Trends Identified
Blockchains: An invention that could change our world
Blockchain technology is a very practical solution to the problem of storing, authenticating and protecting data. Think of a blockchain as a decentralized, extremely secure database. Or, to get slightly more technical, it’s a distributed, peer-to-peer ledger of records. While nothing is ever totally ‘hack-proof’, blockchain represents a huge leap forward compared to our current data security technology as, unlike a centralized database, there’s no one single point of failure. The records in a blockchain are called ‘blocks’ and every block is connected to the previous block (hence, ‘block’ and ‘chain’). The whole chain is self-managed, which means there’s no one person or organization in charge of the entire chain. If that sounds familiar, it might be because the virtual currency Bitcoin functions on blockchain technology. Financial services, insurance and healthcare are just some of the sectors where blockchains are likely to be heavily adopted. In fact, 90 percent of major European and North American banks are exploring blockchain solutions.
2017
9 Technology Mega Trends That Will Change The World In 2018
Forbes
Blurring Boundaries
Blurring Boundaries the emergence of business ecosystems across traditional silos. Melting pots: As ICT technologies have permeated the fabric of our lives, we have entered an age of inundation with data and stories which have made decision-making a more challenging feat. While perhaps traditionally, individuals would fall in line with traditional societal expectations with regard to careers, interpersonal relationships, and political beliefs, today there is much more fluidity between one choice and another, leading to a culture of increased autonomy and thoughtful ambivalence. Co-development: As business ecosystems have formed, convening players across traditional silos, a swath of new opportunity in co-development and collaboration has emerged. In part this has emerged because of a blurring of the producerconsumer boundary, as consumer usage data and metrics feed into the design of new products and services versus in the past, when consumers were merely the recipient. Mass epidemics: An unintended consequence of open borders, free movement, and climate change, mass public health epidemics have begun to increase in outbreak frequency and impact. Blurring boundaries between species create new forms of antibody-resistant bacteria which affect animals and humans in significant ways. Mosquito-borne infections such as Dengue fever, West Nile virus, and malaria are transmitted across borders, often from affected countries in Africa and Asia. Shadow markets: As boundaries have blurred, the line between the traditional sectors and shadow markets has emerged, creating market complexity. A major contributor to the 2008 financial crisis was the emergence of a shadow market in financial services, in which risky loans were repackaged and sold as triple-A bonds. The opacity of these transactions was a critical contributor to the downfall of the big banks. Nation state 2.0:In recent years, there have been several political conflicts in which regions are demanding sovereignty as they protest against the political structures and physical borders within which they exist. Some conflicts have been in existence for many years, such as the political disputes between Hong Kong and the People’s Republic of China. Some states have succeeded in their political disputes to form new nation states, such as the 2011 creation of the Republic of South Sudan.
2017
Beyond the Noise- The Megatrends of Tomorrow’s World
Deloitte
Body-adapted Wearable Electronics
From Google Glass to the Fitbit wristband, wearable technology has generated significant attention over the past year, with most existing devices helping people to better understand their personal health and fitness by monitoring exercise, heart rate, sleep patterns, and so on. The sector is shifting beyond external wearables like wristbands or clip-on devices to “body-adapted” electronics that further push the ever-shifting boundary between humans and technology.The new generation of wearables is designed to adapt to the human body’s shape at the place of deployment. These wearables are typically tiny, packed with a wide range of sensors and a feedback system, and camouflaged to make their use less intrusive and more socially acceptable. These virtually invisible devices include earbuds that monitor heart rate, sensors worn under clothes to track posture, a temporary tattoo that tracks health vitals and haptic shoe soles that communicate GPS directions through vibration alerts felt by the feet. The applications are many and varied: haptic shoes are currently proposed for helping blind people navigate, while Google Glass has already been worn by oncologists to assist in surgery via medical records and other visual information accessed by voice commands.Technology analysts consider that success factors for wearable products include device size, non-invasiveness, and the ability to measure multiple parameters and provide real-time feedback that improves user behaviour. However, increased uptake also depends on social acceptability as regards privacy. For example, concerns have been raised about wearable devices that use cameras for facial recognition and memory assistance. Assuming these challenges can be managed, analysts project hundreds of millions of devices in use by 2016.
2014
Top 10 emerging technologies for 2014
World Economic Forum (WEF)
Boosted brainpower
It’s already common to use drugs to boost brainpower (whether it’s coffee, or something stronger, like modafinil), and most of the developed world now relies on their smartphones as an ‘externalised’ memory – but let’s extrapolate that out a few decades. Imagine targeted pharmaceuticals that make us think faster than currently possible, and technological implants that help us concentrate beyond normal human ability for hours or days, for example – these advances are already well underway in laboratories around the world. The question it raises is: what happens to those that cannot afford such enhancements? Could it widen inequality, and allow the rich to get richer? Then there’s also the legal and ethical issues: it’s acceptable to drink a coffee before you sit an exam, but is it ok to use an implant or a smart drug? The challenges posed by intelligence enhancement are only just emerging.
