Page 117 - COVID-19: The Great Reset

1.6. Technological reset

When it was published in 2016, The Fourth Industrial
Revolution made the case that “Technology and digitization will
revolutionize everything, making the overused and often ill-used
adage ‘this time is different’ apt. Simply put, major technological

innovations are on the brink of fueling momentous change
throughout the world.” [121] In the four short years since,
technological progress has moved impressively fast. AI is now all

around us, from drones and voice recognition to virtual assistants
and translation software. Our mobile devices have become a
permanent and integral part of our personal and professional
lives, helping us on many different fronts, anticipating our needs,
listening to us and locating us, even when not asked to do so…

Automation and robots are reconfiguring the way businesses
operate with staggering speed and returns on scale inconceivable
just a few years ago. Innovation in genetics, with synthetic biology

now on the horizon, is also exciting, paving the way for
developments in healthcare that are groundbreaking.
Biotechnology still falls short of stopping, let alone preventing, a
disease outbreak, but recent innovations have allowed the
identification and sequencing of the coronavirus’ genome much

faster than in the past, as well as the elaboration of more effective
diagnostics. In addition, the most recent biotechnology techniques
using RNA and DNA platforms make it possible to develop

vaccines faster than ever. They might also help with the
development of new bioengineered treatments.

To sum up, the speed and breadth of the Fourth Industrial
Revolution have been and continue to be remarkable. This
chapter argues that the pandemic will accelerate innovation even

more, catalysing technological changes already under way
(comparable to the exacerbation effect it has had on other
underlying global and domestic issues) and “turbocharging” any
digital business or the digital dimension of any business. It will

also accentuate one of the greatest societal and individual
challenges posed by tech: privacy. We will see how contact

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