Most Innovative Companies

When you have a chronic illness or debilitating condition, you start turning to alternatives for answers. This is what one of our colleagues did. Fast Company Video Producer and host of the new docuseries “Future Me,” Emma Wheylin, takes us through her biohacking journey. She tried out the Peak Brain Institute and the BallancerPro where she learned a lot about lymphatic drainage. Yaz chatted with Fast Company Senior Staff Writer Liz Segran and Senior Editor Amy Farley about what the direct-to-consumer Daily Harvest’s recall and lawsuits reveal about how unregulated food startups are. They dove into how this resulted in several hospital visits, emergency surgeries, and thousands of dollars in healthcare costs. It came down to a novel ingredient called tara flour. Also, for more info about Fast Company premium, check out: https://www.fastcompany.com/premium

Pedestrian and cyclist deaths have hit their highest levels in 40 years. There’s one major way we could bring those numbers down and that’s if we got rid of the law that allows drivers to turn right on red. Yaz spoke with Fast Company contributing writer David Zipper. David is a visiting fellow at the Harvard Kennedy School, and he focuses on road safety, climate change, and the future of micromobility, among other things. And Fast Company Executive Editor Mike Hofman sat down with Jason Del Rey about his latest book, “Winner Takes All.” In it, he explores the rivalry between Amazon and Walmart and the traditional retail giant’s attempts to reinvent itself. For more on the right-on-red ban, you can read David's article here: https://www.fastcompany.com/90908929/its-time-for-a-nationwide-ban-of-right-on-red?partner=rss&utm_source=rss&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=rss+fastcompany&utm_content=rss

To discuss this year’s just-announced list, ‘Fast Company’ staff writer Pavithra Mohan joined us for a behind-the-scenes look. For a bit of context, the Queer 50 is an annual list that ‘Fast Company’ puts together of the most impressive LGBTQ women and nonbinary folks in business and technology. Covering a range of industries, this year’s list focuses on leaders within the Queer community who are both activists and advocates, fighting for trans rights, reproductive justice, pay equity, inclusion, and other compelling issues, which involve the latest in AI, VR, and AR tech, too. Yaz also sat down with one of our honorees, Folx Health CEO Liana Guzmán, to chat about affirmative healthcare in a time where LGBTQ rights are being eroded.

On today's episode, Yaz chats with Fast Company senior writer Mark Sullivan about what's happening with Apple these days. And we learn about the latest biotech research in menopause with Fast Company senior writer Ainsley Harris.

The presidential race is already heating up, and aside from the usual fanfare around frontrunners like Trump and Biden, there are long-shot candidates creating space for themselves on . . . podcasts, of all places. Yaz chatted with ‘Fast Company’ contributing writer Clint Rainey to hear about his journey listening to some of these long-shot candidates on quite an array of podcasts. Harry’s Razors is arguably one of the first companies to pioneer the direct-to-consumer model. This year, the company is celebrating 10 years. Yaz sat down with Jeff Raider, cofounder and co-CEO, to hear his thoughts on how the industry has evolved since Harry’s first started.

Is AI coming for our jobs?? ‘Fast Company’ senior staff editor Max Ufberg explains that it is . . . but that it’s not all bad news. And Yaz chatted with Loom CEO Joe Thomas—Loom is essentially TikTok for business, which sounds crazier than it is—about how video conferencing is here to stay. Also, a special thanks to Marfa Public Radio for helping us out with some recording on this episode!

We’re back with a completely new reboot of the show! Join host, ‘Fast Company’ associate editor Yaz Gagne, every Wednesday to hear about which companies are on the cutting edge of artificial intelligence, what’s the next major breakthrough in healthcare, and how iconic brands reinvent themselves to appeal to the next generation.

On this week's Most Innovative Companies Podcast, Danny Rimer shares his investment ethos, his thoughts around the evolution of the venture capital industry, why he believes it’s a privilege to invest in someone else’s idea, and, how in return for that privilege, he promises to roll up his sleeves, get to work and do everything possible to make that company as successful as it can be.

James Vincent talks with Airbnb co-founder and CEO Brian Chesky on stage at Fast Company Innovation Festival in New York City

On this week's Most Innovative Companies Podcast, Nicolas Julia, CEO and cofounder of Sorare talks about his vision for democratizing NFTs through the world’s biggest sports.

On this week’s Most Innovative Companies Podcast, Alexandr Wang, CEO and founder of Scale AI, explains how his company is using data to tackle problems from access to healthcare to supplies for the war in Ukraine.

