What are megatrends?
When you see a news story about a new app sweeping the world, when the changing weather alters your insurance risk, or when you use your phone to do business in Southeast Asia – you are experiencing the impact of this century’s megatrends.
Megatrends are large, transformative processes with global reach, broad scope, and dramatic impact.
Companies, governments, and individuals use megatrends for long term planning, policy development, and even for making personal decisions.
The term megatrends was popularised by John Naisbitt, who in 1982 identified forces that were transitioning the world from an industrial society to an information society.
These are our six megatrends for the 21st Century:
- Impactful technology
- Accelerating individualisation
- Demographic change
- Rapid urbanisation
- Climate and resource security
- Economic power shift
Short-lived shocks like a pandemic or regional conflicts, while dramatic in nature, are not megatrends. Things like the metaverse, the gender pay gap, or even smart cities are not megatrends – although they may be part of a wider megatrend.
Nor are megatrends aspirational targets, like the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals. However, understanding the six megatrends is necessary to achieve the SDGs.
Megatrends are the fundamental forces shaping our world.
Understanding them can also inform long term strategic thinking, helping us to make better decisions for the future, today.
As individuals, megatrends can also help us to make better personal choices about where to live, how to invest, or even what career to pursue.
The six megatrends of the 21st Century are already underway.
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Megatrends watch
The demographic change of the century
This century’s shifting population patterns are the fuel that will power significant economic change.
India’s population overtakes China
Two traditional societies must both confront the need to reformulate social norms as their populations change.
The emerging untruths of a global economy
The developing economic arrangements will not be a return to last century’s certainties.
Solar overtakes oil investment – at last
The shift in energy investment over the last eight years is a key signal that change is possible.
Algorithmic social media is an existential threat to democracy
Failure to push back against the current trajectory of social media platforms could be dire for democracy.
Getting old means never getting to retire
Demographic time-bombs and super ageing societies – what does it all mean for countries with falling birth rates?
Resource security for renewable energy? No worries!
Is it possible to power the world’s energy needs and also reduce greenhouse gas emissions?
The death of the smart city
The smart city has been the dazzling promise in urban planning for the last 20 years, but is the idea failing?
China’s baby bust will change the world
By the turn of the century 100 working-age Chinese will have to support as many as 120 elderly Chinese.
Africa is the 21st century’s promise and peril
Will the blooming of an overwhelmingly youthful society produce a dynamic catalyst for national exuberance and productivity?
The kids won’t be OK
Today’s children will be forced to endure the climate change consequences created during their parents’ lifetimes.
Big tech – how big is big enough?
How big can big tech be despite raking in some of their biggest ever annual revenue increases amidst the ongoing pandemic and market problems?
Is technology making it harder for individuals to act morally?
When social media companies employ opaque algorithms to capture and keep our attention, what power does the individual have to resist?
Facebook: a troll’s paradise
What does it mean when a social network’s algorithms favour anonymous groups bearing propaganda and misinformation?
COVID-19 driving deforestation in Asia and South America
Deforestation is having a significant impact on global biodiversity.
Declining fish poo changing ocean carbon balance
While commercial fishing rates have fallen, the decline in fish stocks over time is leading to unintended consequences.
Crowded skies
Satellites are already blocking out stars for astronomers, but will the crowded skies lead to more issues?
COVID-19 misinformation spread by just 12 people
What are the disadvantages of individual connectivity at scale?
Are temperatures rising in a nonlinear way?
Recent catastrophes could indicate the climate system has crossed a dangerous threshold.
Town closer to North Pole than equator hits 49.6ºC
What’s the verdict as unusual weather patterns become more common?
Archive
More than coral: the unseen casualties of record-breaking heat on the Great Barrier Reef
Bleached coral draws our attention, but marine heat does damage to many unseen parts of these ecosystems.
An optimistic nudge can turn an investor to the green side
Can optimistic framing drive the institutional investment shift needed to address climate change?
Board games at Disney, the fight of the figureheads
Disney's star-studded board faces activist investor pressure, but do the celebrity directors have the right expertise? What's the implication for other companies facing activist shareholders?
