PeopleofSuperintelligence

Public voice

Olaf Groth

Also known as Olaf J. Groth

Olaf Groth is a futurist and strategist at UC Berkeley's Haas School of Business who advises on how artificial intelligence, data and compute transform economies, industries and organizations. He built his career at the Fletcher School, AirTouch, Vodafone, Qualcomm and Monitor Group before founding Emergent Frontiers Group in 2011, which became Cambrian Futures and Cambrian Labs. With Mark Nitzberg, he wrote Solomon's Code in 2018, a book on AI and human values, and in 2023 he co-wrote The Great Remobilization with Mark Esposito and Terence Tse. He became an honorary adjunct professor at Universiti Teknologi Malaysia in 2024 and spoke at the first meeting of Kazakhstan's Council for the Development of Artificial Intelligence in October 2025. He is professional faculty at Haas and founding CEO of Cambrian Futures and Cambrian Labs.

Now at
University of California, Berkeley, Cambrian Futures and Cambrian Labs
Works
11
Citations
424
h-index
3
Badges
Links
X and LinkedIn

Publication numbers from OpenAlex, as of 22 October 2026.

Timeline

  1. 1995–2011

    Telecom and consulting roles

    He holds a BA and MAIPS from the Middlebury Institute of International Studies at Monterey and a MALD and PhD from Tufts University's Fletcher School, where he starts as a research associate in 1995. From 1997 to 2000 he works at AirTouch Communications' Satellite Services division, then at Vodafone from 2000 to 2003, at Qualcomm from 2005 to 2007, and as a senior engagement leader at Monitor Group from 2007 to 2011.

  2. 2011–2012

    Founding Emergent Frontiers Group

    He founds Emergent Frontiers Group in 2011, which becomes Cambrian Futures and Cambrian Labs through a collaboration with Mark Nitzberg. In 2012, he joins Hult International Business School as a professor of practice.

  3. 2018

    Solomon's Code on thinking machines

    Pegasus Books publishes Solomon's Code: Humanity in a World of Thinking Machines in November 2018, which he writes with AI scientist Mark Nitzberg and economics reporter Dan Zehr. The book examines how artificial intelligence reshapes human values, trust and power around the world.

  4. 2019

    Professional faculty at Haas

    He becomes professional faculty at UC Berkeley's Haas School of Business in 2019, after serving as a visiting scholar at the Berkeley Roundtable on the International Economy. He teaches and directs programs in foresight, strategy, AI and emerging technologies.

  5. 2023

    The Great Remobilization

    MIT Press publishes The Great Remobilization: Strategies and Designs for a Smarter Global Future in October 2023, which he writes with Mark Esposito and Terence Tse and research partner Dan Zehr. Its "6 Cs" framework treats cognitive technologies, particularly AI, as a unifying theme across governance, policy and economic resilience, and the book is shortlisted for the Thinkers50 Strategy Award.

  6. 2024

    Honorary professor in Malaysia

    In May 2024 he becomes an honorary adjunct professor at Universiti Teknologi Malaysia, which hosts him for a roundtable on how its new Faculty of Artificial Intelligence and the Malaysia Artificial Intelligence Consortium can advance national AI development.

  7. 2025

    Advising Kazakhstan on AI

    In October 2025, he addresses the first meeting of Kazakhstan's Council for the Development of Artificial Intelligence, which President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev holds in Astana. He serves as a member of the council from 2025, advising the president.

  8. As of October 2026

    Berkeley faculty and Cambrian CEO

    He is professional faculty for strategy, policy, technology and futures at UC Berkeley's Haas School of Business and founding CEO of Cambrian Futures and Cambrian Labs. He is also the faculty director of the Berkeley Executive Education program Emerging Technology Strategies.

