WEF report presents emerging technologies and the future of the internet

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02.01.2015

The World Economic Forum (WEF) has just published its Outlook on the Global Agenda 2015. The report presents trends and technologies such as synthetic biology and computer-brain interfaces that will shape the future.

The fourth edition of the WEF Outlook on the Global Agenda features the insights of the Network of Global Agenda Councils, the world’s foremost community of thought leaders. It is informed by data from the WEF Survey on the Global Agenda, which polled an extensive sample of Council Members and also incorporates the views of the next generation, the Young Global Leaders and Global Shapers. 

The report features an analysis of the Top 10 trends which will preoccupy experts of the WEF for the next 12-18 months as well as the key challenges facing the world’s regions, an overview of global leadership and governance, and the emerging issues that will define our future.

The most interesting part for start-ups is the chapter called “Future Agenda” which focuses on emerging technologies and the future of the internet.

The new technologies:

Synthetic biology - The latest scientific advances will soon enable us to take charge of evolution itself. Synthetic biology is a new form of engineering that involves the creation of complex, new biological systems. It is the result of the confluence of knowledge in life sciences, engineering, and bio-informatics, and the most promising innovations in this new field – genetic design, protein manufacture and natural product synthesis – could have a revolutionary impact on our lives, particularly with regards to the production of energy and medicine. It brings with it gigantic opportunities and risks. Early innovations may include personalized, genome-specific medications for the treatment of cancer and degenerative diseases such as Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s, and pro-environmental bacteria designed to counter the effects of pollution; picture a microbe that ‘eats’ the toxicants in a contaminated body of water. As an alternative to existing, limited energy sources, we could also engineer the mass production of cellulosic ethanol – a renewable plant-based biofuel that produces very low carbon emissions.

Brain-computer interaction - The interaction between human beings and machines has enabled us to achieve incredible things. Now, as we enter a new era of brain-computer interfaces, we should prepare ourselves for innovations that will transform the way we learn, communicate and control devices – and perhaps even each other. Over the next decade, the ability to control individual machines through electroencephalography (EEG) will gradually develop, with a broad range of applications ranging from computer games to robotics and prosthetics. We are still a long way from sci-fi clichés such as interface sockets embedded in human spines, or the ability to learn kung fu by downloading a program directly into our brains; it’s hard to even imagine the biological basis for ‘downloading’ a skill. But BCI could certainly help with skill acquisition. My team is currently working with the United States Navy on a project that uses both BCI and physiological sensing to optimize individual and team training. You could soon have a computer that acts as an intelligent tutor, using BCI to sense when your attention wanders, and re-structuring the lesson to set an efficient pace of study.

The future of the internet
The internet has infiltrated almost every corner of our society, transforming our lives in the process. Over the coming decades, networked innovations will extend this change to the physical world. Networked technology is spreading rapidly from traditional devices to everyday items, and even to the spaces in which we live. Before long, online functionality will be ubiquitous in the most commonplace objects, allowing them to identify, communicate and cooperate with one another. This coming phenomenon is known as the ‘Internet of Things’. Anil Menon, President of Smart+Connected Communities at CISCO, believes that the rise of omnipresent connectivity will present opportunities and challenges in equal measure, fuelled by an explosion in data feedback from our networked environment.

“Connecting one object to every other object will not necessarily transform the way we live or do things,” he says. “It is by connecting things to processes, and then using the resulting data to change the way we behave – that is where you will see a dramatic shift. The Internet of Things will be the foundation, but it will be the business models on top of it that will change our lives.”

The whole report can be read at the WEF website.

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