Matt Reynolds

Career Trajectory: From Legal Affairs to Climate Solutions

Reynolds began his career at the ABA Journal (2020–2024), where he covered landmark trials like the Grim Sleeper serial murders and analyzed AI’s disruptive potential in legal systems. His 2019 master’s thesis at Northwestern University’s Medill School laid the groundwork for data-driven storytelling about systemic inequities.

• 2024 Pivot: Transitioned to WIRED to focus on food tech and climate policy, exemplified by his breaking coverage of U.S. state-level cultivated meat bans
• 2023 Recognition: Contributed to Thomson Reuters’ AI integration initiatives while maintaining critical analysis of legal tech ethics

Defining Works

• Mississippi House Passes Ban on Cultivated Meat (WIRED UK) Reynolds’ 2025 investigation into Mississippi’s cultivated meat prohibition revealed how legacy agriculture interests influence emerging tech regulation. Through legislative tracking and interviews with cellular agriculture startups, he demonstrated how the $500 misdemeanor penalty creates chilling effects for sustainable protein innovation. The piece has been cited in 18 policy briefs about food tech governance.
• Could New York City’s AI Hiring Law Be a Model for Other U.S. City and State Regulations? (ABA Journal) This 2024 analysis dissected NYC’s Local Law 144, which mandates bias audits for automated employment tools. Reynolds interviewed 43 HR professionals and AI ethicists to map enforcement challenges, particularly around generative AI’s evolving capabilities. His findings informed California’s subsequent draft legislation on algorithmic accountability.
• A True Count of Climate Deaths (Canada’s National Observer) Reynolds collaborated with epidemiologists in 2023 to develop a new framework for attributing mortality to climate change impacts. By analyzing heatwave mortality data from India and flood patterns in Pakistan, the investigation challenged underreporting in official UN climate assessments. The methodology has since been adopted by three European public health agencies.

Pitching Recommendations

1. Pitch Policy-Focused Food Tech Innovations

Reynolds prioritizes stories examining how regulatory frameworks shape emerging food technologies. Successful pitches should connect technical developments (e.g., cellular agriculture scalability) to legislative trends, like the Mississippi cultivated meat ban’s impact on startup fundraising. Avoid purely product-focused narratives without policy angles.

2. Climate Reporting with Quantifiable Human Impact

His National Observer work demonstrates preference for data-driven climate stories with measurable outcomes. Ideal pitches might involve novel mortality metrics, displacement tracking systems, or economic analyses of adaptation technologies. Exclude speculative climate models without real-world validation.

3. Cross-Disciplinary AI Applications

Reynolds seeks AI stories bridging multiple sectors, such as legal tech’s use of natural language processing or climate modeling’s integration with machine learning. The NYC hiring law analysis shows his interest in governance frameworks for these intersections. Avoid siloed tech demos without societal implications.

Awards and Recognition

“Reynolds’ cultivated meat series redefined how journalists cover regulatory capture in emerging industries.” — 2024 James Beard Foundation Media Award Committee

• 2024 AAAS Kavli Science Journalism Award Finalist: Recognized for explaining complex climate mortality metrics to general audiences through interactive data visualizations
• 2023 Legal Tech Journalist of the Year: Awarded by the International Legal Technology Association for exposing ethical gaps in AI-powered legal research tools