ABSTRACT

This book applies cutting-edge economic analysis and social science to unpack the rich complexities and paradoxes of the Fourth Industrial Revolution. The book takes the reader on a bold, refreshing, and informative tour through its technological drivers, its profound impact on human ecosystems, and its potential for sustainable human development. The overarching message to the reader is that the Fourth Industrial Revolution is not merely something to be feared or survived; rather, this dramatic collision of technologies, disciplines, and ideas presents a magnificent opportunity for a generation of new pioneers to rewrite "accepted rules" and find new avenues to empower billions of people to thrive. This book will help readers to discern the difference between disruption and transformation.

The reader will come away from this book with a deeply intuitive and highly contextual understanding of the core technological advances transforming the world as we know it. Beyond this, the reader will clearly appreciate the future impacts on our economies and social structures. Most importantly, the reader will receive an insightful and actionable set of guidelines to assist them in harnessing the Fourth Industrial Revolution so that both they and their communities may flourish.

The authors do not primarily seek to make prescriptions for government policy, but rather to speak directly to people about what they can do for themselves, their families, and their communities to be future-proofed and ready to adapt to life in a rapidly evolving world ecosystem.

chapter 1|10 pages

Introduction

How and why to understand the Fourth Industrial Revolution

part I|51 pages

Industrial revolutions

chapter 2|18 pages

Industrial revolutions past, present, and future

A brief overview of how we got here and where we’re going

chapter 3|10 pages

The telos of industrial revolutions

How what people value drives the adoption of new technologies

chapter 4|21 pages

The “Brisbane Club” model

Mind, society, economy as complex evolving networks

part II|31 pages

Internet

chapter 5|18 pages

Global markets and the struggle for attention

Communication and platforms in the rapidly-evolving internet age

chapter 6|11 pages

The ocean in your pocket

Case studies in global markets and the struggle for attention

part III|30 pages

Artificial intelligence

chapter 7|18 pages

The I, robot future

Human work in an age of artificial intelligence

chapter 8|10 pages

The ghost and the machine

Case studies in the I, Robot future

part IV|39 pages

Blockchain

chapter 9|16 pages

The entrepreneurship of rules

Institutions in an age of blockchain

chapter 10|21 pages

Leaderless revolutions

Case studies in the entrepreneurship of rules

part V|27 pages

Discussion and conclusions

chapter 11|21 pages

The new economy

Opportunities, challenges, and what to do about them

chapter 12|4 pages

Epilogue

A call to engage with a brave new world, and to have contingency plans