2017
10 grand challenges we’ll face by 2050
The BBC
Bottle fed
Liquid meals are typically the staple of babies and toddlers — but companies such as Soylent and Ample are creating “meal-replacement” drinks by fusing obscure ingredients, such as bioengineered algae (to provide lipids and fatty acids) and artichoke inulin (a source of carbohydrate). Beyond criticizing the potential tedium of drinking the same bottle each day, nutritionists have struggled to find fault with the health benefits of such drinks — which meet stringent US Food & Drug Administration (FDA) requirements.
2017
How we eat now: five disruptive food trends
EY
Brain-computer interface
A brain-computer interface (BCI) is a direct communication pathway that connects nerve signals in the brain to an external computer. BCIs can be invasive (implanted within or just above the brain), or non-invasive (on the scalp surface). BCIs are used therapeutically to assist, augment or repair human cognitive, sensory or motor functions. Today, it requires training and practice to make BCIs useful and reliable. Research, artificial intelligence and more data, however, will improve this significantly. Potential near-term applications include the use of BCIs to detect lapses in attention among occupations requiring vigilance, and as a communication tool for those who have lost motor skills but retained cognition. In the future, this technology could be used to improve cognitive functions, to better understand human preferences, and to augment human capabilites such as coordination and response times. It may even be used to develop senses new to humans, such as the ability to sense magnetic fields, infrared light or radio waves.
2013
Metascan 3 emerging technologies
Canada, Policy Horizons Canada
Brain-Computer Interface – Merging with the Machine
In the years to come, we will explore new ways to collaborate with machines. One way, still considered to be radical by most today, would be brain-computer interfaces, moving towards a human-machine convergence. Now that wearable technology gets miniaturized and more powerful and hands-free applications are within reach, it is likely that non-invasive versions of this technology will be included in VR headset designs. Brain-computer interface designs have shown major progress and can be seen as the ultimate human-machine communication. Prominent organizations working on it are Elon Musks Neurolink, Facebook, Kernel, Emotiv and DARPA. The market is segmented into neurogaming, neuroprosthetics, and neuroanalysis, with interfaces increasingly used in healthcare for locked-in syndrome, paralysis, artifi cial limbs and others. Neuroanalysis and neuroprosthetics are the largest commercial segments driven by rehabilitation, psychological research centers and military applications. Neurogaming is mostly nascent. Currently there are three approaches used, but in all cases extensive training is necessary: • Invasive, where electrodes directly connect to the brain • Partially invasive, where the skull is penetrated, but not the brain • Noninvasive headbands • The human brain is probably the most complex organ in the universe, so brain surgery and even noninvasive neurolinks might have unknown impacts on psychology and neurology
2018
Trend Report 2018 - Emerging Technology Trends
SAP
Brain-computer Interfaces
The ability to control a computer using only the power of the mind is closer than one might think. Brain-computer interfaces, where computers can read and interpret signals directly from the brain, have already achieved clinical success in allowing quadriplegics, those suffering “locked-in syndrome” or people who have had a stroke to move their own wheelchairs or even drink coffee from a cup by controlling the action of a robotic arm with their brain waves. In addition, direct brain implants have helped restore partial vision to people who have lost their sight. Recent research has focused on the possibility of using brain-computer interfaces to connect different brains together directly. Researchers at Duke University last year reported successfully connecting the brains of two mice over the Internet (into what was termed a “brain net”) where mice in different countries were able to cooperate to perform simple tasks to generate a reward. Also in 2013, scientists at Harvard University reported that they were able to establish a functional link between the brains of a rat and a human with a non-invasive, computer-to-brain interface. Other research projects have focused on manipulating or directly implanting memories from a computer into the brain. In mid-2013, MIT researchers reported having successfully implanted a false memory into the brain of a mouse. In humans, the ability to directly manipulate memories might have an application in the treatment of post-traumatic stress disorder, while in the longer term, information may be uploaded into human brains in the manner of a computer file. Of course, numerous ethical issues are also clearly raised by this rapidly advancing field.
2014
Top 10 emerging technologies for 2014
World Economic Forum (WEF)
Brain-inspired technologies
Understanding the human brain is one of the greatest challenges facing 21st century science. Advances in this understanding can help us gain profound insights into what makes us human, develop new treatments for brain disease and build revolutionary new computing and robotic technologies. Modern ICT has now brought these goals within sight.
2015
Preparing the Commission for future opportunities - Foresight network fiches 2030
European Strategy and Policy Analysis System (ESPAS)
Brain-machine Interface
Brain-machine interface enables control over machines with brainwaves. The technology is primarily used on neuroprosthetics applications that aim to improve the quality of life for those with disabilities by analyzing and processing information on neural activities.
2009
KISTEP 10 Emerging Technologies 2009
South Korea, Korea Institute of S&T Evaluation and Planning (KISTEP)