We’re starting a newsletter to keep listeners abreast of all of the most important bits of the future – the facts you need today to make decisions for a better tomorrow. The Practical Futurist offers clear, practical advice on how to navigate the possibilities, opportunities – and pitfalls – of a future that’s heading for us so rapidly it’s merging with the present.
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The Next Billion Cars – The $100,000,000,000 Lie
In 2016, Tesla CEO Elon Musk instructed his team of engineers to ‘hard code’ the first demo of what would become ‘Full Self Driving’. A faked video drove panic across the entire automotive sector, leading to massive (and mostly failed) investments in technologies for autonomy.
The Next Billion Cars: Neo-Malaise
What does it mean to walk away from the dream of a lifetime? For series co-host Drew Smith, this is exactly what he’s doing. For over 20 years, he’d dedicated himself to driving positive change in an industry that has resisted it at almost every turn, and he’s done. In this episode of The Next Billion Cars, he explores how the automotive industry has become its own worst enemy, and what might happen next.
The Next Billion Cars – Your Data and My Privacy
Series co-host Sally Dominguez examines at the data hungry nature of modern vehicles. What does privacy look like in the age of ‘artificial intimacy’? You have nothing to hide, right?
The Next Billion Cars – Are the Next Billion Cars manufactured in China?
In just three years, China has overtaken Japan, Germany and the United States to become the largest exporter of vehicles. Terrified governments look to tariffs to protect legacy automakers – but what’s the future for any manufacturer that wants to compete against China? Drew Smith and Mark Pesce confront this sudden shift – and chart a path forward.
The Next Billion Cars – LIVE at SxSW Sydney with ZEEKR’s Gustaf Gunér: How does a new brand survive?
ZEEKR launched their EV brand in Australia at SxSW Sydney. Drew Smith – who worked for predecessor of ZEEKR – scored The Next Billion Cars a live interview with head of brand Gustaf Gunér. What does it mean to launch a new car brand? And how does a brand establish itself within a market for EVs where everything is… very much the same? A deep conversation about design, brand, and the future of the car industry.
Series 2024 – Halloween Special: Ghosts in the Machine
Google’s new NotebookLM digests documents to create AI summaries, and provides an incredible new way to search a vast set of information. One little throwaway feature became a viral hit – “Audio Overview”, which creates a ‘podcast’ featuring two clever, chipper – and entirely synthetic – personas, engaging in a ‘deep dive’ on the content within NotebookLM. In the spirit of Halloween, we uploaded the scripts for the first four episodes of Series 2024 – and NotebookLM rose to the occasion. Is this the future of podcasting? And — HAVE I JUST BEEN PUT OUT OF A JOB?
Series 2024 – Episode 5: Humans in the loop – or will we all soon be AI-unemployed?
Next Billion Seconds host Mark Pesce had a nice gig writing for COSMOS Magazine – until he got replaced by an AI. In a live conversation with MIT Technology Review CEO and Publisher Elizabeth Bramson-Boudreau – recorded at SxSW Sydney – they explore the automation of creative endeavours – highlighting the significance of ‘humans in the loop’ – and shine a light on how ‘generative’ AI has already shaped the future of work.
Series 2024 – Episode 4: AI UNEMPLOYED?
I had a great gig writing for COSMOS Magazine – until I was replaced by an AI. I never even knew – until months later. Here’s the whole story how I became ‘AI unemployed’ – and what happened next.
Series 2024 – Episode 3: CHIPS AND CHAINS
The semiconductor sector has seen more upheaval over the last 3 years than in the previous 30, fueled by the rise of AI. Nvidia now rivals Microsoft for most valuable company on the planet, while Intel – which started the Microprocessor revolution over 50 years ago – seems to be losing ground, in a downward spiral into complete collapse. What does this mean for our devices – and for the geopolitical balance between the US and China?
Series 2024 – Episode TWO: THE FOUR DAY WEEK IS ALREADY HERE
The pandemic permanently broke the link between work and place. In the aftermath we’ve rejiggered everything connected to work-life balance – in favour of life. This means we’ve stumbled into a new reality: the ‘four-day week’ is a reality for most office workers – even if no one wants to name it. How did this happen? Have a listen and find out.
Series 2024 – Episode ONE “All Change”
The last two years (hello, ChatGPT!) have seen more change than the previous 20. How do we operate when the future has suddenly become the present? In this series opener, host Mark Pesce touches several of the topics we’ll explore in depth across the latest series of THE NEXT BILLION SECONDS.
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