Technology

The potential of wearable health monitoring is enormous, and under appreciated by a lot of society, because version-1 of wearables were – to put it politely – underwhelming. The health care industry spends a lot on curative costs… and if you shift the curative to the preventative, you can save a tonne of money and have better outcomes. That's the future of medicine… being able to see a doctor before something happens, not after.

Twitter, Facebook and Instagram were play attention games – they reward creators with 'status points,' likes, retweets and quote tweets for example. Those rewards come to those who are best at monopolising attention… that's not the same thing as telling the truth or acting in good faith. The things that get rewarded in those systems are things that provoke, divide and drive outrage – so we end up with a broken media economy that drives us all crazy and doesn't represent the best version of ourselves.

You probably know your cholesterol level. You know your heart rate, your resting heart rate, the number of steps that you take per day. But most people have absolutely no idea what is happening inside their brains other than through self-reflection. So the ability to quantify that and give people direct access to information about what's happening to their brains could be radically transformational.

Neuroethicist & Duke Law professor specializing in neurorights and genetics policy

Deep fakes, are probably the most chilling example to me of it, as if you take a politician's face and you use deep fake technology to slightly change it in ways that are imperceptible to the politician and to you, the observer, but that make the face just change enough to make your brain trust and like that image of that person.

Neuroethicist & Duke Law professor specializing in neurorights and genetics policy

All you have to do is walk through an airport, for example, and notice that it is very difficult to navigate through it. You will encounter humans (almost statue like) who are glued – looking at their mobile phones, unaware of what is happening around them, because they are addicted to their technology. That is by design that people are addicted to technology.

Neuroethicist & Duke Law professor specializing in neurorights and genetics policy

Mill has this thoughtful chapter on freedom of thought, but it is all based on the assumption that you have the ability to think freely inside your mind and that part can't be penetrated. We are very porous now, and it isn't just through neurotechnology, it is through all modes of technology that are designed to interpret and change our cognitive and effective functioning.

Neuroethicist & Duke Law professor specializing in neurorights and genetics policy

Despite being a perpetrator, Holmes began with a noble objective: to create a technology that would benefit society. We're well aware that her venture veered off course, but her initial intention was rooted in altruism. Perhaps the adage 'fake it 'til you make it' took on a life of its own in her case.

Theranos founder convicted of fraud for deceiving investors about blood-testing technology

For too long, Instagram influencers were dismissed as inconsequential, with their power and influence being underestimated. Without a doubt, even when an influencer is reaching out to a million followers about fashion, they are still communicating with a million people. That's a staggering degree of influence.

Influencers wield enormous influence, and sometimes, this can manifest negatively. One area I often highlight is the spread of misinformation, particularly regarding health and wellness. The spread of anti-vaccination rhetoric, the reluctance to use sunscreen, and the rise of conspiracy theories like QAnon can be profoundly damaging.

In the future, these kinds of blood tests will become commonplace. They will allow us to offer treatments for Alzheimer's disease 10, 20, or even 30 years before symptoms start to manifest, much like how we currently handle cholesterol. This early detection and intervention will be our strategy for combating Alzheimer's.

Alzheimer's disease researcher and Harvard Medical School neuroscientist

Our core belief is in the immense potential of technology as a force multiplier, particularly when it's rendered accessible and intuitive. From the onset, we have viewed the internet through the lens of software, rather than merely brochureware. We view ourselves as an innovation agency, one that marries the spheres of art and technology.

We quickly adopt technologies we see potential in and dismiss those that don't seem promising. Over the last five years, we have heavily invested in Artificial Intelligence, which has immense benefits to us and our clients. Conversely, we didn't invest in the metaverse – or, as we call it, the 'metaworse' – due to its inherent lack of potential as a force multiplier and clunky user experience.

I'm genuinely convinced that the upcoming decade will be the era of India as a product nation. This presents a tremendous opportunity for India, and you might wonder why now? Broadly, it's a confluence of a few factors. First, the global demand driven by digital transformation isn't limited to Fortune 500 companies. We're discussing the Fortune 5 million here – from a small-scale apparel retailer, a neighbourhood restaurant to a colossal multinational, they all need to adopt technology.

Founder and CEO of Freshworks, cloud-based software company

If someone consistently films artillery strikes from their home, not only can we geolocate where the strikes are occurring, but we can also pinpoint the filmer's residence. If an unfriendly state actor would rather not have such footage made public, they could easily direct their artillery towards the identified filming location. This situation underscores the importance of witness protection.

Founder of Bellingcat, open-source investigation journalism network

For instance, while AI can generate images that appear real, it cannot create convincing backgrounds that can be geolocated, since they do not correspond to actual places.

Founder of Bellingcat, open-source investigation journalism network

This access has significantly altered what individuals and communities can accomplish, challenging traditional power dynamics. It's essentially a democratic revolution, wresting control from the conventional gatekeepers like intelligence agencies and the media.

Founder of Bellingcat, open-source investigation journalism network