Who is Aidan McCullen?
Aidan McCullen is a Dublin-based keynote speaker on innovation and reinvention and the host of The Innovation Show, a weekly podcast with more than 650 episodes. He received the Thinkers50 Innovation Award in 2025 and wrote Undisruptable. Before his business career he played professional rugby for Toulouse and Leinster and won a cap for Ireland.
Short bio
Aidan McCullen is a keynote speaker and the host of The Innovation Show, a weekly podcast with more than 650 episodes. He received the Thinkers50 Innovation Award in 2025. A former Ireland rugby international, he wrote Undisruptable and founded the Reinvention Summit in Dublin. He lectures at Trinity Business School.
Full bio
Aidan McCullen is a keynote speaker and transformation adviser who helps leaders and organisations build a mindset of permanent reinvention. He created and hosts The Innovation Show, a weekly podcast with more than 650 episodes, and in 2025 he received the Thinkers50 Innovation Award.
His first career was on the rugby pitch. He played professionally from 1998 to 2008 for Dax, Toulouse, Leinster and London Irish, and won his Ireland cap against Samoa in Apia. When injury ended his playing days he moved into digital media and held innovation leadership roles at Communicorp and RTÉ.
He wrote Undisruptable: A Mindset of Permanent Reinvention for Individuals, Organisations and Life, and founded the Reinvention Summit in Dublin. He lectures on emerging technology at Trinity Business School and sits on the board of National Broadband Ireland. Organisations he has worked with include PayPal, SAP, Toyota and Mastercard.
How to introduce Aidan
Our next speaker spent ten years as a professional rugby player, wearing the jerseys of Toulouse and Leinster before winning a cap for Ireland. When injury ended that career he had to rebuild himself from the ground up, and he has studied reinvention ever since. He hosts The Innovation Show, with more than 650 conversations with the world’s leading thinkers, and in 2025 he received the Thinkers50 Innovation Award. Please welcome Aidan McCullen.
Photos
Free to use for event promotion and coverage of Aidan’s work. Click any image to open the full-resolution file.
In the press
- The Irish Times, 1 August 2026. Aidan McCullen: the former Ireland international who turns breakdowns into breakthroughs, by John O’Sullivan. A profile of how habits from professional rugby carried into Aidan’s later work in innovation and media.
- Forbes, 16 August 2023. Innovation And AI. With Aidan McCullen, by Calum Chace. Covers his move from rugby into digital media and how he uses generative AI in his keynotes and writing.
- Thinkers50. Biography of Aidan as a 2025 Thinkers50 Innovation Award recipient.
Podcast appearances
- Change Signal with Michael Bungay Stanier, September 2026. Is Your Change Program a Chocolate Teapot? On leading change when reinvention becomes permanent.
- Disrupt Yourself with Whitney Johnson, May 2021. Innovation and Transformation. On failure, resistance and growth, in Aidan’s second appearance on the show.
- Lancefield on the Line with David Lancefield. Developing a reinvention mindset. On managing anxiety through reinvention and why a fuzzy vision helps.
- The Disruptive Voice, February 2023. Here Be Dragons. With Katie Zandbergen, on Aidan’s Clayton Christensen series and building capabilities before you need them.
What clients say
“Aidan consistently scored an NPS of 100/100 across every session with different groups. He brings excellent knowledge and insights, is easy to work with, reliable and unique in his engagement. I highly recommend his unique, relaxing and highly visual storytelling style.”
Ricky Virdi, Global Sales Learning, SAP
“Aidan created a virtual ‘Reinvention Mindset’ workshop for PayPal’s Global Innovation Ambassador community. Aidan’s visual and storytelling-based delivery of carefully crafted content based on theory, data, experiences, and industry tales captured the audience, sparked great engagement, and invigorated the group. He created moments that provoked ongoing thought beyond the workshop.”
Maria Mileder, Global Head of Innovation, PayPal
Questions and booking
What does Aidan McCullen speak about?
Aidan speaks on permanent reinvention, the mindset that lets people and organisations change before the market forces them to. His keynotes and workshops cover innovation, disruption, transformation and the impact of AI on how organisations work, drawing on more than 650 conversations with leading thinkers on The Innovation Show.
Can I use these photos of Aidan McCullen?
Yes. Event organisers and journalists may use the photos on this page to promote an event featuring Aidan or to illustrate coverage of his work. Please do not crop out his face or alter the images.
How do I book Aidan McCullen to speak?
Email admin@theinnovationshow.io with your event date, location, audience and the theme you have in mind. Aidan speaks in person across Europe and internationally, and also delivers virtual keynotes and workshops.