Barney Pell

Chief Strategist, Chief Scientist and Head of AI

2023 - Current

Magic is the world leading virtual assistant company. I have guided the company to reposition itself from primarily human assistants supported by workflow infrastructure to a true hybrid human + AI multi-agent system. In addition I have advised the company on all aspects of strategy and strategic development.

Venture Partner

2019

Founding Fellow

2015

Creative Disruption Lab is the world's leading startup incubator for AI and Machine Learning companies. The CDL originally started in the Rottman Business School, University of Toronto. The University is one of the leading centers in the world for Machine Learning. As one of 7 Fellows, and a founding Fellow in the Machine Learning track, I mentor, assess, and potentially invest in startups in the program. The program has since expanded across Canada, starting with University of British Columbia and 5 other centers under development, and my mentoring role has expanded across multiple of these programs. As the program expanded to new centers, I have been active in multiple streams and multiple locations. I was a founding fellow in CDL West (Vancouver), CDL Montreal, and founding fellow in the machine learning, quantum, and health tracks at CDL Toronto and the Prime and Health tracks at CDL West.

Lecturer

2019

Lecturer in the Harnessing Big Data: Analysis to Action (HAIBD) course, co-organized by Stanford Graduate School of Business and Stanford Human-Centered AI Institute (HAI). My talk on Crucial Questions for Applying AI is the wrap-up talk in the 3-week program.

Board Member

2018

UCSF Health Hub is a non-profit designed to help UCSF inventors and qualified entrepreneurs from the local community access the support and professional development they need to grow and build successful companies. UCSF Health Hub connects ideas and companies with the people, expertise, and capital needed to grow and scale breakthrough healthcare solutions.

Associate Founder and Trustee

2009

Singularity University is dedicated to educating present and future leaders in the areas of exponetially accelerating technologies.

Founder

2002

Decision Theory is an an incubator, advisory and investment firm focused on artificial intelligence and decision science strategy and technologies for small and large companies.

Advisor

2006

PharmaSurveyor builds tools to help patients and health care professionals understand the interactions across all the drugs they take and find optimal combinations of drugs to minimize side effects and costs. It is truly world changing technology and I can benefit anyone who prescribes or takes drugs.

Member Board Of Directors

2017 - 2020

Ionomr has developed revolutionary ion exchange membrane technology that drastically improves efficiency and performance while minimizing cost and environmental impact: * Hydrogen generation to fuel the hydrogen economy * Hydrogen fuel cells to power vehicles, ships, buildings and more * Onsite recovery of chemicals for heavy industry – lithium, mining and electronics * Conversion of CO2 to synthetic fuels * Energy storage

Member Board Of Directors

2017 - 2020

The Ecoation artificial intelligence platform predicts the type, location and level of crop stress using plant signals, and communicates this intelligence daily to growers on their phone or computer. Measuring plant signals is the most accurate way to predict crop stress. Plants never lie about their own health. We measure changes in plant physiology, chemical composition, photosynthesis and defensive compounds in response to biotic and abiotic stressors. We combine a mobile sensor system that detects plant signals with artificial intelligence software that can distinguish healthy plants from unhealthy ones. Crop stresses are detected with our automated robot before symptoms are visible. The result is much higher yield in greenhouses while minimizing cost, labor, pesticides, and waste.