I think the three megatrends that will change life forever for the coming decades will be the following.
- Humanoid robots, AI and automation
- Space Exploration
- Geopolitics
I live in America which means I have the rights to exercise reasonable free speech as permitted by the law. All posted content(s) on this website are my opinions only which means they should not be taken as advice of any kind. I am a non-celebrity, non-public figure posting anonymously for my own entertainment on a website that is not affiliated with any individual(s), organization(s) and/or any entity/entities.
Top three megatrends for the next decade.
The humanoid robots, AI and automation trend will likely continue to progress rapidly in the coming years. It is however not as scary as it seems from a job security standpoint for most people in the workforce now at least for workers in the US. The US is a consumer oriented economy with consumer spending being one of its largest drivers of economic growth. If a large swath of workers lose their jobs, there would be no one to sell the products to. The rest of the world also heavily depend on the US for consumption due to its lucrative marketplace. Privacy, safety and other elements that affect the human experience is also important in America hence any technological advanced implemented at scale will likely have to clear those hurdles as well. Automation has been happening for years. What basically ended happening there was productivity per worker went up, prices per unit went down, worker wage went up, average per capita consumption went up, invention went up because people have more time to think and experiment and Americans are able to consume more than ever. I foresee humanoid robots, with the exception of ethics and safety concerns, will likely help fulfill the needs of people. AI is already helping people increase productivity, however, it is still years away from being sophisticated enough to AIoT (artificial intelligence if things) to control everything.
Space exploration was likely the dream of everyone when they were little. Space doesn’t have to mean outer space, it could just mean discovering new places. The biggest mysteries for the human race are probably where are we really from, can we live forever, how we got here, are there other hospitable planets like Earth for humans and are there others like other in the universe. Many of these questions will probably take generations to answer, however, the age of space exploration will likely last for centuries. The biggest takeaway from that is we have to think about things from a galactical standpoint not just earthly. For example, are precious metals still worth hoarding when there are tons of that in other space locations or can we live longer on other planets. On the contrary, if more cultures are found, cultural relics like collectible cards may be worth a lot more due to curiosity and overall a bigger market for such items. Perspectives on life will likely also change which will cause consumption patterns to change due to influence of new cultures and state of being.
Regarding geopolitics, I think the US will ultimately prevail. This will be a prolonged battle for supremacy but ultimately the US has too many things going for it for it not to win. To consume and be productive, people need to be in a relatively satisfied emotional stage and have the time to be emotionally satisfied. Anyone who tasted free range chicken knows it generally taste better relative to the ones cooped up due to its environment and feed. People need meaning behind their lives. Living in a state of constant exhaustion, censorship and environmental pollution do not help. There is a difference between cost, price and value. Just because something is less to produce and priced in expensively, does not mean it has the same valuation as something else that appears to be similar. This is why I snicker every time experts talk about purchase power parity (PPP). What do you think the cooked food that was sold for 2 dollars on a regular basis is made from when the local air is polluted, much of the water are contaminated, wages have increased tremendously in the last twenty years and meat alone per market price in that jurisdiction cost more than what is being charged. I am pretty sure the said food is probably not made out of organic ingredients….What do you suppose the hidden cost in long-term consumption of such “food” will be? Who you think will actually consume all the overcapacity if the local workers are not paid a wage commiserate to living standards? Deflation is literally a man-made curse masked as progress. Winning long wars typically requires the backing of a strong economy and demographics. The US has this while its main adversar(ies) do/does not.
I don’t think anyone who is alive now need to worry about it. This process will take time. The US is the center of the world and the home of aspirations. In this world, anyone who is worth their salts have at least once thought about being associated with America in some capacity in their life-time. The best of virtually any thing meaningful, has a large market value and with scale right now are in America. Unlike some places where deflation is rampant, the US usually can take care of inflation easily. US GDP won’t have trouble growing because it takes in the best from all worlds and the world helps it to grow. Yes, it may have issues that it may need to act upon now, the general trend appears to be that it is actively working in resolving those issues. Work life on average is only about 40 years, all these developments are still in its early commercial stages. It will take at least two decades for these developments to impact the regular person on a daily basis.