Fairness control for risky artificial intelligence decision making
Exploring the balance between AI decision-making and human ethics leads to a critical question: How can we ensure fairness in AI's life-altering decisions?
Are we there yet? Australia’s bumpy road to SDG 4, achieving quality education
With a robust education system, why does Australia falter on delivering equitable, quality learning for every student?
The ABC behind successful teamwork
With teamwork as the secret sauce for service excellence, is identifying and cultivating the right blend of teamwork mechanisms the special ingredient to transform customer satisfaction into profits?
Is Now and Then really a Beatles song? The fab four always used technology to create new music
The Beatles have released a new track - using new technology to strip Lennon’s vocals out of an old demo casette tape. Will this be part of Beatles canon?
AI chatbots are coming to your workplace but are not necessarily coming for your job
Chatbots are proving to be productive and useful but they can be unreliable and make mistakes.
Confronting ageing: the talk Australia has to have
Australian society will be reshaped as its population ages, it needs to have some confronting conversations about ageing and how it pays the inevitable cost.
Technology is changing the lives of female lawyers, in ways that are bad as well as good
A new survey finds working from home is removing barriers for women, but also blurring the barrier between work and the “safe space” of home.
Your car is watching you. The implications are profound and immediate
The issue of privacy breaches by car manufacturers is often overlooked.
Black learning matters – appreciating Indigenous wisdom in management education
How can educators respectfully and meaningfully introduce Indigenous stewardship concepts with a sense of appreciation rather than appropriation?
Harvest season is also peak time for conflict in rural societies
Do harvest season spikes in agricultural income and conflict in rural Africa and Asia present an opportunity to adjust peacekeeping and aid efforts?
VR is transforming how buildings are made
We no longer need to rely on the individual capability of people to read plans or imagine the spaces based on the pictures or verbal descriptions.
Buy Now Pay Later – what are the pitfalls?
Around a quarter of Australian adults have used a Buy Now, Pay Later service. What does the industry's increasing influence mean for younger and at-risk consumers?
Taking no for an answer: how governments can keep citizens engaged on digital platforms
How should "citizen-sourcing" initiatives be designed, to enable positive interactions and transparency?
Australian consumers support better protections for gig workers
What is the quality, rather than the quantity, of the jobs that we wish to tolerate as a society?
Online scams are about to get more sophisticated than Nigerian princes
ChatGPT’s “evil cousin” WormGPT will allow bad actors to more accurately mimic the real deal in attempts to swindle and deceive people.
Food security starts with food sovereignty
The UN's Zero Hunger goal faces challenges in West Papua, where palm oil plantations are erasing Indigenous foodways - could a food sovereignty framework help balance development, culture, and sustainability?
The demographic change of the century
This century’s shifting population patterns are the fuel that will power significant economic change.
Looking for employees with high productivity and low turnover? Hire a refugee.
Research shows refugees make motivated, loyal employees with lower turnover, but are employers overlooking this untapped talent due to assumptions and perceived barriers?
Creative AI: The death of the author?
Nick Cave says that AI-produced songs lack authenticity. With algorithms churning out news and scripts, will human creatives become obsolete?
There is a SMART solution to worker burnout
The psychological toll on healthcare and social assistance workers is immense - what if we could reimagine these jobs to prevent burnout?
Dial AI for assistance: leveraging AI for supply chain resilience and crisis management
How can businesses better weather unforeseen challenges and thrive in an ever-changing marketplace?
Making room for the rivers
When deciding if they should live with or fight the floods, Australia and many other countries can learn from the Netherlands.
The rise of the value destroyers – activist short sellers
Do activist short sellers actively destroy the value of firm investments, in addition to their role in ‘correcting mispricing / overvaluation’?
Running out of water on the blue planet
How do governments close the water management gap and improve universal access to water?
India’s population overtakes China
Two traditional societies must both confront the need to reformulate social norms as their populations change.
What this year’s El Niño means for wheat and global food supply
The new El Niño is unlikely to significantly increase global food prices, but some parts of the world will feel the pain.
