WHY

Intellectual stimulation, human connectedness and the drive to give back are fundamental human needs. We believe in the power of crossing disciplines to spurn new understanding and ground-breaking ideas through dialogue, empathy and presence.

WHAT

Public Impact Talks (the PIT) is a community for socially minded young professionals in New York City.  Innovation occurs in the cross-hairs of disciplines and in a medium which liberates the mind from daily routines. Founded by NYC-based technologists, creatives and academics, the PIT delivers full-immersion into topics of public interest through speech and dialogue. Past topics were as far-reaching as artificial intelligence, malaria eradication, brain and cognitive science or using data science to visualize and fix the public school system.

HOW

The PIT’s unique symposium format binds community members in the act of dialogue.  PIT experts, sourced from the community, are ambassadors to privileged content from their work which serves as a launchpad for discussion, ideation and reflective learning, transforming the expert into listener and participant into principal change agent. Past speakers and attendees were affiliated with leading research institutions and academia, such as MIT, Harvard, John Hopkins University and Columbia University in New York.