When will the Next Big Thing arrive?

Also: 5 Quick Questions for . . . economist Michael Strain (part two)

 
“There is nothing stable in the world; uproar’s your only music.” – Joseph Schumpeter

 
In This Issue

Long Read: When will the Next Big Thing arrive?

5QQ: 5 Quick Questions for . . . economist Michael Strain (part two)

Micro Reads: Productivity growth, nuclear Europe, geoengineering, and more …

Nano Reads

 
Long Read

When will the Next Big Thing arrive?

Forget about just wondering, “Where’s my flying car?” Or “Where’s my self-driving car?” Or “Where’s my quantum computer?” Or “Where’s my supersmart AI?” Or “Where’s my CRISPR cure?” Or, do I even dare ask, “Where’s my dang hyperloop?”

It’s the lack of those technological marvels and others that has The New York Times asking its own pointed question: “Why Is Silicon Valley Still Waiting for the Next Big Thing?” The recent piece by reporter Cade Metz then proceeds to offer a couple of pretty reasonable answers that might satisfy most entrepreneurs, scientific historians, and technologists. The less important explanation concerns the indefatigable optimism that is the warp and woof of Silicon Valley and the American tech sector. What critics dismiss as “hype” serves an important function: It attracts talent and money as tech is being developed. It then generates acceptance and interest among a public that will eventually need to use these gadgets. So we get Elon Musk promising a million fully autonomous Teslas on the road in 2020. (Spoiler: It’s now 2022.)

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Πηγή: fasterplease.substack.com