Do we still understand the world?

And that is no longer a philosophical question. If you cannot even answer the simple question of what type of generation you belong to, then it means that you have probably missed-out on a lot more complex jargon than just your generation classification. You are probably among those who don’t understand what blockchain is, how AI works and how it will improve lives, how machine learning will change the world and how big data colonies are threatening neo-liberalism. And maybe some will say that’s ok. But is it really?

There was once a line from a song that said, I am afraid of all that will happen without me. I believe that time is now. Millions, if not billions of people trapped in a frame of technological confusion and the understanding of the world seems to be aligning to an eye-vision like deterioration that comes with age. The iGeneration seems to be taking over the world at light speed and the rest of us who are lacking technological intelligence are just passive followers. The technological revolution that started back in 1990 with the birth of the internet has caused a wave of technological orgasm like never seen before. And while all of us who were privileged enough to be exposed to the new developments as part of the early receivers thought that we will easily adapt to “wonderland”, we are the same people who struggle today with the pace of the technological evolution that keeps shouting at us that soon we will be obsolete. And that is not because we refuse to adapt to the changes but it is because we no longer understand the processes behind those changes. And while Generation A is not just another generation but the complete overhaul of the human species, the creation of a more evolved human altogether if you will, that comes with technological intelligence embedded into its DNA, all other previous generations are queuing-up trying to keep-up.

Just to make my point easier, I will compare to modern fighter jets. Everyone in the airforce understands that a Gen 4 fighter jet is less competitive than a Gen 4+, while the Gen 4+ hardly stands a chance when placed next to a Gen 5 stealth jet. By analogy, this is how it works with human generations and their ability to remain relevant in today’s world. And yes, some will say that sometimes a Gen 4 fighter jet may down a Gen 5, but that will be the absolute exception. And the world, as we all know, is not build on exceptions. The idea that soon enough an algorithm, i.e. an abstract sequence of numbers will be the biggest threat to mankind as we know it, may seem to be too far-fetched for most to grasp, but if one takes a closer look at the world then he will realize that it was the numbers all along. Every important stage of mankind’s existence was linked one way or the other to numbers. And it seems while our own intellect started to decline at some point in history, the intellect of numbers followed the reverse trend. And the question that surfaces from that realization is how effective can a non-mathematical population be in a purely mathematical world? Every time we watch with awe a small video presentation online with some new robotic breakthrough we fail to read the message behind it which is that some human(s) has/ve become obsolete to make room for the robot.

Moreover, another critical aspect is the one of government and regulators. Are governments really in a position today to efficiently govern societies that become ever more technological? Are regulators in a position to regulate a world that becomes ever more difficult to understand? We once said that crime is always one step ahead of the law, now we need to acknowledge that technology is several steps ahead of its governor or regulator. And it is a chase in which governors and regulators appear like old men and technology like race horses. The gap in the understanding which has caused this immense disconnect, will eventually hand over the keys of this world to younger generations who have a better understanding of it. But isn’t that already happening in the world of business? The new economy is based purely on technology, AI and 5 & 6G networks. And who understands that better than Generations Y, Z and A? While the A generation is visualizing the future potential of 5 and 6G networks and related applications, our generation is demonizing what it doesn’t understand. The old world clashing with the new world. Fact is, that you cannot change the flow of the river. So, the only option left for older generations is to learn how to better swim in this flow. And that starts with a mind shift. Yuval Harari predicted accurately that the biggest threat of the workforce in the past was its exploitation. The biggest threat in the days ahead is to completely lose its relevance. And that is a threat that you cannot easily manage as it will lead to the creation of what he brutally but honestly describes as “useless” people. In this context Alvin Toffler’s quote comes to mind when he said that the illiterate of the 21st century are not those who cannot read and write, but those who cannot learn, unlearn and relearn.