Black mirror lawyering
Recent developments in AI have alerted lawyers that the environment in which they compete is changing.
The emerging untruths of a global economy
The developing economic arrangements will not be a return to last century’s certainties.
Replacing news editors with AI is a worry for misinformation, bias and accountability
Unlike a human editor, AI cannot explain their decisions or reasoning in a meaningful way. This can be a problem in a field where accountability and transparency are important.
Can marketing be a force for good in the world?
Without marketing, businesses engaging in strategies relating to the UN Sustainable Development Goals are unlikely to achieve their strategic goals.
Solar overtakes oil investment – at last
The shift in energy investment over the last eight years is a key signal that change is possible.
Low-code apps: not just for the IT crowd
The pandemic may have turbo-charged low-code awareness, but how will the market grow in the coming years?
Zoom fatigue: a laborious act, in two parts
Even a few video calls can leave us exhausted, so how do you weigh the potential return on investment of each virtual meeting?
Global cities as future drivers of international business activities
Cities contribute more than 80% of global GDP, but how can they attract innovative and sustainable businesses?
Students know AI is here to stay and want unis to teach them how to use it
Students understand there are limitations with ChatGPT, but they know it will have a huge impact on their careers.
The future of generative AI
This week: the speed, visibility and hype of generative AI, and goodbye.
Is 13 too young to have a TikTok or Instagram account?
The US surgeon general says 13 is ‘too early’ to be on social media. But an expert on parenting and digital media cautions against a ‘one-size-fits-all’ approach.
The future of seafood with Aryé Elfenbein
This week: we discuss lab-grown seafood and the future of fish with Wildtype Co-Founder, Aryé Elfenbein.
Leading women into digital careers – programming not required
For International Girls in ICT Day, we reflect on a recent Women Leading in Digital event.
Mental health plays a big role in advancing the economy – we need a measure beyond GDP
Mental health plays a significant role in productivity but is often overlooked. To maintain its promising economic growth, Indonesia must put its people’s well-being into the calculation.
How to perfect your prompt writing for ChatGPT, Midjourney and other AI generators
Users are having a blast getting creative with AI generators – but your output is only ever as good as your prompt.
Generative AI and life advice for the future with Kevin Kelly
This week: we talk with Wired Magazine co-founder Kevin Kelly about artificial intelligence, group think, and excellent advice for living.
ChatGPT is a data privacy nightmare. If you’ve ever posted online, you ought to be concerned
ChatGPT is fuelled by our intimate online histories, yet users have no way of knowing which of their data it contains.
Algorithmic social media is an existential threat to democracy
Failure to push back against the current trajectory of social media platforms could be dire for democracy.
Platform capitalism with Cory Doctorow and Rebecca Giblin
This week: we interview Rebecca Giblin and Cory Doctorow, authors of Chokepoint Capitalism, about how platforms capture value in creative markets.
Getting old means never getting to retire
Demographic time-bombs and super ageing societies - what does it all mean for countries with falling birth rates?
What the DAC? Can Direct Air Capture help save the planet from global warming?
Once the ‘ugly duckling’ of decarbonisation, direct air capture is finally winning friends and influence.
AI might be seemingly everywhere, but there are still plenty of things it can’t do – for now
From ChatGPT to Lensa, it feels like AI is here to take over. But despite some impressive results, such systems still have plenty of limitations.
Resource security for renewable energy? No worries!
Is it possible to power the world’s energy needs and also reduce greenhouse gas emissions?
What maths can teach us about privacy
How can we future-proof privacy so that in years hence it is not violated when dissected by more powerful computers?
Noise and other distractions with Daniel Kahneman
This week: a special episode with Nobel Prize winner and renowned author, Professor Daniel Kahneman.
The business of staying alive
What does online shopping have in common with surviving a heart attack?
A business strategy: what would Kim Kardashian do?
Companies with an eye to winning new customers need to harness the business power of social media.
The death of the smart city
The smart city has been the dazzling promise in urban planning for the last 20 years, but is the idea failing?
Hybrid work: the 9 things we have learnt
After the pandemic-induced experimentation with new forms of work – here is a checklist of nine things we have learnt about hybrid working (and what is, and isn’t, working).
