Chris Barton was born in the United States to a French mother and English father.  His father was a professor in nuclear physics, and his mother was a professor in the field of computer science. He struggled with academics, having undiagnosed dyslexia and ADHD.

Flipping the challenges of dyslexia and ADHD on its head, Chris learned to embrace what he now calls his superpower, believing that dyslexia had allowed him to overcome barriers to achieve his many accomplishments.

Despite his challenges with dyslexia and academics, he still managed to receive a degree in Economics, a Masters in Business Administration and earned a Masters in Finance degree from the University of Cambridge.

Chris Barton | Google and Dropbox

Chris has played a key role in tech history as a founding member of Google’s Android Partnerships team where he was the first business development employee at Google to focus on mobile partnerships. He also spent four years at Dropbox where he led carrier partnerships and was one of the first 100 people at the company.

Barton holds 12 patents including two for Google and five for Dropbox. One of these patents is employed within the Google Search algorithm.

Chris Barton | Speaking Topics

Chris has spoken across five continents and to an array of different businesses and organisations. His speaking topics include:

Bring Impossible Ideas to Life

Audiences learn a new framework of thinking to create change through technology.

Technology and A.I. are dramatically changing what’s possible in our world. Our challenge as we create new things is to dislodge from the comfort of what we already know. Chris created Shazam after being told by every “expert” that his outlandish idea was impossible. It was an idea far ahead of its time – eight years before iPhone apps even existed. In this presentation, Chris helps audiences imagine and then create new visions for the future. He inspires with jaw-dropping stories about creating Shazam and shows how innovation comes from not just an idea, but from a series of insights to overcome obstacles along the way.

Overcome Obstacles with Imagination

Audiences learn new mindsets to break past barriers.

A great idea gets you nowhere without tenacity. True disruption requires both persistence and creative solutions. In creating Shazam, Chris faced obstacles many thought were insurmountable. Most would have given up, but he refused. Instead, Chris challenged every assumption about the obstacles he faced. He shares stories and actionable lessons that inspire audiences to pursue their dreams. Chris urges audiences to question the status quo and to sweat the details on the path to redefining the future.

Eliminate Effort to Unlock Explosive Growth

Audiences learn to identify and eliminate friction to drive growth.

We all know simple is great, so why don’t all organizations create amazing things just like Apple? The reality is that friction permeates almost everything we do. This “extra effort” frustrates our customers, partners, and colleagues. In creating Shazam, Chris moved mountains to make one thing very easy – identifying any song. Shazam changed the way the world discovers music. Chris combines stories from creating Shazam with his twelve years at Android (Google) and Dropbox to provide concrete examples of how we can all push boundaries to eliminate friction.

Build the Vision You See (But Others Don’t)

Audiences are inspired to embrace a mindset to create the next great companies.

Entrepreneurs have passion, ideas, and desire but can get stuck on the difficult journey to achieving their dreams. They want to bring something truly new to the world, but need to learn how to overcome big obstacles, choose their priorities, and convince others of their vision. Chris inspires and teaches entrepreneurs using the story of Shazam’s creation including the scrappy and creative hacks that transformed an idea into a product with two billion customers.

Why Book Chris Barton?

Chris is an inspirational speaker, who brings energy and enthusiasm to every event he participates in. His testimonials speak for themselves, with many past clients saying Chris’ talk was the best they had ever experienced. He knows how to connect with audiences, delivering important messages about innovation, AI, start ups, creativity, and resilience and adaptability in an engaging and memorable way.

Call +44 1753 439 289 or email Great British Speakers now to book creator and founder of Shazam Chris Barton for your corporate event.

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