We have see massive shifts over the last 100+ years. In the 20th century, we could say the most important technological develops were the automobile, Internet, and data processing. Each had a major impact upon society along with the power structure of the world.
We are edging towards being a quarter of the way through the 21st century. At this moment, technology is really starting to gear up. A lot of progress is being made in short periods of time.
So what are the 3 most important technologies for the 21st century?
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This something that is on the minds of everyone.
The advancement of computing over the last 40 years completely changed the world. Today, we walk around with "computers in our pockets", enabling 4 billion people to access the global knowledge base.
In spite of this, computers, for the most part were not predictive. They were basically input/output devices. We are seeing a change with AI.
Large Language Models (LLMs) are showing us how much of an impact this can make. We are going to see computers at the core of decision making to a much greater degree.
This has enormous implications. It also is something that will affect every industry in some way. One result we are likely to see is an increased in economic productivity.
Robots have been around a long time. That said, humanoid robots take things to an entirely different level.
One of the major benefits is humanoid bots can fit into the world easier. We already designed things for humans. It is a process that should result in more seamless integration.
This is also tied to the major increase in productivity. It is difficult to grasp the concept of creating 500M or 1B "workers" in a year.
When this is coupled with AI, things get very intriguing. We presume that we are operating in the most efficient manner. In agriculture, for example, we use massive machines to plant. Is that the most efficient? Perhaps having thousands of humanoid robots doing individual plants could be a better option. This is something we simply cannot know.
The probably path is commercial and industrial purposes to start yet, there will come a point where these are in our homes.
A major challenge is powering all of this.
We are looking at energy being the food for the future since the robots will outnumber humans. These all have to be fed and, depending upon the growth rates, it could be a hefty amount.
Many are optimistic about nuclear fusion. While solar and wind get a lot of attention, the idea of near unlimited energy has inspired many over the last 100 years.
There are many potential benefits on Earth as well as in space. Could this be the propulsion system that moves humans into being interplanetary?
It also could have an impact on droughts, temperature, and waste problems. Clean water could be abundant due to inexpensive de-salinization.
One might wonder about blockchain and cryptocurrency. Where does this enter into the picture?
These are two powerful technologies that will have major impact, at least in the medium term. Over the next 75 years, it is hard to guess the lasting impact.
Do we head to a post-monetary society? If so, what does that mean for cryptocurrency? Is that a part of what drives it?
Blockchain is going to be important since I think a lot of these technologies are best served being integrated with an open ledger. For now, a lot of the focus is on centralized entities.
Over the next couple decades, my sense is we are in for a shift. Decentralized finance (DeFi) solves some major problems within our existing financial system. We cannot overstate the importance of transparency.
Funding is going to become a massive issue. When we look at the cost to developing all of this, we can see how it is a massive price tag.
Where is the money going to come from? To me, I see the value generated within the cryptocurrency community being a great driver of the funding arm of technological progress.
We are witnessing the foundation for massive financial innovation. This is something that can be utilized to generate even greater economic output (based upon whatever metrics we will be using in the future), a situation that results in larger investment.
Consider the idea of cryptocurrency, in its different forms, with a $40T-$50T market cap. Now expand that to $200 trillion. How much could be utilized to further develop technologies that push society forward?
The final point is the fact that ownership is going to be crucial. With technologies so powerful, who owns then and reaps the financial benefits? This is something that is clear if we progress under the same system.
We are heading towards a future were a few companies have most of the wealth. Those with stake in those entities will be the beneficiaries.
Web 3.0 is a possible solution. This completely changes the ownership structure in a way that differs from corporations.
It is a massive shift that could benefit a great deal more people due to inclusion.
