Okay, answer this one honestly! When watching Passengers, how many of you thought, "I wish I had someone like Arthur to help me out with my daily chores"? TBH, most of us did. After all, who wouldn't love a carefree life where you can just relax and have someone else do the dishes!
For decades there have been debates on whether robots would make our life easier or be a threat to our kind. If you're a sci-fi fan, for sure, you'll consider them as a threat. But if you're a scientist or an expert, you'll call them a step towards a better tomorrow, just like these people at the 2018 Mobile World Congress did.
Possessed Photography/Unsplash | Leaders at the Mobile World Congress were asked where they saw the world in 50 years
When the smart minds at the Mobile World Congress were asked where they see the world in 50 years, each one of them had a different vision. However, all of them believed we would be at the peak of technological advancement, where almost anything would be possible.
Brian Wong: Kiip CEO & Co-founder
Wong believed that over the next 50 years, we would be able to insert technology into different parts of our bodies instead of wearing it on our hands or feet or around our heads. He even gave an example of Ingestibles and said that it's impressive how a little capsule can tell us about our calorie intake, eating habits, etc. The 30-year-old even spoke about Magic Leap's AR tech, which takes us into a whole new world where touching things isn't necessary.
Jonas Svidras/Unsplash | Some talked about Ingestible tech overtaking wearable tech (chips that can be inserted in our bodies rather than wearing devices)
Dirk Wisselmann: Senior Engineer Automated Driving at BMW Group
Wisselmann spoke about the future of the automotive industry. He said 50 years later we’ll have diverse mobility. That means both self-driving cars and human-driven cars will be available in the market. He pointed out that there'll be a major change in the safety of the vehicles with automakers prioritizing the security of passengers more than anything.
Rand Hindi: Snips CEO
Hindi had a vision that was different from the others. He said that the future won’t be driven by artificial intelligence because technology would have taken over us. He predicted that humans will find a way to combine the knowledge of the brain and machine, and they will use it for the world's betterment.
Mahadev Satyanarayanan: Professor at Carnegie Mellon University
Satyanarayanan forecasted that in the future, robots would assist humans for everything. Citing an example of a nurse, he said that she would have an angel who would guide her during the patient's treatment and prevent her from making mistakes.
Dominik Scythe/Unsplash | Others talked about helper robots who would take care of every little thing for humans
Even though we don't know what will happen in the future, we can at least avoid making blunders that we would regret later. Moreover, we should try to have a vision inspired by solarpunk, where technology and nature can co-exist.
