Following IU directives in response to COVID-19, the Sanders Speaker Series scheduled for Tuesday, April 7, has been postponed. A new date will be announced soon.
NEW ALBANY, Ind. – Ken Jennings, New York Times bestselling author and the Greatest of All Time “Jeopardy!” champion, will discuss his experiences on the show and human versus artificial intelligence for the annual Sanders Speaker Series at Indiana University Southeast.
Jennings will be the keynote speaker at 7 p.m. on Tuesday, April 7, in the Richard K. Stem Concert Hall in the Paul W. Ogle Cultural and Community Center at IU Southeast.
Jennings was a Salt Lake City computer programmer in June 2004 when he unexpectedly vaulted to fame after his six-month appearance on the quiz show “Jeopardy!” He left the show in November after winning 74 consecutive games and over $2.5 million, both American game show records. In the process, he became a nerd folk icon, appeared on television programs from “The Tonight Show” to “Sesame Street” to “The Simpsons,” and he was named by Barbara Walters as one of the ten most fascinating people of 2004. Jennings was recently crowned the greatest “Jeopardy!” contestant of all time.
Today Jennings is the author of twelve books, including “Brainiac,” the New York Times bestsellers “Maphead” and “Because I Said So” and the Junior Genius series for children. His most recent book is “Planet Funny: How Comedy Ruined Everything,” about the rise of humor as a force in modern life. He is a co-creator of the podcast “Omnibus,” a complete time capsule of human achievement, and he speaks to college and corporate audiences about education, human cognition and his 2011 “Jeopardy!” match against IBM’s supercomputer “Watson.” He lives in Seattle with his wife and two children.
The Sanders Speaker Series is named after Judge Carlton and Sue Sanders, whose generous donation established the Sanders Speaker Series Endowment in 2008. The couple’s goal for the series is to bring high-profile speakers to the University to speak to the community about business and the economy.
Admission is free. Seating for this event will be first-come, first-seated.