In The 1990s, Bill Gates Predicted Business@Speed of Thought: Are We There Yet, Or, Is It Only Business And No Thought?
How far have we come from the time of Business@Speed of Thought?
Back in the 1990s, when I was still in college, a bestselling book came out, authored by Bill Gates (he who needs no introduction), titled Business@Speed of Thought. Those were the early years of the tech revolution when we Gen Xers were all excited about the internet’s potential to “change the world”. Indeed, those were the days (a line that successive generations repeat when talking about their student years) when we were introduced to the first computers that were making their way into our lives. I remember Gates and his Microsoft being at the forefront of the computing revolution and we sensed that technology was the game changer the world needed.
Now, in my mid-40s, I am no longer so sanguine about the emerging waves of technological innovation as the “invasion” of Big Tech obviated any hope that tech would transform the world for the good. Note, for instance, Fake News, that is bedevilling us to the extent that it has become harmful, indeed fatal to society. Or, the constant whining from parents about the excessive screen time, which not only made Smartphones addictive, but, detrimental to the cognitive…
