3 Takeaways from "Deep Tech": Eric Redmond Predicts the Future

Here are my three personal takeaways from "Deep Tech," written by Eric Redmond. Eric is the Chief Metaverse Officer for Nike and has forecasted a very interesting future.

I read this book...

I tend to use holiday breaks as a way to spend time on fresh new subjects of interest. The type of deep learning that requires three hours a day hopping from one rabbit hole to the next, nestling in somewhere between cocktail conversationalist and blowup your existing career path.

I'm teetering on the edge of each as I just finished reading "Deep Tech," by Eric Redmond, an eye-brow raising forecast of where our world is headed and the huge implications it has for our human existence. While I read this book at the start of 2022, I'm certain the masses will adopt it and reference it's many takes by 2027, right when 5% of the world owns crypto currency. By 2030, I imagine this book will be required reading at institutions who teach web3 and blockchain.

Redmond fills his pages with hair raising examples of rapid change but also provides chances to read between the lines and make educated guesses on how to capitalize in the new age internet. Are we losing human interaction forever? Here are my three takeaways from the book.

Takeaway 1: Nothing new, we're fine

We've heard it all before. Technology has always had doubters and Cassandras, people that have prophesied it's doom since the printing press was invented. It's hard to accept change, especially when it alters our fundamental behavior. The telephone was going to ruin family relationships, television would rot our brains and video games were going to turn our children into zombies.

But this new future has been stewing for years and isn't new. Virtual Reality for instance has been around since the mid 80's, however, it's not until recently that the technology has caught up with our imagination. The easy attainable price of Meta's Oculus has new army of developers and creators building the future. Include me in that. A guy who has copy and pasted code 10 times in his life.

Human advancement is exciting. From prehistoric hammer creation to VR pizza delivery, our species is wired to test, iterate and evolve. Human interaction is not dying off because of technology or artificial intelligence. It's just changing it form and increasing our ability to communicate instantly with large groups of people across vast distances.

Takeaway 2: Dollar on the chopping block

America is young and so is its money. The first United States Notes were published in 1862 to fund the Civil War. Greenbacks were brand new, backed by the gold standard and within 7 years, a standardized printing system was born to ensure Americans had a democratized way of exchanging goods. What you carried, stashed or loaned was the culmination of one's financial worth.

However, in 50 years time people will look back at our system of paper dollars and laugh. They'll say "How did we ever think this was worth anything?" This is the same case for every other nation who doesn't adopt blockchain.

Redmond details how blockchain technology creates a stable system for transactions that are transparent and historical. The rule of irreversibility is the Hallmark of the blockchain as regular databases allow for you to "fix" and update data. On the blockchain, to fix the data, you must intentionally reverse it.

Today, Bitcoins, banknotes, or handwritten I owe yous are all based on trust. That won't change, but technology now enables us to increase trust. Why wouldn't we all adopt blockchains, especially if they provide evidence that can be verified by anybody?

Takeaway 3: Creators and Learners will win

Redmond's "Deep Tech," has a resounding theme that states "by 2030, seven technologies will have a 100 trillion dollar impact on the global economy." This was a significant prediction I couldn't help but pay attention to and understand. After all, Nike hired him to make sense of it all. After listening to the whole book and evaluating what I experienced in 2020, I have a hunch.

Creators will lead us into 2030. The internet has evolved into an environment where content is tailored to each consumer and those writing, streaming, podcasting for a niche community will find their tribe. Artificial Intelligence will allow creators to engineer value at breakneck speeds and fine-tune the community that consumes their goods. We're all seeking ways to learn and get an edge. Those creating (good or bad content) will have the sharpest axes and influence the paths to education.

But right behind the creator is the learner. Learning is the pillar of our advancement. We've always been a species that has leveraged our environment to learn and grow. With technology, we can now bring the world to us. Those with an interest to learn the tools of the future will hold power. Putting Redmond's timing into perspective, 2030 is 8 years away. Most of Gen-Z will have graduated high school and some will be in their early 30's. Learning where they spend their time is crucial to being ahead of the game.

So now what?

I'm optimistic about the future, but I can't help feel that it's also a little blurry. We're standing on the precipice of great change and many people are still trying to figure out what's going on. But there's one thing that I am sure of, we will advance as a species. And with advancement comes new opportunity. Opportunity for those who are willing to learn and create. Those are the people who will lead us into 2030 and beyond.