ChatGPT and generative AI
This week: Our ChatGPT and generative AI special. What is it? How does it work? What to do with it? Where to next?
The ChatGPT chatbot is blowing people away with its writing skills. An expert explains why it’s so impressive
The newest OpenAI text-generator is a marked improvement over its predecessor – but it still has its pitfalls.
Why you should never retire: unlearn retirement
We discuss why collecting that gold watch and retiring at 65 might not be the best thing and why it’s time to change the retirement narrative.
The 4-day work week with Juliet Schor
This week: what if we all worked four days a week? We talk with Professor Juliet Schor about her research into the 4-day work week and the trials happening around the world.
Not just retail and restaurants: Australia’s new high tech Asian entrepreneurs
Who are this new generation of Asian Australian entrepreneurs and what makes them successful?
Welcome to Sydney 2036, how is the 3 part city working?
What does life look like for a 36 year-old Sydney resident in 2036?
China’s baby bust will change the world
By the turn of the century 100 working-age Chinese will have to support as many as 120 elderly Chinese.
Keeping it local – the new supply chain vibe
Resilience has become a saviour term but businesses can move beyond just mitigating supply chain risk.
Best business books of 2022
This week: corporate self-help, pandemics, climate, toxic stuff and socio-tech broccoli: our 2022 best business books for your holiday reading list.
Only 15% of AI investments succeed. An AI translator could help the other 85%
Investments in AI technologies are accelerating worldwide, what could an AI translator do to improve the success of AI-led projects?
Temu – Chinese apps going global
This week: Pinduoduo’s Temu marks another high-profile entry in the e-commerce market from a Chinese tech giant.
COP27 and moving forward with climate change responses
This week: we talk to Christopher Wright about COP27 and how to move forward with responses to climate change.
Coal, oil and gas and their inflationary problem
The clean energy transition is inevitable one way or another, but will greenflation be an issue along the way?
A technologically advanced society is choosing to destroy itself. It’s both fascinating and horrifying to watch
Why does civil society accept a system that condemns today’s children life on a hostile planet? And what can we do about it?
Generative AI and creative work
This week: how generative Artificial Intelligence and synthetic media changes the business of creative work.
Branding, it’s a feeling
Is emotional connection important for tech brands?
Trading around divorce
Divorce, for most, is an uncomfortable, life-altering experience. What is the impact of divorce on individual stock market trading decisions?
Universal Basic Income with Scott Santens
This week: Universal Basic Income (UBI) trials have taken place all over the world from Namibia to Alaska. We talk with researcher and advocate Scott Santens about the future of the basic income.
After the Optus data breach, Australia needs mandatory disclosure laws
Optus made a public announcement about its breach but was not legally required to do so. This needs to change.
The looming AI arms race in hiring
As organisations embrace AI hiring systems, how will they be gamed?
Patagonia goes profit for purpose
This week: we discuss what happens when a company is owned by a foundation, how profit benefits purpose.
Art and the AI machine
Does AI-generated art deserve a place in the history of our art and times?
The footprint of food miles – we need to start counting
What is the carbon footprint of the foods you consume each day?
The narrow road to the deeper connection
Incremental additions to practical medical knowledge can be lifesaving, but how can that be achieved in remote parts of the world?
From silence to celebration – shifting experiences for LGBTIQ+ in the workplace
Momentum towards effective diversity must be maintained while there is continuing aggression against LGBTIQ+ populations around the world.
Data is not the new oil with Genevieve Bell
This week: our 300th episode. We’re joined by Professor Genevieve Bell to settle once and for all – if data is not the new oil, then what is it?
Turning greenhouse gas into clean fuel
In the quest to tackle excessive greenhouse gas output, is there a fuel where the only by-product can be used as food for farm animals?
State of the Digital in 2022 (and the future) with Simon Kemp
This week: don’t believe the hype – the surprising truth about what is really going on online.
Is using AI to create art cheating?
Artificial Intelligence has worked its way into our vernacular, but what if AI is used to create art? Is it then really art?
