“Fourth Industrial Revolution” is one of the most popular buzzwords these days. One gets to hear this almost every day in one context or the other. Business leaders, administrators, policy makers and money managers etc. have been using it in their presentations and interactions. In some cases it is used as a cliché, without intending any specific trend or opportunity. However, in most cases it is used to imply that new technologies and applications being used in the areas like manufacturing, mobility, communication, healthcare, education etc. are bringing remarkable change in the ways we are used to function. Metaverse, Clean Fuels, 5G, Drones, Artificial Intelligence, Convergence of Technologies, Blockchain, etc. are some of the pieces that are putting this revolution together.
For the youngest generation, the changes this revolution is bringing to their lifestyle might not appear stark. They were born in a world where technological changes have been fast, dramatic and disruptive. For the older generation, however, the experience is overwhelming.
The pandemic has added another dimension to the extant global development paradigm. A larger number of people are now looking for evidence to assess if we human being were less “happy” before we started to study and research the functioning of universe, cosmic events, natural phenomena like gravity & relativity, adopted the modern science and technology to carry out our day to day functions, trade and commerce, etc. In fact, if we do honestly assume "happiness" as the "ultimate goal" of all our social and economic activities; then most parts of modern science and technology may appear redundant to us.
An esoteric explanation of the fourth industrial revolution could be that we as a scientifically evolved society are trying to complete the circle by connecting the present to the point where it all started. Some indicators of this endeavor could be seen from the following trends:
· We are increasingly accepting the Sun and Water as the primary source of energy and nutrition. Terms like chemical free, carbon free, etc. command the highest premium. Smoke rising from chimneys that symbolized earlier industrial revolution is considered regressive now.
· We are increasingly preferring to stay in our respective caves, leaving the job of hunting and bringing food to few warriors (ecommerce, food delivery, work from home, video conferencing etc.)
· The commitment to family and society is diminishing. “Individual” rather than the “community”, is becoming the focus of most activities, including sales & marketing, politics, religion, etc.
· “Tribes” are becoming smaller and inward focused.
· Procreation is not a priority for a significant proportion of the global population. In the next five decades we might see the global population stagnating or even declining.
· The laws of the jungle have gained acceptance in most jurisdictions. The interest of the strong is accepted as justice even in the most developed societies. Lions and Elephants act at will while the rabbits and deer wait in horror to be devoured.
