Marcus Wohlsen

Care taker, Consultant, Idea generator, Journalist, Parent, Technologist, Writer/Editor

I help brands tell better stories. After an accomplished career in journalism, I joined GDP to help build a new kind of brand studio, a firm grounded in an editorial mindset that elevates true stories to enable the most meaningful connections. Story-driven brands don’t (just) sell products. They build movements. At GDP, I’ve helped drive compelling outcomes for some of the world’s most transformative brands, including Microsoft, IBM Research, Sony AI, Nike, Lyft, and National Geographic. I was senior editor running the business desk at WIRED during the rise of AI, the cloud, and social; I also led WIRED’s first-ever election coverage in 2016. Prior to WIRED, I was a reporter in the San Francisco bureau of the Associated Press. I have a degree in English from Harvard and a degree in journalism from Cal. I’m a highly engaged Bay Area sports fan. I like shopping for Japanese stationery; discussing prestige TV with my teenage son; and using semicolons.

Helping people and organizations uncover their true stories to build better futures.

Hard problems are systems problems. Solving systems-level problems requires parallel effort—pushing on multiple variables at once to unlock the system from its steady state. Stories are the most effective technology humans have ever invented for enabling parallel effort. They align people to purpose. Hard problems become tractable.

I attended TED in 2014 and 2015 as a reporter for WIRED. I got to enjoy much of the festivities, but I also had to file 10 stories a day. Looking forward to attending as an attendee this year—and not having such tight deadlines!

Sautéing mushrooms