10th Innovation Symposium

Bassem Youssef

Dubbed the Jon Stewart of the Arab World, Bassem Youssef was the host of popular TV show Al Bernameg. It was the first of its kind: a political satire show in the Middle East. Originally a 5-minute show on YouTube, Al Bernameg became the first online-to-TV conversion in the Middle East and the most watched show across the region with 30 million viewers every week.

Al Bernameg received wide acclaim around the world with coverage in some of the biggest media outlets, topping it off with Youssef’s appearance on the Daily Show with Jon Stewart twice, in June 2012 and April 2013. In June 2013, Youssef hosted Jon Stewart on Al Bernameg in Cairo, marking the second season’s peak. Al Bernameg was chosen by South by Southwest, one of the largest international interactive festivals, as the first and most successful internet-to-TV conversion story in the Middle East. Al Bernameg’s YouTube channel was the first channel in the MENA region to reach one million subscribers.

Throughout its three seasons, Al Bernameg remained controversial with its humorous yet bold criticism of the region’s ruling powers, which led to multiple lawsuits against the show and its host. Youssef was even issued an arrest warrant in March 2013 and turned himself in the next day. He was questioned and released on bail. In recognition of his success, Youssef was named to the Time Magazine most influential list for 2013 – under the “Pioneers” category, was awarded the International Press Freedom Award by the CPJ, and was chosen by Foreign Policy magazine as one of the global thinkers during the same year.

During its third season, the show achieved unprecedented weekly viewership ratings for 11 consecutive weeks. In June 2014, and after a six-week break, the Al Bernameg team held a press conference where Youssef announced the termination of the show due to overwhelming pressures on both the show and the airing channel.

In the spring of 2015 Youssef was a resident fellow at the Institute of Politics at the John F Kennedy School of Government. During his stay in the U.S., he appeared twice as a Senior Middle East Correspondent on the Daily Show with Jon Stewart, commenting on the recent political situation in the region. In 2015, he hosted the International Emmy Awards gala, as well as the 49th Carthage Film Festival in Tunis. Youssef has also hosted a digital series titled The Democracy Handbook for Fusion Network. He is also the star of an internationally renowned documentary by Sara Taksler, Tickling Giants, featuring Youssef’s story with Al Bernameg. In his book Revolution for Dummies: Laughing Through the Arab Spring, he gives different perspectives and insights on the Egyptian political scene through the Arab spring and after.

Youssef is the voice of Sabaf, the evil guard of an all mummified pharaoh, in Disney’s Duck Tales. With Larry Wilmore, Youssef has developed and written a half-hour pilot for a super hero Middle Eastern American family comedy.

Youssef has his own podcast ReMade in America, where he and a fellow outsider sit down for an honest, intimate conversation about topics they hold near and dear, exploring how many of the rituals and practices we take for granted in America are done differently abroad.

Youssef majored in cardiothoracic surgery, passed the United States Medical License Exam and is a member of the Royal College of Surgeons. He practiced cardiothoracic surgery in Egypt for 13 years, before moving into comedy and political satire.

Emily Bazelon

Emily Bazelon is the author of Charged: The New Movement to Transform American Prosecution and End Mass Incarceration. Her previous book is the national bestseller Sticks and Stones: Defeating the Culture of Bullying and Rediscovering the Power of Character and Empathy. She is a staff writer at The New York Times Magazine, the Truman Capote Fellow for Creative Writing and Law at Yale Law School, and a co-host of the Slate Political Gabfest, a popular weekly podcast.

Bazelon was a writer and editor for nine years at Slate, where she co-founded the women's section DoubleX. She has previously been a Soros media fellow and has worked as an editor and writer at Legal Affairs magazine and as a law clerk on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 1st Circuit. She was a regular guest on the Colbert Report and has also appeared on The Today Show, The PBS Newshour, Morning Joe, Fresh Air, and Morning Edition. Emily is a graduate of Yale College and Yale Law School.

Tyler Shultz

Tyler Shultz is an entrepreneur fostering innovation in healthcare. He graduated from Stanford with a Biology degree and entered the national scene when he courageously blew the whistle at Theranos. Shultz complained to the public health regulators in New York and was a source for a series of Wall Street Journal articles exposing Theranos’ dubious blood-testing practices. Owing to his role in exposing the fraud, Shultz was featured in Bad Blood, the book about the scandal penned by John Carreyrou, the original author of the Wall Street Journal articles, as well as in Alex Gibney’s HBO documentary The Inventor: Out for Blood In Silicon Valley.

Currently, Shultz is the CEO and Co-Founder of Flux Biosciences, Inc., a Bay Area start-up. Flux Biosciences aims to bring medical grade diagnostics into the homes of consumers by using cutting-edge technology to measure biomarkers related to stress, exercise, and fertility. His efforts were recognized by Forbes when he was named to their “30 under 30” Health Care 2017 list.