Trendwatcher about our future: 'There is an era of change and disruption'

Our economy is based on profit, but according to trend watcher Ruud Veltenaar (Netherlands) that will change: "Our life, our work, everything is turned upside down. A time of disruption has arrived, a time of profound change and disruption. "Good example: The energy sector!

Photo: Chris Riddell

"It happens right under our nose. The latest generation of solar panels enables people to generate energy at one-tenth of the costs we now pay to the energy companies.

If we generate and store energy ourselves, we can also decide who we sell this to and at what price. This makes us independent of the big companies and we report as a kind of third power in society as a society. "

Artificial intelligence

"Another example is artificial intelligence: in the core this ensures that the ability to learn cognitively (IQ) is increased. Within 10 years we can buy a chip for $ 200 to improve the processing power of the brain. This means that everyone gets IQ and thus gets the ability to learn.

Photo by Interra Solutions

So a weakly gifted young person with an IQ of 70 who will be able to become a rehabilitation doctor within 10 or 15 years with these aids. With this you could say that it is a democratization of the IQ. We do not all become equally smart and certainly not the same, but we get the ability to learn. "

Light Year

"Another good example of innovative technology is Light Year. The company that develops a passenger car powered by solar energy."

The Lightyear powered by #solar energy. Photo: Lightyear

"The beauty of Light Year is that it is not only good for the planet, but if you combine Light year with Amber Mobility you can offer a mobility service. A service in which you let no one buy this car, but make it available to a larger whole and then you sell 2.9 million cars in the Netherlands in one go. Then we no longer own cars and mobility has been democratized. "

Future

"What that does: it not only offers disruption in society, it also offers us opportunities. If the platform makes a profit, we ensure that the costs for mobility decrease, or we go further and pay the profit to those who make the most use of it. You cannot be more democratic. "

Too idealistic?

"I do not think so, there are two motives that help us to a better world. These are the technological possibilities and the ability of our citizens to take the initiative themselves and not to be dependent on companies and rich institutions.

In addition, we get some help from crisis along the way, so it is not really a choice to change the world, we have to."

By: Ruud Veltenaar, Omroep Brabant. Cover photo: Datafloq