“The scale and scope of this threat is extraordinary. It amounts to US$320 billion per annum or, to put it another way, half a percent of global GDP. That is just the economic cost of drug trafficking. As far as the social and health risks are concerned, we believe that around 250,000 people each and every year die because of drugs.”
— Yury Fedotov
Director of the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime

The quote archive

Wisdom in fragments

A growing archive of 3,000+ moments, drawn from every interview.

Our story, our fight, the story of President Zelenskyy… these all come together in the story of how everyone is capable of more than the world expects of them, and what we expected of ourselves. It's only when we were asked what price we were prepared to pay that we found the truth; we were prepared to pay with our lives.

— Kira Rudik

Ukrainian politician and head of Servant of the People party faction

You probably know your cholesterol level. You know your heart rate, your resting heart rate, the number of steps that you take per day. But most people have absolutely no idea what is happening inside their brains other than through self-reflection. So the ability to quantify that and give people direct access to information about what's happening to their brains could be radically transformational.

— Nita Farahany

Neuroethicist & Duke Law professor specializing in neurorights and genetics policy

Deep fakes, are probably the most chilling example to me of it, as if you take a politician's face and you use deep fake technology to slightly change it in ways that are imperceptible to the politician and to you, the observer, but that make the face just change enough to make your brain trust and like that image of that person.

— Nita Farahany

Neuroethicist & Duke Law professor specializing in neurorights and genetics policy

All you have to do is walk through an airport, for example, and notice that it is very difficult to navigate through it. You will encounter humans (almost statue like) who are glued – looking at their mobile phones, unaware of what is happening around them, because they are addicted to their technology. That is by design that people are addicted to technology.

— Nita Farahany

Neuroethicist & Duke Law professor specializing in neurorights and genetics policy

Mill has this thoughtful chapter on freedom of thought, but it is all based on the assumption that you have the ability to think freely inside your mind and that part can't be penetrated. We are very porous now, and it isn't just through neurotechnology, it is through all modes of technology that are designed to interpret and change our cognitive and effective functioning.

— Nita Farahany

Neuroethicist & Duke Law professor specializing in neurorights and genetics policy

Martin Luther King Jr.

— Martin Luther King Jr.

Civil Rights Leader Who Advanced Racial Equality Through Nonviolent Protest

Steve Jobs

— Steve Jobs

Co-Founder of Apple & Pioneer of Personal Computing

I hope that the totality of what I've done, or that which Freada and I have done together, really gives people a sense of hope and possibility, in a practical way, that business can be a constructive force in the world and genuinely help make the world a better place for everyone.

— Mitchell Kapor

Founder of Lotus Development Corporation & Digital Pioneer

We can prove, with over 150 companies we've invested in – that you can simultaneously create value for the investor, and society. The reality is this- you can create value economically and socially in parallel – there isn't a contradiction.

— Mitchell Kapor

Founder of Lotus Development Corporation & Digital Pioneer

My wife Freada coined a phrase, distance travelled. We're very interested in where somebody started in life, and what hurdles and barriers they have already overcome in their journey – and how that grit has got them to where they are now. That's an indicator of resilience, persistence, and many other character traits that are significant in terms of entrepreneurial success.

— Mitchell Kapor

Founder of Lotus Development Corporation & Digital Pioneer

We have lived through an era where success has been defined only in financial terms- leaving out any consideration of the impact of business on communities or the world. Just because accounting standards don't require you to measure certain things, doesn't mean those things aren't real.

— Mitchell Kapor

Founder of Lotus Development Corporation & Digital Pioneer

Most of the venture backed businesses, and venture capital firms, are a mirror-tocracy not a meritocracy! Senior executives are disproportionately drawn from a narrow stratum of society – in the US, this means Ivy-League Schools such as Stanford. They tend to be overwhelmingly white (and increasingly now Asian) but certainly overwhelmingly male.

— Mitchell Kapor

Founder of Lotus Development Corporation & Digital Pioneer

The essence of this connection lies in an enduring quest to effect positive change in the world. The judgement criteria revolve around whether the individual endeavored to make the world a better place. This book holds the key to one of the universe's greatest mysteries: the deciding factors for entry into heaven.

— Maurice Saatchi

Co-Founder of Saatchi & Saatchi Advertising Agency

I wanted to impart this fundamental philosophy that a person should endeavour to better the world, an aspiration divorced from monetary considerations. While some might contend that financial power is a prerequisite for effecting change, I don't subscribe to this belief.

— Maurice Saatchi

Co-Founder of Saatchi & Saatchi Advertising Agency

I'd argue it's easier now than ever, given the world's increasing openness to varied perspectives. Society's acceptance of homosexuality was a significant milestone, and now we're witnessing similar progress concerning gender issues. I perceive these shifts as testament to the world's growing receptivity to new ideas.

— Maurice Saatchi

Co-Founder of Saatchi & Saatchi Advertising Agency

There will be no cure for cancer until real doctors with real patients in real hospitals can attempt an innovation. The court is primarily interested in the effort made, in the attempt. That is what truly counts.

— Maurice Saatchi

Co-Founder of Saatchi & Saatchi Advertising Agency