Max Roser (born 1983) is an economist and philosopher who focuses on large global problems such as poverty, disease, hunger, climate change, war, existential risks, and inequality.

In 1999, he and a friend won a prize in the German youth science competition Jugend forscht with a model of a self-navigating vacuum cleaner.

[11] Our World In Data covers a range of aspects of development: global health, food provision, the growth and distribution of incomes, violence, rights, wars, technology, education, and environmental changes, among others.

The publication makes use of data visualisations which are licensed under Creative Commons and are widely used in research, in the media, and as teaching material.

"[14] He is critical of the mass media's excessive focus on single events which he claims is not helpful in understanding "the long-lasting, forceful changes that reshape our world, as well as the large, long-standing problems that continue to confront us.

"[1][17][18] In contrast to the event-focussed reporting of the news media Roser advocates the adoption of a broader perspective on global change, and in particular a focus on those living in poverty.

[19] He advocates looking at larger trends in poverty, education, health and violence since these are slowly, but persistently changing the world and are neglected in the reporting of today's mass media.

[37] UN Secretary-General António Guterres invited him to internal retreats attended by the heads of the UN institutions to speak about his global development research.

[38] Tina Rosenberg emphasised in The New York Times that Roser's work presents a "big picture that’s an important counterpoint to the constant barrage of negative world news.

[43][44] The data visualization expert Edward Tufte repeatedly cited and reprinted the work by Max Roser in his books.