MICHAEL TCHONG: INNOVATION SPEAKER
Michael is a top-rated, innovation and trends speaker who has addressed tens of thousands of attendees at gatherings around the world, inspiring them with remarkable insights into changing consumer and business trends.
Michael takes audiences on his trademark “roller-coaster ride through the landscape of now,” during which he showcases innovative brands, ideas and products that leverage “Ubertrend” waves to alter the global landscape.
His incisive people-watching skills have lead to adjunct professorships of innovation and social media at the University of San Francisco and UC Berkeley, where he teaches the anthropological framework of the eight Ubertrends he tracks.
Ubertrends are massive waves that cascade through society leaving many subtrends in their wake, and they provide telltale signs for helping decode the future. His unique skills as a futurist lead the U.K.’s Daily Telegraph to label Michael “America’s most influential trend-spotter.”
Michael is a catalyst who inspires and motivates attendees by challenging their creativity and inventiveness. His informative yet entertaining style fuses the emotional and rational brain to help foster a new culture of innovation.
He has appeared in numerous publications and TV shows, including Access Hollywood, Ad Age, Bloomberg TV, BusinessWeek, CNET, CNN, The Independent (U.K.), The New York Times, PBS, San Francisco Chronicle, San Jose Mercury-News, USA Today, The Wall Street Journal and Wired.
A successful four-time entrepreneur, Michael is the founder of four innovative startups, MacWEEK, Atelier Systems, CyberAtlas and ICONOCAST, each an ahead-of-the-wave innovators that helped pioneer such markets as desktop publishing, CRM, internet research and digital marketing.
Michael is the founder of Ubercool Innovation, a consultancy and incubator, and is currently writing his third book, “Ubertrends — How Trends And Innovation Are Transforming Our Future,” to be published in 2018.
“I help you catch the next wave before it catches you.”
— Michael Tchong – Trends Speaker – Innovation, Technology, Marketing
Client Testimonials
From the U.K.’s The Telegraph, which called Michael “America’s most influential trendspotter,” to a host of conference attendees, he has received much acclaim for his delivery style. Discover why people like to hire business trends speaker Michael from the quotes below.

“Engaging, inspirational, educational, futuristic and ‘crying out loud’ funny are just a few things our attendees told us about Michael. He had us laughing and hanging on his every word as he gave us a glimpse into what the future could hold and the role we all will play in it.”
— Dom Perry, Senior Director, Ops Services, Chili’s

Much Wisdom
“The members really enjoyed you. You were a great speaker and showed much wisdom.”
— Howard Brodsky, CEO, Carpet One

Woke Me Up!
“Michael, thank you for the wonderful keynote and for waking me up!”
— Andrea Hadley, Director, Internet Marketing Conference

Entertaining and Engaging
“Michael was entertaining and engaging and brought a lot of substance to our meeting.”
— Jon Luther, Chairman and CEO, Dunkin’ Donuts

Fresh Perspective
“Michael has the unique ability to engage entertain and energize an audience, getting them to re-look at their business, industry and consumer with a fresh perspective. Highly recommended!”
— Craig Spiezle, Executive Director, Online Trust Alliance Forum

Fantastic!
“It was a pleasure to work with you again on this year’s Social Media & Community 2.0 Conference. Your keynote was fantastic, as always, and I look forward to future events.”
— Stacy Levyn, Director, Conference Producer, Institute for International Research/IIR USA

Love His Attitude
“Michael is entertaining, humorous, full of high energy and presents the real truth that is easy to understand and relates to every single person in everyday life. I have seen him twice and at every event I learn more and more about the trends and where we need to go to succeed in our business. I love his attitude!”
— Bernice Brubeck Wong, Realtor, 2011 AREAA National Convention

Stunned and Energized
“Michael Tchong is a world class futurist, trendcaster and speaker. He left our audience simultaneously stunned and energized by his incredible presentation of the acceleration in technology and social media.”
— Joni Doolin, CEO, People Report Best Practices Conference

Challenging Our Thinking
“Michael offered compelling insights into the trends of global society, challenging our thinking about how to serve tomorrow’s customers. His style is entertaining and engaging.”
— Jay Witzel, President and CEO, Carlson Hotels Worldwide Regent Hotels

Funny and Irreverent
Spot-on, funny and occasionally irreverent, Michael was easily the highest rated speaker at our Leadership Summit. I’m sure we’ll bring him back to NAR again, as I look forward to hearing him a third time!”
— Janet Branton, Senior Vice President, National Association of REALTORS