Weird new jobs
This week: the AI whisperer, AI artist managers, data detectives, metaverse supply chain strategy consultants, and more cool jobs in the digital era.
How to prevent success from breeding failure
What if innovation leads to corporate disaster?
The business of movies is changing with Mike Seymour
This week: the business of movies is changing, with Mike Seymour.
Instagram, are you TikTok?
This week: as Instagram tries to become more like TikTok, small businesses protest.
For the sake of the planet we need to rethink human-centred design
Consumer expectations are changing due to a growing awareness of our impact on the planet. What does life-centred design offer organisations?
If we only think in the present, how can we imagine our future?
We need a coherent, concrete vision of the future to spur innovation and productivity.
AI fluency in Australia with Kellie Nuttall
This week: a special on artificial intelligence in Australian organisations and AI fluency with Deloitte’s AI Lead, Dr Kellie Nuttall.
China’s big tech problem: even in a state-managed economy, digital companies grow too powerful
Like the EU and unlike the US, China is trying to rein in the power of big tech companies. Can we learn from these efforts?
This is Australia’s most important report on the environment’s deteriorating health
Three chief authors of the State of the Environment Report provide its key findings. While it’s a sobering read, there are a few bright spots.
Quantum: what you need to know
You don’t need to understand the nitty gritty of quantum theory to engage in the conversation.
Africa is the 21st century’s promise and peril
Will the blooming of an overwhelmingly youthful society produce a dynamic catalyst for national exuberance and productivity?
Revisiting the Asian century with Kishore Mahbubani
This week: we revisit our discussion with Singaporean diplomat, academic and author, Kishore Mahbubani.
Every move you make, every step you take
How do facial recognition systems work and what does it mean when anyone can access these artificial intelligence driven platforms?
Essential workers a long way from home
People working in lower paid but highly essential services cannot afford to live near our city centres.
Another delivery drone trial and food security futures
This week: delivery drones - where are they, and why are they taking so long? Plus fake milk discussions and food security futures.
‘Transparency reports’ from tech giants are vague on how they’re combating misinformation. It’s time for legislation
Recently, concerns have been raised over the harm caused by misinformation in relation to the COVID-19 pandemic and federal elections.
The kids won’t be OK
Today’s children will be forced to endure the climate change consequences created during their parents’ lifetimes.
Buy now, pay later and the evolution of innovation
This week: the evolution (or revolution) in the BNPL disruption story.
Facial recognition and public data
This week: all things facial recognition and the implications of using public data.
Bells and whistles: nudging for safer pokies
How do we equalise the playing field where design deficiencies and dark nudges are at play?
What in the world happens if we run out of sand?
The UN says current sand extraction is leading to a global crisis, so what can be done to protect this vital resource?
Big tech – how big is big enough?
How big can big tech be despite raking in some of their biggest ever annual revenue increases amidst the ongoing pandemic and market problems?
Can regulators think like Google?
People are looking to governments to protect them against the undemocratic power wielded by internet platforms.
Stablecoins, not-so-stable cryptocurrency
This week: as cryptocurrencies plummet, some stable coins are not so stable.
Wrong, Elon Musk: the big problem with free speech on platforms isn’t censorship. It’s the algorithms
There’s a tension between facilitating free and fair debate on social media, and businesses’ bottom line. And it must be resolved with the public interest in mind.
It’s a material world but how much can we take? New tool reveals hidden carbon hotspots
Imagine having the whole world’s physical consumption at your fingertips.
The future of sand
This week: the world is running out of sand. The most-exploited resource after water should be recognised as a strategic material and regulated like a mineral commodity
Neon supply lines. A rare story.
How the war in Ukraine will impact supplies of everyday electronic goods including cars, iPhones and computers.
The future of geopolitics
This week: the future of geopolitics. From Australia’s place in Asia to the war in Europe, we discuss new ways of thinking, with Professor Marc Stears.
Is technology making it harder for individuals to act morally?
When social media companies employ opaque algorithms to capture and keep our attention, what power does the individual have to resist?
