Tom Wujec

Artist, Brainstormer, Connector, Designer, Idea generator, Inventor, Photographer, Technologist, World traveler, Writer/Editor

I’m Tom Wujec, and I’ve spent my career helping people see their toughest challenges more clearly—by making them visible. Whether it’s through hand-drawn sketches, interactive data simulations, or physical objects and environments, I use visual tools to help teams think better together. This approach, Wicked Problem Solving, brings order to chaos and clarity to confusion. I’ve used it across industries: from helping car manufacturers, games developers, and movie studios accelerate innovation to working with robotics firms to create low-cost surgical simulators. My belief is simple: if you can’t draw it, you probably haven’t fully understood it. TED VISUAL BLOG TED has been a lifelong companion. For three decades, I’ve been sketching TED Talks as they happen—capturing big ideas, aha moments, and the connections between them. My TED Visual Blog (tomwujec.com/ted2025) is a space to revisit those ideas and reflect on what they mean. This year, I’ll create an interactive visual board with over 400 pages of sketch notes, templates, and tools (including a zoomable board to see the big picture) that helps you remember the talks, see the big picture, reflect on what moves you and what you'll do next. Sign up to access the notes, templates, and conceptual maps to deepen your post-TED experience. BACKGROUND I’ve always been fascinated by how the world works—from the cosmic scale to the creative mind. That curiosity led me to study astrophysics, psychology, and design, and to explore careers that combined storytelling, science, and problem-solving. I started out in planetariums, producing immersive shows that blended awe and education. I then moved to the ROM, Canada’s largest museum, where I learned how to translate complex topics into engaging experiences for all ages. In the 1990s, I joined Alias to help develop digital tools like Sketchbook Pro and Maya (which won an Academy Technical Award for innovation in visual effects). Later, at Autodesk, I became a Fellow and worked with customer leadership teams to design what’s next—whether it was buildings, movies, infrastructure, or games—applying emerging technologies and advanced production methods. MY GIG Today, I run a strategic creative consultancy that helps companies tackle their thorniest, stickiest issues. We like to say we align, engage, and elevate. Our workshops are high-energy, high-touch, and highly visual. We use room-filling panoramic surfaces to visualize every aspect of the of the issue and create the rich environment where leadership teams can build a rich understanding, systematically explore a wider range of choices, align on bold steps. These range from 'How do we solve this' to 'How do get our teams to see that's ahead' meetings. We also develop custom visual playbooks and capability-building programs that scale these insights across teams. When organizations face their wicked problem, we provide robust methods, tools, and expertise to help teams work to the top of their intelligence and integrity. BOOKS I’ve written nine books that explore different dimensions of creativity, technology, innovation, and design. ‘Pumping Ions’ introduced the concept of creative, focused mental exercise to improve concentration and cognitive performance, and been published in 20 languages. ‘The Future of Making’ and ‘Imagine Design Create’ dive into how emerging tools are change the design, engineering, and fabrication. My most recent books focus on Wicked Problem Solving and offer practical frameworks to lead through uncertainty and complexity using visual tools. TED One of the great joys of my career has been sharing ideas on the TED stage. I’ve given six TED Talks (and several TEDX Talks) that blend visual storytelling with systems thinking. Some of my favorites: The Marshmallow Challenge explores how teams innovate (or don’t); Draw How to Make Toast introduces a way to model systems; Equations of Trust asks how we build it—and when it breaks; How to Build the World's First Computer shows how to construct and use an astrolabe, a common skill in Geoffrey Chaucer's England. TED has been part of my creative home. I’ve contributed to more than 30 conferences—as a speaker, artist, facilitator, and all-around co-conspirator. Whether it’s graphically recording talks, helping designing TED Prize experiences, giving tech demos, running visual thinking workshops, or hosting TED Cage Matches (part Oxford debating society, part Luce Libre Cage Match wrestling, part improv theater, and completely TED). What’s on My Mind In this AI-infused moment, I’m wondering: how will our ability to think, imagine, and decide evolve? How do we stay human, creative, and wise in the face of fast, artificial brilliance? And what new tools do we need to make sense of what’s coming? Still working on this.

Getting to deeper truths. Surfacing the best in situations. Amazing coffee. Exhilarating hikes. Trying to have at least one experience of awe each day. My unbelievably adorable grand daughter.

Wicked problems are everywhere now—tangled messes of VUCA, volatility, uncertainty, chaos, and ambiguity. We can’t solve these opposing truths with logic alone, and we definitely can’t tackle them solo. What we need is a new kind of leadership: one that designs clarity into chaos, that turns groupthink into breakthrough. An idea: teach the next generation of leaders CLARITY: C – Curiosity. Ask better questions L – Learning. Unlearn outdated beliefs and uncover what works. A – Awareness. See the whole system, and sense the emotional undercurrents. R – Resilience. Bounce forward, not just back. I – Imagination. Envision new possibilities. It's an act of courage. T – Transparency. Foster open communication and visual thinking to deal with ambiguity and to align action. Y – Yes, And. Accept what’s true, then build on it.

Business Transformation, Executive Facilitation, Product Design & Development, Sketch-Noting, Speaking, Systems Thinking, Technology Design & Implementation, Visualization, Writing

Juggling.