this is uncharted territory for him. He’s taking a radical departure from his “comfort zones” in order to tackle pressing ecological problems. Siebel gave us a sneak preview of…