list | ooom • the World’s 100 Most Inspiring People

no. 81 | Ray Kurzweil • year 2017
January 1, 2020


— list —

publication: ooom
story title: list — the World’s 100 Most Inspiring People
deck: no. 81 | Ray Kurzweil
year: list for 2017
author: by Georg Kindel
date: December 2017



note: This story is collected for the Kurzweil library.


— about the list —

recognizing influential leaders

Who influenced, motivated, and fascinated us most this past year — ooom presents: the World’s 100 Most Inspiring People for year 2017. The annual ranking is based on votes from an international jury. The ooom editorial board — and our prominent panel of judges — joined forces to create this unique list.

our mission

Our ooom motto is inspiring people — that’s our mission. We’re entrepreneurs, publishers, media, and communications experts. In a digital + high-tech world, people long for positive influences.

We use our creativity + enthusiasm to help people and companies to reach their goals in a different, better, and more sustainable way. The magazine covers visionaries, pioneers, and important leaders — and is one of the leading lifestyle magazines in Germany.

our selection process

The list is subjective, and illustrates individuals who impressed us this year — it ranks the world’s most influential people. The 100 names were selected by a international jury consisting of well-known personalities, all exceptional individuals from various fields.


notable for year 2017

Topping this year’s list in football icon Colin Kaepernick — the first NFL star who chose to kneel during the national anthem, to show protest against police brutality toward people of color.

And actress Emma Watson ranked 2nd — in recognition of her commitment to charities. Followed by French national president Emmanuel Macron in 3rd place.


list | the World’s 100 Most Inspiring People
by ooom

— no. 81 • Ray Kurzweil —


no. 81 | Ray Kurzweil

The best-selling author, inventor, futurist. Without doubt, one of the most influential people in cyber. He changes the world with his ideas + his way of thinking.

  • a director of engineering at Google
  • co-founder of Singularity Univ.
  • founder of Kurzweil Technologies
  • pioneering computer electronics inventor


our selection jury

judge: Ervin Laszlo
science philosopher
founder: Club of Budapest

judge: Mathis Wackernagel
inventor of the ecological footprint
president: Global Footprint Network

judge: Stefan Sagmeister
leading graphic designer
Sagmeister + Walsh

judge: Hans Ulrich Obrist
influential in contemporary art
artistic director: Serpentine Galleries

judge: Roger D. Nelson PhD
educator at Princeton Univ.
founder: the Global Consciousness Project

judge: Josef Penninger PhD
world-renowned scientist + geneticist
scientific director: Institute of Molecular Biotechnology

judge: Dean Radin PhD
best-selling author



on the web | pages

ooom | home
ooom | agency
ooom | magazine

ooom | list — the World’s 100 Most Inspiring People

tag line: Inspiring people.


— notes —

NFL = National Football League