Michael Nelson

Michael Nelson is currently analyzing technology policy for BGOV, Bloomberg Government (bgov.com). In addition, since January, 2008, he has been a professor of Internet Studies in Georgetown University's Communication, Culture, and Technology Program, where he has been doing research and teaching courses on "The Future of the Internet" and technology trends as well as consulting and speaking on Internet technology and policy. Before joining the Georgetown faculty, Nelson was Director of Internet Technology and Strategy at IBM, where he managed a team helping define and implement IBM's Next Generation Internet strategy. His group worked with university researchers on NGi technology, shaped standards for the NGi, and communicated IBM's vision of NGi and the future of computing to customers, policy makers, the press, and the general public. He worked closely with governments around the world on next generation Internet technologies and applications. Prior to joining IBM in July, 1998, Nelson was Director for Technology Policy at the Federal Communications Commission. There he helped craft policies to foster electronic commerce, spur development and deployment of new technologies, and improve the reliability and security of the nation's telecommunications networks. Before joining the FCC in January, 1997, Nelson was Special Assistant for Information Technology at the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy where he worked with Vice President Al Gore on telecommunications policy, information technology, encryption and online privacy, electronic commerce, and information policy. Nelson is a Trustee of the International Institute of Communication and recently became a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS). He has a B.S. in geology from Caltech, and a Ph.D. in geophysics from MIT.

For 20 years, I've been spurring the growth of the Internet, helping shape its evolution, and studying the impacts of digital technologies.

Internet Studies

When I was an executive at IBM, I was fortunate enough to attend a TED conference in Monterrey in the late 1990s. Some of my IBM colleagues were TED regulars and convinced me to attend. It was one of five of the most amazing conferences I've ever attended. Among all the conferences I've attended, I could only compare it to the World Economic Forum meetings in Davos and the old PC Forum conference organized by Esther Dyson. I helped an extraordinary group of Georgetown University students organize two TEDxGeorgetown events in March 2011. It was one of the most fascinating, fun, and fulfilling experiences I've had during my five years at Georgetown.