Digital technologies have already reshaped the world in which we live and work. This is already our new shared reality.
Academia and research disrupted
Technology has had an enormous impact on research and education. Researchers do not have to work at universities or other research institutions anymore. Everyone can be a researcher using technology and smart platforms, such as blogs, online lectures and seminars, videos, podcasts and more. The traditional platforms and methods of teaching and research are becoming much less critical.
But something more important is occurring. The most significant impact is now generated by studying and analysing new digital technologies. This becomes very clear when we examine the rankings of the Social Science Research Network (SSRN).
I looked into the rankings of the top authors over the last four years, and the results were astonishing. For most of that time, the rankings were very stable. Established names from established institutions dominated the download rankings. However, we can observe an apparent shift from around 2017. The established names are overtaken by a new generation of researchers that are either tech-savvy or write about the development and application of new digital technologies.
My conclusion is that there is an enormous demand for the ideas and intellectual resources to help us understand the new world that we are creating.
The key takeaway
Traditional models of business, government and education are fundamentally broken. They are ill-suited to this dynamic, new world. And by ignoring these trends or, at least, failing to adapt to them, they seal their fate.
The only answer is to develop and share ideas about how disruptive digital technologies are transforming the world now. Technological innovation is shaping our world, but the speed and scale of social change mean that we must be faster in understanding and adapting to this new reality. Everyone needs guidance to make sense of our fast-shifting relationship with sophisticated new technologies.
And this is the main reason why I want my students to understand the new digital technologies and their impact on society today and tomorrow. I do not want them to just scratch the surface. I really want them to obtain a thorough understanding of artificial intelligence, the blockchain and other potentially disruptive technologies.
Because, never forget: there really is something already happening between all the hope, hype and fear.
– This is an edited version of an article that first appeared on Medium.