Thomas Dolby — Musician, Producer & Director

Thomas Dolby has crafted a career that blends music and technology. His early hit songs, “She Blinded Me With Science” and “Hyperactive!,” and his keyboard and production work in the studio garnered him numerous awards, five Grammy nominations and live performances with the likes of David Bowie and Stevie Wonder. Recognizing the opportunities for digital distribution of music, Dolby started Beatnik Inc., which licensed technology to Nokia to co-develop the first embedded software synthesis “polyphonic” ringtone engine for mass-market devices. For 12 years, Dolby also served as musical director of the world-famous TED Conferences. His first new studio album in two decades, A Map of the Floating City, received critical acclaim and was accompanied by the self-created, multi-user social networking game The Floating City.

Thomas Dolby was a featured speaker at Smithsonian magazine’s The Future is Here conference on June 1.