Amplified Intelligence Games how massively collaborative play supports the development of science + policies for the future Jane McGonigal, PhD | Resident Game Designer INSTITUTE FOR THE FUTURE IIASA 35 th Anniversary Conference November 15, 2007 collaboration

Amplified Intelligence Games how massively collaborative play supports the development of science + policies for the future Jane McGonigal, PhD | Resident Game Designer INSTITUTE FOR THE FUTURE IIASA 35 th Anniversary Conference November 15, 2007 collaboration

the essence of game play “ Games are the most elevated form of investigation.” – Albert Einstein

“ Games are the most elevated form of investigation.”

– Albert Einstein

highly social highly collective highly improvisational highly augmented characteristics of amplified intelligence

highly social

highly collective

highly improvisational

highly augmented

where to apply amplified intelligence Designing complex systems Addressing global-scale problems Coordinating diverse actors Adopting a more collective approach to future forecasting

Designing complex systems

Addressing global-scale problems

Coordinating diverse actors

Adopting a more collective approach to future forecasting

Better Instructions clear goals specific avenues for advancement focused attention highly augmented amplification

Better Instructions

clear goals

specific avenues for advancement

focused attention

Better Feedback dynamic, real-time information about your performance highly & visibly responsive environments highly improvisational amplification

Better Feedback

dynamic, real-time information about your performance

highly & visibly responsive environments

Better Opportunity: clearly defined ways to contribute specific knowledge and skills individual strengths are validated, engaged and developed highly collective amplification

Better Opportunity:

clearly defined ways to contribute specific knowledge and skills

individual strengths are validated, engaged and developed

Better Community a shared context for action & decision-making a sense of common heroic purpose a foundational experience highly social amplification

Better Community

a shared context for action & decision-making

a sense of common heroic purpose

a foundational experience

Sharing, annotating and filtering massive amounts of information to create new “brain pools” highly social

highly social: sharing

highly social: tagging

highly social: ranking

building powerful collaboration networks and leveraging collective intelligence highly collective

highly collective: wikis

banding together ad hoc to create infrastructure and community highly improvisational

highly improvisational: coworking Hat Factory, San Francisco

employing visual tools and dynamic overlays to create shorter feedback loops and dramatically heighten coordination skills highly augmented

highly augmented: attention as currency

highly augmented: attention as currency

collaboration superpowers Gamers and other amplified individuals are gaining 10 new skills and strengths, or, “ collaboration superpowers .”

the ability to do real-time work in very large groups a talent for coordinating with many people simultaneously—“scalable collaboration” mobbability

the ability to do real-time work in very large groups

a talent for coordinating with many people simultaneously—“scalable collaboration”

cooperation radar the ability to sense, almost intuitively, who would make the best collaborators on a particular task

the ability to sense, almost intuitively, who would make the best collaborators on a particular task

measures your responsiveness to other people’s requests for engagement your propensity and ability to reach out to others in a network ping quotient

measures your responsiveness to other people’s requests for engagement

your propensity and ability to reach out to others in a network

the ability to be persuasive in diverse social contexts and media spaces understanding that each work environment and collaboration space requires a different persuasive strategy and technique influency

the ability to be persuasive in diverse social contexts and media spaces

understanding that each work environment and collaboration space requires a different persuasive strategy and technique

fluency in working with different capitals, e.g., natural, intellectual, social, and financial multi-capitalism

fluency in working with different capitals, e.g., natural, intellectual, social, and financial

fearless innovation in rapid, iterative cycles ability to lower the costs and increase the speed of failure protovation

fearless innovation in rapid, iterative cycles

ability to lower the costs and increase the speed of failure

creating content for public consumption and modification open authorship

creating content for public consumption and modification

thinking in terms of higher level systems, cycles, the big picture longbroading

thinking in terms of higher level systems, cycles, the big picture

the ability to prepare for and handle surprising results and complexity emergensight

the ability to prepare for and handle surprising results and complexity

filtering meaningful info, patterns, and commonalities from massively multiple streams of data signal/noise management

filtering meaningful info, patterns, and commonalities from massively multiple streams of data

The X2 Project The Institute for the Future (IFTF) is pleased to announce the launch of a groundbreaking research initiative, the X2 Project . Named after the famous “X Club,” a forward-looking group of 19th Century scientists who gathered to better understand disruptions from advances in scientific and technological innovation, X2 will identify major trends and disruptions in science, technology, and the practice of science over the next twenty years.

The Institute for the Future (IFTF) is pleased to announce the launch of a groundbreaking research initiative, the X2 Project .

Named after the famous “X Club,” a forward-looking group of 19th Century scientists who gathered to better understand disruptions from advances in scientific and technological innovation, X2 will identify major trends and disruptions in science, technology, and the practice of science over the next twenty years.

The X2 Project

The X2 Project The X2 Project will: look ahead and identify future disruptions, opportunities, and competitive landscapes related to the content and dynamics of global science and technology innovation; develop an open-source database and collaborative gaming environment to become an ongoing public web platform to help support, sustain and filter collective intelligence about science and technology; and present this information to policy experts, decision-makers, and the general public in a useful, evolving form.

The X2 Project will:

look ahead and identify future disruptions, opportunities, and competitive landscapes related to the content and dynamics of global science and technology innovation;

develop an open-source database and collaborative gaming environment to become an ongoing public web platform to help support, sustain and filter collective intelligence about science and technology; and

present this information to policy experts, decision-makers, and the general public in a useful, evolving form.

highly social: tracking

highly social: tracking

The X2 Project The IFTF X2 Project will convene a wide variety of distinguished participants from the worlds of science and technology to contribute to this collective knowledge of the future. In this highly interactive platform, participants will contribute signals—data points about discrete events, developments, discoveries, places—that will be clustered into larger patterns (trends) in the science and technology innovation landscape. IFTF will then use analytical and visualization tools to help users navigate, generate, and analyze the content, and ultimately will provide a high-level synthesis of key trends in the future of science and technology.

The IFTF X2 Project will convene a wide variety of distinguished participants from the worlds of science and technology to contribute to this collective knowledge of the future. In this highly interactive platform, participants will contribute signals—data points about discrete events, developments, discoveries, places—that will be clustered into larger patterns (trends) in the science and technology innovation landscape. IFTF will then use analytical and visualization tools to help users navigate, generate, and analyze the content, and ultimately will provide a high-level synthesis of key trends in the future of science and technology.

what’s important? Amplified intelligence gaming is a l ow-risk , high-speed , and deeply immersive platform that enables new kinds of massively collaborative groups to play with complex, global scale problems. They are a platform for re-imagining, preparing for, and inventing the future, today.

Amplified intelligence gaming is a l ow-risk , high-speed , and deeply immersive platform that enables new kinds of massively collaborative groups to play with complex, global scale problems.

They are a platform for re-imagining, preparing for, and inventing the future, today.

what’s important? In the coming decade, many research, policy-making and development organizations will derive their most important breakthroughs as a result of playing games.

In the coming decade, many research, policy-making and development organizations will derive their most important breakthroughs as a result of playing games.

what’s important? “ The opposite of play isn't work , it's depression. To play is to act out and be willful, exultant and committed – as if one is assured of one's prospects.” – Brian Sutton Smith, anthropologist

“ The opposite of play isn't work , it's depression.

To play is to act out and be willful, exultant and committed – as if one is assured of one's prospects.”

– Brian Sutton Smith, anthropologist

Amplified Intelligence Games how massively collaborative play supports the development of science + policies for the future Jane McGonigal, PhD | Resident Game Designer [email_address] collaboration