Tech Disruptions: things Designers should be aware of
Just a quick video by /Bigthink I thought I was relevant to share with you guys. A technology expert in the field of technological change and impact discusses the severe disruption certain technologies can wreak on traditional industries which are not prepared for their arrival.
He goes on to talk about the technical feasibilities these technologies will bring and how our future will be shaped by these changes. An example he uses is how the manufacturing industries should brace themselves for a major shift, given the recent advent of advanced robotics and 3D printing. The combination of these two technologies (among others) are poised to shift the manufacturing landscape. It has within this year, become cheaper to manufacture in America using these technologies rather than outsourcing to Chinese factories.
Other industries such as Finance, Healthcare, Energy, Food and Telecommunications are also mentioned in the short video.
It is worth noting that Vivek is making educated speculations on how certain technologies will impact these industries in the future and there is every chance that his predictions will not eventuate. Still though, I don't think his predictions are too far fetched, and in my opinion, they all pretty accurately take into consideration our current technological landscape.
As designers, it is paramount to have as clear and relevant a picture of the future as possible. For whatever field you are working in, having a (relatively) accurate vision of the future landscape will help design a product or service that is largely immune to the tests of time. This won't always be possible, but if you can stay up to date with information from your relevant fields it can be quite easy to make general predictions.
Personally, I am pretty well read in terms of emerging technological trends so nothing really surprises me anymore. The upending of ill-prepared industries has been happening since as long as I remember, and history favours the prepared.
Stay informed!