In this episode, Mike interview’s the polymath Professor Jeffrey Schnapp. Jeffrey is a study in duality. An expert on the romance languages, medieval history AND the digital transformation of society, a long-time resident of both Milan, Italy AND Silicon Valley, an endowed Professor & Research Center Director at Harvard and formerly Stanford, AND a founder-entrepreneur, a former top level motorcycle racer AND a visionary on the future of transportation who extols the importance of walking to reclaim civic space - his fascinating multi-disciplinary career path led him to this moment, when endlessly congested cities & the Climate Crisis require imaginative, intelligent personal mobility solutions.
This is where Piaggio Fast Forward, the personal mobility innovation lab that he founded in Boston, comes in. Jeffrey is Co-Founder, former CEO & now Chief Visionary Officer of Boston-based Piaggio Fast Forward, the personal mobility innovation lab of the 150 year old Italian heritage company, Piaggio Group, based in Genoa. Simultaneously, he remains very active at Harvard, as Faculty Director of the (meta) Lab which he founded, and the Berkman Klein Center for Internet and Society.
Piaggio designs & manufacturers 2 of the most successful & ubiquitous motorized vehicles in history- the iconic Vespa scooter & the workhorse 3 wheel Ape. Piaggio’s history of innovation is rich and extremely rare for a dynastic Italian company founded during the period of the US Civil War. Piaggio has been able to successfully evolve from the maritime era of outfitting ships to making leading edge railcars and aeroplanes to scooters, mini-trucks & now, under Jeffrey and team’s leadership, intelligent robots that augment personal mobility
To this end, Piaggio Fast Forward introduced the gita in November of 2019. The gita is their first commercial product offering that supports their vision – “to build technology products that move the way people move”. Further, ” to support a sustainable mobility ecology with healthy lifestyles and social connectivity available to all, regardless of age or abilities.” Please join me for this discussion on this vitally important topic with this endlessly fascinating man.