Wired Gives Up the 'Secret Sauce' for Spotting the Future

NEW YORK — Ever wonder how Wired has managed to predict the future so darn well for nearly 20 years? Wired debuted nearly two decades ago and was hailed as “A burst of fresh air from a distant planet’ and “a postcard from the future,” Executive Editor Thomas Goetz said to kick off the 2012 Wired […]
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NEW YORK – Ever wonder how Wired has managed to predict the future so darn well for nearly 20 years?

Wired debuted nearly two decades ago and was hailed as "A burst of fresh air from a distant planet' and "a postcard from the future," Executive Editor Thomas Goetz said to kick off the 2012 Wired Business Conference. It's no secret that Wired's been on the wrong side of some possible futures, he said: Remember the CueCat? Smell-a-Vision? The much ballyhooed hydrogen economy?

WIRED Business Conference: How to Spot the Future from WIRED on FORA.tv

But most of the time Wired's been pretty prescient, Goetz said. Here's how it spots the future:

  1. Look for Cross Pollinators.
  2. Surf the Exponentials.
  3. Favor the Liberators.
  4. Respect Audacity.
  5. Bank on Openess.
  6. Demand Deep Design.
  7. Spend Time with Time Wasters.

Why is Wired giving up the secret sauce? "To help foment innovation for the next 20 years," Goetz said.Read all about it.