Matthias Horx is considered the most influential trend and future researcher in the German-speaking world. With the Zukunftsinstitut (Future Institute), Matthias Horx founded Germany's most important futuristic think tank. Between 1980 and 1992, Matthias Horx (*1955) worked as an author and editor at Tempo, Die Zeit and Merian. Together with Peter Wippermann, he founded the Trendbüro in Hamburg in 1993, which quickly grew into a hub for the German trend research scene. The focus is on innovative marketing consulting, and clients include international corporations such as Philip Morris, Unilever and Beiersdorf. In 1996, Horx established a new company with the Zukunftsinstitut, which deals with the analysis and presentation of fundamental future developments in society, the economy and everyday culture. The core competence of the institute, headquartered in Frankfurt and Vienna, is vision development for companies, the analysis of megatrends and the creation of early warning systems. In 2023, together with other researchers, he founded the think tank ‘The Future Project’ in Frankfurt, which focuses primarily on transformation processes. Matthias Horx's life's work is dedicated to further developing the ‘futurology’ of the 1960s and 1970s into a holistic form of forecasting – an interdisciplinary combination of systems, social, cognitive and evolutionary sciences. Many of his 20 or so published books have become bestsellers. Matthias Horx is the most prominent speaker on trends in the German-speaking world and works as a future consultant for renowned companies. His motivational lectures serve as inspiration and guidance for future development in all economic sectors. Horx encourages his audience to think outside the box, provoking both smiles and reflection.