Career

  1. Since 2019University of California, BerkeleyProfessional faculty
  2. NowCambrian FuturesFounding CEO
  3. NowCambrian LabsFounding CEO
  4. From 2025Council for the Development of Artificial IntelligenceMember
  5. From 2024Universiti Teknologi MalaysiaHonorary adjunct professor
  6. Until 2019Berkeley Roundtable on the International EconomyVisiting scholar
  7. 2012–2018Hult International Business SchoolProfessor of Practice
  8. 2011–2012Emergent Frontiers GroupFounder
  9. 2007–2011Monitor GroupSenior engagement leader
  10. 2005–2007Qualcomm
  11. 2000–2003Vodafone
  12. 1997–2000AirTouch Communications
  13. From 1995Tufts UniversityResearch Associate

Education

  1. Middlebury Institute of International Studies at MontereyBA
  2. Tufts UniversityMALD

From the biography and OpenAlex affiliations (the years of papers that list the organization), so some years are approximate.

Most-cited works

  1. Management Innovation in a VUCA World: Challenges and Recommendations2018 · California Management Review · 377 citations
  2. What Europe Needs Is an Innovation‐Driven Entrepreneurship Ecosystem: Introducing EDIE2015 · Thunderbird International Business Review · 39 citations
  3. The Great Remobilization2023 · The MIT Press eBooks · 5 citations
  4. The Future of the Global Corporation: From Fortress Firms to Cambrian Corporations2015 · Thunderbird International Business Review · 1 citations
  5. Board Guidance on AI Standards and Institutional Resilience2026 · 0 citations

From OpenAlex, as of 21 October 2026.

  1. People shaping AI work at a median of 3 organizations over a career: 3 for university starters and institute and lab starters, versus 2 for company startersIncludes Olaf Groth. Across 6,853 people shaping AI with a dated work role, we estimate a median of 3 parent organizations over a career (mean 3.6), comparing role groups, starting sectors and starting decades from the 1950s to 2020–2026.
  2. More people shaping AI studied at Massachusetts Institute of Technology than at any other institutionIncludes University of California, Berkeley. We estimate where the people shaping AI studied and where their careers led. Massachusetts Institute of Technology leads with 467 former students, including 291 recorded doctorates.
  3. The company share of AI researchers’ top papers was 31% in 2020–2024 and 8% in 1970–1974Includes University of California, Berkeley. We estimate where the people shaping AI worked when their most-cited papers appeared: the company share was 31% in 2020–2024 and 8% in 1970–1974, and Google led all organizations in 2020–2024.
  4. The median h-index is 48 at universities and 14 at frontier AI labsIncludes University of California, Berkeley. The median h-index is 48 at universities and 14 at frontier AI labs. We compare publishing careers, recent citations, dual appointments and job moves across 2,420 university researchers and 308 frontier-lab researchers.

Colleagues

People with dated positions at the same organization in the same years.

Sources and credits

Photo: We have no published photo of Olaf Groth yet. Send us a free-licensed photo.

  1. Olaf Groth - Wikipedia en.wikipedia.org. Checked 20 October 2026.
  2. Olaf J. Groth - UC Berkeley | Haas School of Business haas.berkeley.edu. Checked 20 October 2026.
  3. Solomon's Code | Book by Olaf Groth, Mark Nitzberg | Official Publisher Page | Simon & Schuster simonandschuster.net. Checked 20 October 2026.
  4. Hayden AI Welcomes Olaf Groth, Ph.D., Global Strategy, Innovation, and Venture Development Expert, to Advisory Board hayden.ai. Checked 20 October 2026.
  5. The Great Remobilzation: Designing a Smarter Global Future | Hult International Business School hult.edu. Checked 20 October 2026.
  6. What's Next for FAI and MAIC: UTM Hosts Roundtable on Catalyzing AI Development in Malaysia with Professor Olaf J. Groth - UTM NewsHub news.utm.my. Checked 20 October 2026.
  7. President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev held the first meeting of the Council for the Development of Artificial Intelligence — Official website of the President of the Republic of Kazakhstan akorda.kz. Checked 20 October 2026.
  8. Dr. Olaf Groth Bio | Cambrian cambrian.ai. Checked 20 October 2026.