Created Buzz
“Michael, you created a buzz that reverberated throughout the Symposium. You not only are an expert extraordinaire on trends but you deliver your message in a fun, engaging, mind-expanding style. Many simply stated: WOW!”
— Tom Costello, Director, Hospitality Industry Management Program
University of San Francisco

Broaden Perspective
“Michael helped our Planning Leadership Team broaden our perspective before entering a two-year planning cycle. As we are consumed with operating and executing in the present, Michael helped us to look into the future implications for our business.”
— Cliff Robinson, Vice President, Field Operations, Chick-fil-A Inc.

Future Consumer Landscape
“Michael not only grabs you from the beginning with his entertaining and energetic style, but he brings insight about the future consumer landscape like no one else I have ever heard.”
— Clayton Reid, President, The Vail Summit

Great Visuals
“Michael was terrific. He kept the audience laughing and in awe of the new technology he discussed. People thought he was the best presenter! They are still talking about him. I wanted everyone to say WOW and they did. He is very high energy and had great visuals!”
— Shirley Hastings, Professor and Associate Dean, University of Tennessee

Dynamic
“What a treat it was to have you attend and speak at our annual meeting last week. You were a positive addition to our presentations and we have received numerous compliments. Not only was your material fresh and interesting, but your delivery was dynamic and entertaining.”
— Cami Mattson, President & CEO, San Diego North Convention & Visitors Bureau

Gift
“Thanks for the warm, humorous way you opened our first Clio Interactive Advertising Awards Gala. It was a memorable launch and because of your efforts and support, left a very favorable impression with the digital community. As I suspected, you have a gift for waking up an audience — not only in print but in person.”
— Andrew Jaffe, Executive Director, CLIO Awards

Rapt Audiences
“Michael presents consumer trends to a very senior audience of brand owners with an engaging, thought-provoking presentation style that holds audiences rapt. I highly recommend Michael as a delightful departure from typical dry conference sessions.”
— Pat Benkner, CMP, Director of Event Planning, Edgell Communications

Truly Amazing
“Your keynote address to the hotel owners and guests of Vantage Hospitality was truly amazing and the timing couldn’t have been better.”
— Roger Bloss, CEO, Founder, President, Vantage Hospitality Group, Inc.

Thought Provoking
“Your presentation was informative, humorous and thought-provoking. Attendees of our conference found the information you provided extremely useful and many are making budget changes to increase their Internet advertising spends. In fact, we’ve closed several large deals as the result of the seminars and your presentation.”
— Kristin Asleson, Vice President Strategic Marketing, mPlayer.com





Ubertrends
Sub-titled “How Trends And Innovation Are Transforming Our Future,” Michael’s third book, “Ubertrends,” will graphically document the extent to which eight Ubertrend forces are ruling society today, and what innovations those trends are driving. This data-based tour de force, to be published in 2018, will help readers connect the dots, providing more ready context for how the future is unfolding.

Michael’s Books Speak Volumes
Like his presentations, Michael’s books are truly state of the art. Each pièce de résistance is massively data-based, thoroughly researched, gorgeously designed and beautifully illustrated with hundreds of photographs, charts and cartoons. This is not diarrhea of the mind as most books tend to be. Social Engagement Marketing features no less than 202 social media vendors, each carefully dissected for their features, or lack thereof.

Social Engagement Marketing
The social dialog propelled by social media’s revolutionary digital platforms that are reinventing consumer interaction. This trend is leading to a new marketing discipline, one analyst and inspirational speaker Michael Tchong dubs “social engagement marketing.” This explains why Michael created an innovative book with the same title. “It’s not about the media,” says Michael, “it’s about engaging a whole new generation of consumers and business executives, whose values are being reshaped almost daily by their new-found social dialog.”
Download PDF →

Trendscape 2004
Trends come. Trends go. The only constant is change. Trendscape 2004 is designed for those who suffer from a gnawing suspicion that, somehow, they’re missing out. Staying on top of trends can be a daunting task. Managing long reading lists while googling endlessly is a significant time drain. That’s why Michael wrote Trendscape 2004. It’s designed to keep readers au courant. While you might think a book about trends would be outdated quickly, the truth is most trends don’t change that fast, particularly massive waves, dubbed “Ubertrends.”
Download PDF →
Updated: July 2017 Ubertrends Infographic
Five of Michael’s framework of eight Ubertrends — massive waves cascading through society, leaving many subtrends in their wake — are illustrated in this Ubertrends Infographic. Note: All cited data is hyperlinked.

