The past was imperfect…it looks at least historically perfect. The future is imperfect world…unless you want to deceive yourself. What is written below is neither history nor future prediction or a story…it mirrors the extreme foolishness of man.
Kodak Camera Company was one of the best companies of the world, can be compared to the present-day companies like Google, Microsoft etc. (The way we talk of Kodak, we will soon talk of Google and Microsoft too). It used to be the greatest company because about 85% of the world’s photography was done with Kodak cameras. In 1997, Kodak had over 160,000 employees. All was going well. But with the rise of mobile cameras during the last 2 decades, Kodak Camera Company is out of the market. Today Kodak company is bankrupt and has no employees.
In a similar way many other companies went into oblivion. Consider the following names: these were once a household name. Today, they evoke nostalgia for especially, the Gen X people.
HMT (Watch Manufacturers)
BAJAJ (Two Wheelers – Scooter)
DYANORA (Television)
MURPHY (Radio)
NOKIA (Mobile)
RAJDOOT (Bike)
AMBASSADOR (Indian Car Manufacturers)
Once upon a time, these companies are synonyms of quality, market share and trust. But something went wrong. Probably, the people expected more from them. Or probably, the people were not loyal to these organizations. Those mighty organizations which were making good profits suddenly went out of business. Few of these companies exist for name’s sake. Among the multitude of reasons, what stands tall for their downfall is that they could not change themselves with changes in the society and Science & Technology.
We may never can think how much the world could change in the next 10 years! And today’s 70%-90% jobs will be become completely redundant in the next 10 years. We are slowly entering the era of “Fourth Industrial Revolution” “4IR“, or “Industry 4.0“, is a neologism describing rapid technological advancement in the 21st century. It follows the Third Industrial Revolution (the “Information Age”).
Allow me to give few examples:
- UBER is the name of a software. They have no cars of their own. Yet today it has become the world’s largest taxi-fair company.
- Airbnb is the largest hotel company in the world today. But the strange thing is that it does not own a single hotel! Similarly, we have examples in many companies like Paytm, Ola Cab, Oyo rooms etc.
There is no major work for new lawyers in America these days as there is a legal software called IBM Watson which can function better than a new lawyer. Considering every sector, it is forecasted that 90% of Americans will lose jobs in next 10 years. The remaining 10% will be saved. These will be the experts.
A similar situation can also be observed in the medical field. The Watson software can detect cancer and other diseases 4 times more accurately than the human doctors. It is expected that the Artificial intelligence (AI) will surpass human intelligence by 2030.
90% of today’s cars will not be seen on the roads in the next 20 years. Hard to believe, but almost a certainty. The remaining cars will either run by electricity or hybrid cars. The roads will slowly become empty. Gasoline consumption will decrease and oil producing countries will slowly have no business.
Let me tell you what happens: If you want a car you have to ask for it from a software like Uber. And as soon as you ask for a car, a completely driverless car be parked at your doorstep. If you travel with several people in the same car (shared taxi), the rent that you will have to pay will be negligible.
It is assumed that driving with the help of AI will reduce the number of accidents by 99%. And probably the Car Insurance will cease to exist and the motor insurance companies will be shown the door. Motor driving on earth will no longer exist. Traffic police and parking staff will not be required when 90% of vehicles disappear!
There used to be STD booths some 15 years ago. All these STD booths were forced to close after the mobile revolution in India. Those who survived have become mobile recharge shops – online revolution in mobile recharging. This enabled people to recharge their mobile phone while sitting in the comfort of their home. These mobile recharge shops turned into mobile phone selling and repair shops. But this is also changing slowly as more people began to buy mobile phones directly from Amazon, Flipkart and other online platforms.
The definition of money has also changed. There used to be cash but in today’s age it has become “plastic money” i.e., credit and debit cards. Now the plastic money is meta morphed to mobile wallets.
The above are only few examples. The 4th Industrial Revolution is found in almost everything…every aspect of human life. This revolution can be witnessed in Agriculture, Food that we eat, Education, and in our lifestyle. Anyone who can intelligently foresee the future and be prepared for it would be a rich and successful person.
However, these revolutions took their toll on human beings. Many are getting killed in the process of these revolutions. The 4IR is the bloodiest revolution till date in the history. Man has lost his peace of mind, health, became a walking sack of many chronic diseases, emotionally bankrupt, lost his capacity to think and unable to manage this stress either committing suicide or dying early.
The moot question therefore is ‘How much technology or how many revolutions does a man need? Our thousands of years old religions have no answers. They can never give answers as they are outdated. I know you do not agree. I cannot stop you from deceiving yourself. Can I?
About the Author
Dr. K. Raja Gopal Reddy is a seasoned internationally qualified Insurance professional. What you are reading here, may not answer all the questions we have, but has the absolute power of asking unsettling questions which increase the interest in the strange world, and show the contradictory wonders lying just below the surface of the commonest things of life. Look at this disturbing but beautiful thought of Friedrich Nietzsche “God is dead. God remains dead. And we have killed him”.
Dr. Reddy can be reached at: raja66gopal@gmail.com
