Juan Enriquez is one of the foremost authorities on genomics and the life sciences. He focuses on the ways in which scientific advances will impact business, technology, politics, and society. A futurist, bestselling author, businessman, and academic, Enriquez has a talent for bridging disciplines to build a coherent look ahead.

Enriquez is one of the ten most popular talks on Ted.com.

He is the managing director of Excel Medical Ventures, the founder, chairman and CEO of Biotechonomy, a life sciences research and investment firm, and the founding director of Harvard Business School's Life Science Project.

Enriquez' books include the global bestseller, As the Future Catches You, an analysis of the impact of genomics on business and society, and The Untied States of America, which explores why, as technology advances, some countries are successful while others disappear.

Fortune profiled Enriquez as "Mr. Gene." Time asked him to co-organize the life sciences summit commemorating the 50th anniversary of the discov¬ery of DNA. Harvard Business Review showcased him in its first Breakthrough Ideas list. Seed picked his ideas as one of 50 that "shaped our identity, our culture and the world as we know it."

Enriquez served as CEO of Mexico City's Urban Development Corporation, Coordinator General of Economic Policy and Chief of Staff for Mexico's Secretary of State, and as a member of the Peace Commission, he helped negotiate the cease-fire in 1990s Chiapas Zapatista rebellion.

Enriquez earned a B.A. and an MBA from Harvard.

NOTE: Bio is as it appeared in the Forum program from October 2, 2009.