Here’s the innovation speaker you have been looking for!
Today, businesses and consumers alike demand more innovation. Michael Tchong’s exhilarating tour of the “landscape of now” shows how innovative companies are strategically leveraging trends in food, healthcare, hospitality, lifestyle, real estate, retailing, technology and travel. This cross-disciplinary exposé of the leading edge of consumer and business trends will help spur innovation within your organization.
Recent Tweets
Some key trends shared by Ubercool Innovation's Michael Tchong. Michael: You killed it.@ubercool @FurnitureToday #ftleadership pic.twitter.com/hXccIokMDg
— David T Perry (@DT_Perry) November 29, 2017
@ubercool great talk about innovation with "buen spanglish" #ForoLevel3
— Oscar Suarez (@oscarsuarezruiz) October 19, 2017
Thank you Michael @ubercool for attending to our #forolevel3. Awesome presentation! pic.twitter.com/XjEezAAQ4e
— Marcelo Pineda (@MarceloPinedaA) October 17, 2017
Interesting to see visual reactions during @Ubercool's #ftleadership preso on future trends. Some rapid note-taking and some head-shaking. Both attitudes are important to consider because they paint the reality of theoretical ideas v. practical realities.
— Jake Neeley (@jakeneeley) November 29, 2017
Gracias a @ubercool por compartir tu experiencia con los switchers #SWITCH2017 pic.twitter.com/7xhE0bNi7L
— Startup Mexico (@startupmexico) November 8, 2017
Pay attention to the sign. Great presentation @ubercool #ForoLevel3 pic.twitter.com/B1VrpqOTeg
— Ivanna Zauzich (@ivannazau) October 17, 2017
Done! I'm sure @FTBillMc will find a way to get you back sometime. 😉 pic.twitter.com/G4uMROKMB6
— Jake Neeley (@jakeneeley) November 29, 2017
Great speaker this morning at Leadership today conference with @ubercool
— Scott Hill (@shillfurniture) November 29, 2017
#ForoLevel3. Esto es innovación!! Entender como la cultura está cambiando! @ubercool pic.twitter.com/8va9hICioQ
— Yolanda Pita Vanegas (@yolypitav) October 19, 2017
You gave a great conference @ubercool. #Switch2017
— Ana P. (@anapatricia_c) November 8, 2017
Amazing session @InsightsMRX @ubercool!! Lots to think about…#MRXNEXT #MRX
— jill donahue (@jilledonahue) May 9, 2017
Feeling quite über cool myself in my new NYC shoes so bring on @ubercool #NEXTinnovation17 pic.twitter.com/tYQ6uvh6Pv
— Keen as Mustard (@keenasmustard) May 9, 2017
@ubercool @stevencook luv the consumer control trend! Uber preso by Michael today!
— SMB Growth (@smbgrowth1) April 19, 2017
Just attended SVEN Future Marketing Ubertrends Michael Tchong was outstanding! Can't wait for his book this fall. @stevencook @ubercool
— Steve Metzger (@SJM0911) April 20, 2017
@ubercool fantastic presentation at RILA. Engaging and opening minds of the audience
— NKukuk (@NormKukuk) February 14, 2017
Great presentation on #innovation by @ubercool at #RILAtweets
— Paul Lovett (@BadBeat) February 13, 2017
@ubercool Our team really enjoyed your insights and gathered a lot of great takeaways!
— MercuryGate (@MercuryGate) February 13, 2017
Great presentation by @ubercool #RILAsupplychain
— Gary Darnell (@DarnFun) February 13, 2017
It was an ubercool presentation! #RILAsupplychain 😼👍🏻 https://t.co/1qQEq3KtMj
— Julie Lagace (@julie_lagace1) February 13, 2017
Fantastic presentation @ubercool at #RILAsupplychain! pic.twitter.com/Wo2um2JHPk
— Digital Maggie (@digitalmaggie) February 13, 2017
“Keep services fast and simple.” @ubercool #WNWNSummit #innovation #inspiration #creativity
— Realty ONE Group (@RealtyONEnews) May 1, 2016
Just enjoyed an engaging and creative presentation on #innovation from @ubercool at #pultemortgage
— Greg (@g_opie) April 22, 2016
@ubercool @g_opie Same here! Wish we had more time to spend with you.
— Ben (@hollidaybuck) April 27, 2016
Enjoying great talk by @ubercool Michael Tchong at @LUXRE conference on the ubertrends of the world. #lrebh pic.twitter.com/rlbJWwF6ju
— Michael Edlund (@ArcticLeo) April 20, 2016
@ubercool Michael your presentation at RILA was engaging, thought provoking and entertaining – thoroughly enjoyed it! @RILAtweets
— KC (@kc6235) April 19, 2016
Fantastic presentation, a perfect analysis of where technology is taking our culture. Thanks! @ubercool #RILA
— Sean (@sjwalkerhome) April 19, 2016
Don't go backwards EBR @ubercool saying prescriptive analytics is the future @rilatweets https://t.co/bEg4gFMgMV pic.twitter.com/BgTIpVtl6N
— guy yehiav (@guyyehiav) April 19, 2016
Watching @ubercool expand our minds for #RILAap’s keynote on Day 2! pic.twitter.com/vp0eP7eGJt
— D&D Daily (@DandDDaily) April 19, 2016
Fantastic presentation @ubercool during the @MtgCoop Winter Conference. Be disruptive!
— NCS TRV® (@NCSTRV) February 22, 2016
@ubercool Great Presentation at #OPTIMIZE2016
— Heather Palmer (@IHeartLeasing) February 18, 2016
Moving along… @ubercool is crushing it at #OPTIMIZE2016 pic.twitter.com/8APxaMHXKm
— Dom Beveridge (@dombeveridge) February 18, 2016
So awesome hearing from @ubercool this morning at #OPTIMIZE2016 with @RainmakerMFH #multifamily #revenuemanagement pic.twitter.com/RZGcfegrJP
— Jared Crouch (@JaredCrouchSLC) February 18, 2016
“The successful companies of tomorrow will address the changing business and consumer values of today.”
— Innovation and Business Trends Speaker Michael Tchong
Retail Industry Leaders Association Supply Chain 2017
Here is a video of Michael Tchong addressing more than 1,000 retail executives as RILA’s Supply Chain 2017 conference in Orlando, Florida on February 13, 2017.
Chili’s General Manager Conference
On September 24, 2015 Michael entertained 1,500 Chili’s franchise operators and top management, which was a great success, as this video vividly shows.
Carpet One Video
Slide Gallery
Increased global competition and the velocity of time urgently require that executives and professionals remain on top of fast-moving trends. Using an insightful exploration of events and phenomena that are shape-shifting our world, Michael contextualizes a host of data blips to greatly improve the understanding of today’s market dynamics.


















