Taryn Southern is an award-winning storyteller, speaker, and creative technologist whose works explore the intersection of emerging technology and human potential. As an early YouTuber with more than 750+ million views, Taryn has more than two decades of experience in story and brand strategy for digital audiences. Her groundbreaking AI experiments include composing the world’s first AI pop album in 2017, cloning herself in 2020, and directing a Tribeca Film Festival documentary on brain-computer interfaces (BCIs). At one of the world’s leading implantable neurotechnology companies, Taryn oversaw marketing and communications for two successful funding rounds totaling over $230M+.

From homeless to Harvard...it is an unlikely turn of events. Liz Murray’s life is a triumph over adversity and a stunning example of the importance of dreaming big. Murray was raised in the Bronx by two loving but drug-addicted parents. She grew up in poverty, often without enough food, chronically absent from school, and most of all, struggling to connect her education to a viable future.

By age 15, Murray’s mom had died, and she was homeless—living on the streets, riding the subway all night, and eating from dumpsters. Amidst this pain, Murray always imagined her life could be much better than it was. “I started to grasp the value of the lessons learned while living on the streets. I knew after overcoming those daily obstacles that next to nothing could hold me down.” Determined to take charge of her life, and with the support of an upstairs neighbor and trusted family friend named Arthur,

Murray finished high school in just two years and was awarded a full scholarship to Harvard University, all while camping out in New York City parks and subway stations. Murray’s story is exhilarating and inspirational. Her delivery is innocently honest, as she takes audiences on a very personal journey where she achieves the improbable. Today, Murray is a passionate advocate for underserved youth.

Murray graduated from Harvard in 2009 and received her Master's in Psychology of Education at Columbia University. She is passionate about speaking on the importance of personal motivation, transforming problems into opportunities, and what it takes to make a difference in people’s lives.