Gerd Leonhard

Gerd Leonhard Speaking Topics

• Beyond AI: What really matters in technology & society by 2030

  THINK LARGER. IMAGINE. PREPARE.

  AI is now a general purpose technology, and the platform ‘for everything' – yet AI is clearly not the panacea or the magic wand many entrepreneurs, tech-moguls and Silicon Valley investors have envisioned. It's time to look beyond AI. While we certainly need to get ready for the 5 hyper-exponential technological game-changers (quantum computing, nuclear fusion, synthetic biology & nano-technology, genome editing and geo-engineering) we also need to ask this crucial question: What kind of future do we want? In this talk, I outline what to expect by 2030, while correlating the technological breakthroughs with wider societal developments such as the rapidly accelerating climate emergency, technology regulation, global governance and global consciousness, the rise of GenY & Z, global demographics and various important geopolitical mega-trends.

• Synthetic / Manufactured Everything: The Algorithmic Society?

  REHUMANIZE AND THRIVE!

  Artificial Intelligence can generate media and content that is nearly indistinguishable from human creations – at least when consumed quickly or on small devices. Globally, some 50% of consumers already get their ‘news' from social media and various mobile/video platforms that are essentially programmed by AI, with very little human supervision. The Internet is bound to change forever, with AI at the helm. Manufactured and fake narratives are certain to lead to stock market disruptions and railroad political decisions and elections. Augmented and virtual reality, the metaverse as well as spatial computing (see Apple's Vision Pro) will soon allow us to transcend spatial (and thus, human) limitations and literally be anywhere, anything, anytime, with anyone. But if most content/media/narrative is synthetic i.e. generated by algorithms, and most decisions are made by algorithms (trivial or more essential, alike), and AI's ‘black box' extends over most of our daily activities, how will we retain what makes us human? How can we still connect to each other, in real-life? What will happen to democracy? How will we pursue real happiness and deal with the increasing loneliness syndrome? Gerd will outline what may happen in the near future and suggest ways that the trend towards dehumanisation could be halted, how exponential technologies could be deployed more wisely, and generally, why human connectedness is so essential. “Algorithms know the value of everything but the feeling of nothing”. Read this related piece by Jeremiah Owyang (wow).

• ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE, AGI AND THE FUTURE OF HUMANITY

  AI is now a general-purpose technology like fire or the printing press, and it's a new technology platform as well. It could be heaven, or it could be hell, depending on whether the tools will dominate us, or whether human telos (the purpose) will prevail. The more power we have, the more wisdom we'll need! And that's true no matter whether we will pursue AGI, or not.

  Science fiction is increasingly becoming science fact as smart machines – both physical and virtual – take on more tasks once thought impossible for a “digital entity” to accomplish. As a result, knowledge work is transforming at a rapid pace, forcing us to reconsider what it means to be human – in our daily life, in our professions and in our organisations. What will happen if and when machines become ‘generally intelligent‘?

  We must embrace these new possibilities while also preserving and protecting our humanity. We need proaction and precaution. We must define new values and goals that transcend increased efficiency or the resulting financial gains. I think it will be our androrithms, our uniquely human skills and traits that will make us invaluable in this coming age of AI, not just our ability to command technology or to become faster by using it (or even to merge with it).

  In this customized talk, I guide my audience through what is important (and real) versus what is utopia or plain false (or dangerous) when it comes to AI. I delineate how we can harness the power of AI to further human (and planetary) flourishing, happiness, success, and well-being. I set forth why I believe the future holds great promise if we play our cards right and pursue People, Planet, Purpose, and Prosperity.

• THE GOOD FUTURE – WHY IT'S REAL, AND HOW TO DESIGN IT

  Why and how People-Planet-Purpose and Prosperity is the key to the Good Future

  Fueled by recent geopolitical conflicts, the urgency to address the accelerating climate emergency, and the mounting societal challenges of technological hyper-transformation (in particular, AI), the world continues to change at a mind-boggling pace, and confusion reigns.

  Once unthinkable climate-emergency measures such as new carbon taxes (for aviation or for eating meat) are increasingly likely, concerned citizens (especially the GenY) around the world will push for real change. CEOs are touting their commitments to stakeholder values, but many doubt that corporate leadership toward a better future is sincere enough; resulting in a political power shift that benefits autocratic regimes.

  What kind of future do we want? Is our current economic logic even suitable for the future? Will the traditional model of ‘free and open markets' deliver solutions for these complex global issues? Is this approach fit for the future?

  I believe that we must look beyond socialism, capitalism, and/or liberalism to design a new economic logic and reboot our stock markets as we transition from the suicidal single bottom line of GDP growth to what I call the 4Ps: People, Planet, Purpose, and Prosperity. This keynote will dive into my latest learnings on The Good Future, and help show the way forward.

• THE 10 ESSENTIAL FACTS ABOUT THE FUTURE

  The most important future foresight, delivered straight-up yet with optimism and inspiration

  In these confusing times, where AI-infused media is constantly spreading disinformation and fabricating fake realities, it is essential to learn how to see through the hype and unmask false promises. In this talk, I share my continuously updated list of ‘facts & truths' about the future, such as:

  • Science and technology alone will not save us – we need the tools AND we need the TELOS!
  • Understanding the future is both an art and a science. Imagination & intuition beats knowledge.
  • AI tools are fundamentally labour-replacing, and we must prepare accordingly.
  • Transcending our human limitations by technological means will not make us fundamentally happier. Transhumanism is a dead end.
  • Until we change our reasons (the purpose), we won’t change our actions (and the resulting problems): We need to rethink our economic logic.
  • A technology-centric, reductionist approach to dealing with human realities will inevitably fail.
  • When it's about ‘intelligent digital entities', we should focus on competence (IA), not on consciousness (AGI)