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Future Skills Toolbox
Tom Chi — founding member of Google X and founder of At One Ventures — shares why 95% of ideas don't work as described, how rapid prototyping beats months of debate, and what skills will matter most in a world shaped by AI and automation: the Four C's.
About Tom Chi
Tom Chi is a founding member of Google X, where he worked on Glass, self-driving cars, Project Loon, and the glucose-sensing contact lens. A named inventor on 75 patents, he is also founder of At One Ventures, a deep tech fund investing in companies that make humanity a net positive to nature.
What We Cover
- Why Tom launched At One Ventures and what "at one with nature" means in practice
- How rapid prototyping outperforms discussion-based decision-making
- What corporates get wrong about experimentation
- The Four C's: creativity, compassion, community, and critical thinking
- Radical Harmony and the future of the industrial economy
Timestamps
00:00 – Every experiment can be small, but ambition shouldn't be
02:06 – Deep tech investing and rebooting polluting industries
05:07 – Google X: Glass, self-driving cars, Project Loon
08:39 – Prototype thinking: design science in practice
12:56 – Why corporates resist experimentation
26:37 – The Future Skills Toolbox and the Four C's
Key Takeaways
- 95% of ideas don't work — so stop debating and start making. Prototype thinking skips the argument phase because three hours of building reveals more than two months of discussion.
- The Four C's are the future of human work. Creativity, compassion, community, and critical thinking are the skills robots won't master soon — they're the foundation of most future jobs.
- Culture is observable behavior, not a slogan. To change culture, identify specific behaviors you want more or less of, then run experiments to shift them.
Resources & Links Mentioned
- At One Ventures: atoneventures.com
- Tom Chi's website: tomchi.com
Where to Find Tom Chi
Website: tomchi.com
At One Ventures: atoneventures.com
Where to Find Yaniv Corem
Link in bio: sleek.bio/yanivcorem
LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/yanivcorem
Subscribe & Follow
Subscribe to The School of Innovation on Spotify or Apple Podcasts. Have a guest recommendation? Email [email protected]
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By Yaniv Corem
4.8
55 ratings
Tom Chi — founding member of Google X and founder of At One Ventures — shares why 95% of ideas don't work as described, how rapid prototyping beats months of debate, and what skills will matter most in a world shaped by AI and automation: the Four C's.
About Tom Chi
Tom Chi is a founding member of Google X, where he worked on Glass, self-driving cars, Project Loon, and the glucose-sensing contact lens. A named inventor on 75 patents, he is also founder of At One Ventures, a deep tech fund investing in companies that make humanity a net positive to nature.
What We Cover
- Why Tom launched At One Ventures and what "at one with nature" means in practice
- How rapid prototyping outperforms discussion-based decision-making
- What corporates get wrong about experimentation
- The Four C's: creativity, compassion, community, and critical thinking
- Radical Harmony and the future of the industrial economy
Timestamps
00:00 – Every experiment can be small, but ambition shouldn't be
02:06 – Deep tech investing and rebooting polluting industries
05:07 – Google X: Glass, self-driving cars, Project Loon
08:39 – Prototype thinking: design science in practice
12:56 – Why corporates resist experimentation
26:37 – The Future Skills Toolbox and the Four C's
Key Takeaways
- 95% of ideas don't work — so stop debating and start making. Prototype thinking skips the argument phase because three hours of building reveals more than two months of discussion.
- The Four C's are the future of human work. Creativity, compassion, community, and critical thinking are the skills robots won't master soon — they're the foundation of most future jobs.
- Culture is observable behavior, not a slogan. To change culture, identify specific behaviors you want more or less of, then run experiments to shift them.
Resources & Links Mentioned
- At One Ventures: atoneventures.com
- Tom Chi's website: tomchi.com
Where to Find Tom Chi
Website: tomchi.com
At One Ventures: atoneventures.com
Where to Find Yaniv Corem
Link in bio: sleek.bio/yanivcorem
LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/yanivcorem
Subscribe & Follow
Subscribe to The School of Innovation on Spotify or Apple Podcasts. Have a guest recommendation? Email [email protected]