ABSTRACT
Industry 4.0 through the development of fourth industrial revolution (4IR) technologies has set in motion an unprecedented transformation across our world that is changing the way we live, work and interact with each other. This is leading to a society that is technologically advanced in its quest for development, yet plagued by social inequality, a deteriorating climate and unbalanced development. It is with this in mind that the Japanese government proposed the concept of Society 5.0, a super smart society integrating the physical and the cyber world facilitating the development of a society where every citizen enjoys a good quality of life and the benefits of development through innovations that arise from the use of 4IR technologies and collaborations across actors. Such a society has the potential to accelerate the achievement of sustainable development goals, which also aim to leave no one behind ensuring environmental sustainability, societal progress as well as economic development. This chapter explores the synergies between Society 5.0 and each of the sustainable development goals and highlights the level of impact that these 4 IR technologies envisioned as part of Society 5.0 will have on the global goals.
