Future Beat: Refreshing and nostalgic

It has been said that the more things change, the more they stay the same.

I can’t think of a better example to illustrate this than the array of technology shows and conferences that took place in the UAE this week.

Think about it for a moment: for all the talk about us living in a digital world where we can learn, purchase or communicate at any time, these in-person conferences remain a major force.

It is nostalgic and, at the same time, somehow refreshing.

There’s Gitex, Expand Northstar, the Global Future Councils, just to name a few.

The conference floors and meeting rooms are filled with start-ups and established companies, thought leaders and influencers, each trying capture moments of importance to try to secure a piece of the future with whatever they are trying to promote.

Sadly, a lot of these pitches and ideas might wither on the vine, but a few will flourish. And for those consumers, investors and entrepreneurs who get in on the ground floor, there is nothing like the ride to the top.

Why does it captivate us? Because ultimately, it is a tightrope walk. We like to see people put themselves and their ideas out there in the marketplace, and we like to physically bear witness to what is about to unfold before our eyes, all in the name of trying to improve humanity.

Don’t get me wrong, it is a good thing to be living in a world where you can experience all these things without leaving your home, but it is also great to know that we humans still want to gather, interact and find things we did not even know we were looking for.

Cody Sigel Combs , Future Editor

The Big Story

When will the machines take over?

In brief | It only took a few minutes for the topic of artificial intelligence to pop up at the World Economic Forum’s Global Future Councils meeting in Dubai, and Stuart Russell , a prominent computer scientist, wanted to make sure he cleared up some misconceptions about it.

He said AI was not new but, rather, 80 years old. He also said it was not a technology but, rather, a field of study. Perhaps more importantly, it is not going to be a solution to everything, he said.

However, Mr Russell was quick to make sure the overall debate was not missing the wood for the trees.

“At some point we have to expect the machine to take control,” he cautioned, referencing just how quickly AI is advancing. “How do we retain power over entities more powerful than ourselves forever? What’s clear is that we had better produce an answer to that question before we develop those machines that are more powerful than ourselves.”

The answers to that question might remain elusive for now but our humanity will not be replicated, he said. Essentially, according to him, it is still within our grasp to make the right decisions for the world we want to live in.

That thought might be comforting, but also worrisome depending on your perspective.

Why it matters | | The Global Future Councils meeting helps to inform the discussions and debates at the World Economic Forum’s Annual Meeting in Davos.

That meeting, taking place in January, will gather some of the world’s top experts, government officials and innovators who will attempt to tackle some of the world’s biggest problems such as economic inequality, climate change and geopolitical fractures.

At last year’s meeting, ChatGPT’s iteration of AI commandeered the attention of those in attendance. The solutions and worries about how it might be used were plentiful, but the concrete answers for what could happen next were elusive.

Now that the experts have some perspective and insights into what will and won’t happen, we will now learn exactly what to worry about with regards to AI, what to embrace and what to temper in terms of our expectations.

Quoted | “People say AI will solve the climate problem. It will help around the edges, but climate is really a collective action problem. We know what to do but we’re not doing it. AI isn’t going to make us do it somehow” – Stuart Russell, professor of computer science at the University of California, Berkeley.

Future in focus

Affordable bionic limbs | Bionic arms at a fraction of the cost of high-end prosthetics were among the innovations at the Expand North Star conference for start-up businesses.

Meet Mai, a new assistant | Microsoft has unveiled a new digital assistant powered by generative AI whose capabilities – and looks – can be customised to specific user requirements

A league of its own | Abu Dhabi has formally launched what it is calling the world's biggest racing league for self-driving cars powered by artificial intelligence

Diabetes voice analysis | Ten-second voice recordings interpreted by artificial intelligence could be used to screen for Type 2 diabetes, a study has found

Predicting the future: Signal or noise?

The head of the International Atomic Energy Agency says the nuclear power sector hopes to be a “part of the solution” in addressing climate change at the coming Cop28 conference in Dubai.

“We are not peddling nuclear just for nuclear,” he said when asked about expectations for Cop28. “We believe that nuclear is playing an excellent role in providing clean energy.”

This is a signal. Public polling across the board shows that nuclear energy is having a moment. Even climate activist Greta Thunberg, not known for pulling her punches, has acknowledged the need for nuclear power instead of coal power. With the clock ticking in the race to blunt the impact on climate change, nuclear power is certainly on the table. Increasingly hopeful propositions for nuclear fusion have also captured the imaginations of many. While passionate and pointed debates will remain about ageing nuclear plants and the issue of nuclear waste, among other concerns, nuclear energy overall has a seat at the climate solutions table, and it is not going away.

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