Want a cutting-edge trends and innovation speaker?
Contact any of these speaking bureaus to book Michael Tchong, or contact him directly for innovation consulting or training:
U.S.A.
Tim Mathy, SpeakInc
San Diego, CA
858-228-3771
http://www.speakinc.com
U.S.A.
Esther Eagles, EAGLESTALENT
South Orange, NJ
973-313-9800
http://www.eaglestalent.com
U.S.A.
Christine Adams, Executive Speakers
Germantown, TN
901-754-9404
http://www.executivespeakers.com
U.S.A.
Laura Young, Speakers.com
Baltimore, MD
410-897-1970
http://www.speakers.com
U.S.A.
Nancy Lauterbach, redpropeller
Scottsdale, AZ
480-366-4040
http://www.redprops.com
U.S.A.
Michael Frick, Speaking.com
Palm Springs, CA
760-673-7700
http://speaking.com
U.S.A.
Mike Taubleb, Promenade Speakers
New York, NY
718-789-1136
http://www.promenadespeakers.com
Australia
Sue Davies, ICMI Speakers
Brighton
+61 (088) 377-3400
http://www.icmi.com.au
Colombia
Carolina Ruiz Luna, HiCue Speakers
Bogotá
+57 (311) 452-8846
http://www.hi-cue.com
Malaysia
Harrienath Pillay, London Speaker Bureau
Kuala Lumpur
+60 03-2298 7343
http://www.londonspeakerbureau.com
Nederland
Maarten Pino, Speakers Academy
Rotterdam
+31 010 433 3322
https://www.speakersacademy.com
U.K.
Graham Parks, Kruger Cowne
London
+44 20 7352 2277
http://www.krugercowne.com