On the latest episode of the Most Innovative Companies podcast, Irving Fain, founder and CEO of the vertical farming company Bowery, explains how being an outsider to agriculture has helped him come up with new ideas.

James Vincent is joined by Rebekah Jefferis, Stephen Butler and Nick Barham, his partners at FNDR, to discuss lessons they've learned from their work with 126 founders.

Every company’s success is tied to its talent - recruiting and retaining the employees needed to deliver high-level customer experiences that support the bottom line. Yet rapid transformation has disrupted many things that organizations used to do to maintain great company cultures. So how can business leaders reimagine their employee experiences to meet the needs of their workforces? How does that translate into better customer experiences? In this thought-provoking podcast episode, FastCo Works will hear from Freshworks CMO Stacey Epstein as she shares some of the latest industry best practices and learnings for companies navigating these work culture shifts.

On this week’s Most Innovative Companies Podcast, Nate founder and CEO Albert Saniger discusses the role technology plays in our lives, and the autonomy we hold over our decisions and our data.

On this week's Most Innovative Companies podcast, Farfetch Founder and CEO José Neves explains what Web3 is and what it's capable of through the lens of fashion and culture, drawing from his experience founding and growing Farfetch, the online luxury fashion retail platform.

On this week’s Most Innovative Companies podcast, Joanna Coles explains the business case for all leaders to surround themselves with independent working minds that are connected to culture, both within the broader world around us as well as the communities we live, work, and thrive in.

On this week’s episode of Most Innovative Companies podcast, Sonos CEO Patrick Spence talks with James Vincent about why companies should embrace innovation even when they don’t need to.

On this week's Most Innovative Companies Podcast, Jack and Sam dive into why the creator economy isn’t new, but a fresh iteration of a much older phenomenon, as well as the beauty of Web3 as it applies to ownership. By focusing on “love” as opposed to “likes”, Patreon has helped change the way art is brought back autonomy to artists and creators around the world, enabling them to receive fair pay—as opposed to fractions of cents—for their creative output. Subscribe to Most Innovative Companies on Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts.

On this week's Most Innovative Companies, Joe Percoco, cofounder and co-CEO of Titan, shares his thoughts with host James Vincent about why, while a financial crisis is undeniably a challenge to companies, it can also bring key opportunities for growth. His company Titan is a consumer fintech opening up access to expert-led investment opportunities for as little as $100. Operating in that space means that Percoco has seen this crisis from the eye of the storm. You can listen and subscribe to Most Innovative Companies on Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts.

In this episode, we’re talking about social media. While Facebook and Twitter still dominate the space, apps like TikTok and Clubhouse are offering people new ways to express themselves and form communities. Amy chatted with Maria Raga, the CEO of Depop, the fashion resale app that’s become popular with Gen Z. The platform has 30 million registered users: 90% of them are under 26 years old. They discuss Depop’s unique approach to social commerce and how it has fostered a deep connection with younger users.

On this episode, we’re going to talk about the gaming industry, which is worth more than 160 billion dollars globally. Over the past year and a half, as people have gone from sheltering at home to tentative re-engagement with the world to….whatever is in store for us this fall, games have taken on an outsized role in our lives. Amy sat down with Roham Gharegozlou, CEO of Dapper Labs, the company behind NBA Top Shot, to discuss why he wants to do far more than just digitize the age-old pastime of buying and selling trading cards.

In this episode, we’re talking about biotech and health. If this past year and a half is any indication, investment in these sectors is critical. We’ve seen how we can confront a global pandemic with fast-tracked RNA-based vaccines. We’ve harnessed genomics to track and diagnose illness as it spreads. And the rise of telemedicine has made healthcare more accessible to all. Amy talked with Twist Bioscience CEO and Co-founder Emily LeProust about the MIC winner's cutting-edge technology that has pioneered what’s known as synthetic DNA. It’s used in therapeutics and precision medicine, but has applications across agriculture, biomaterials, and even data storage.

We're talking about AI in this episode. Once the villain of Sci Fi thrillers, AI is one of the most crucial—and misunderstood—sectors that we cover here at Fast Company. The truth is, AI—in some form or another—underpins the operations of just about every company these days, from powering self-driving technologies in our cars to serving up product recommendations when we’re shopping online. And though we’re increasingly aware of how algorithms can perpetuate and amplify inequities, AI is also being used by companies to solve some of the world’s most pressing problems, increasing crop yields, fighting disinformation, and helping us track and control a global pandemic. We're featuring one such company: Pachama, an MIC honoree that’s taking on climate change with the help of some advanced AI and data science. Amy speaks with Co-founder and CEO Diego Saez Gil about how Pachama is revolutionizing the fight against global warming.