Unlearn music on The Future, This Week
This week: we’re on a break but we have something interesting in store for you, we discuss how the way we engage with music is fundamentally changing — from something we listen to, to something we create with.
Musk and the freedom to tweet (absolutely anything)
As a vehement Twitter critic and free speech absolutist, what does Elon Musk want to do as Twitter's largest shareholder?
Elon Musk buys Twitter… well, sort of
This week: it really is a Musk when Elon becomes Twitter’s largest shareholder and gets a seat on the board.
Neon and chip shortages
This week: the world’s leading suppliers of neon are in Ukraine, and that threatens to make the ongoing microchip shortage even worse.
Agricultural productivity, sex education and gender equity: 5 times soap operas enabled social change
Soap operas, with their long and involved storytelling and large audience reach, can be uniquely positioned to enable narrative transportation.
Encanto, TikTok and the art of social storytelling: why music is not just for listening anymore
TikTok trends and challenges rely on music to help tell a social story, collectively told across many videos - which in turn is helping songs go viral.
New York Times gets Wordle
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Can ESG integration make investment responsible?
Study examines whether the integration of environmental, social, and governance ratings makes investment responsible.
Fake fact-checking and disinformation
This week: fake fact-checking videos take disinformation to a different level.
Mental wealth – the neglected force in national prosperity
As governments worldwide strive to restore business as usual, do we need to reframe our idea of prosperity?
Facebook: a troll’s paradise
What does it mean when a social network's algorithms favour anonymous groups bearing propaganda and misinformation?
Cybersecurity and women with Meraiah Foley
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Intangible assets: undervalued and under rewarded by local investors
Are intangible assets now the primary drivers of company value?
The future of wine and some remote work stuff
This week: the future of wine is bleak because of millennials, climate, tariffs and taxes; and more remote work and fake companies.
The future of higher education with Mark Scott
This week: what is the future of universities? As the sector navigates disruption and uncertainty, special guest Professor Mark Scott joins us to discuss the future of higher education.
COVID-19 driving deforestation in Asia and South America
Deforestation is having a significant impact on global biodiversity.
Unlearn automation on The Future, This Week
This week: we’re on a break but we have something interesting in store for you, and it’s not about our longitudinal auto ethnographic research on leisure time but rather, how automation will make your job harder.
Extra: a music deep dive on The Unlearn Project
In this extra episode, we take a deep dive into the history of the music industry.
Rethinking trust: can we play at betrayal?
Why are games that are deliberately designed to enable or invite betrayal extremely rare?
Working out the truth of The Great Resignation
Workers are resigning their jobs at historical rates, but what's the story behind the statistics?
Eyes wide open, the best business books (lists) for 2021
We have curated the various lists of Best Business Books for 2021 and sorted them according to our (more helpful) categories.
Making leisure work on The Future, This Week
This week: how should we spend our time off? How making leisure time productive is making us efficient but also unhappy and what we can do about it.
Best business books of 2021 on The Future, This Week
This week: corporate self-help, schadenfreude, tech broccoli, and real eyeopeners: our 2021 best business books for your Christmas list.
Love it or hate it, TikTok is changing the music industry
Creator culture on TikTok is changing the way hits are made, how music is promoted, and how the world discovers music, even for those artists who choose not to engage with it.
Cobalt, not exactly the new oil on The Future, This Week
This week: all about cobalt, a behind the scenes look at the challenges of transitioning to renewable energy technologies.
Professor Daniel Kahneman is sometimes wrong. And that gives him joy.
Five learnings in one hour with Nobel Prize winner Professor Daniel Kahneman.
The North-South divide in smart city development
Smart cities continue to spread, but how is the North-South divide impacting development in the Global South?
The great resignation on The Future, This Week
This week: with so much talk of the great resignation, the great realignment, job swap and early retirement, what is actually going on and what do we need to know about it?
Declining fish poo changing ocean carbon balance
While commercial fishing rates have fallen, the decline in fish stocks over time is leading to unintended consequences.
Climate change – what’s in a number?
In the challenging environment of climate change information, the dilemma is which not-so-beautiful set of numbers to pay attention to.
The numbers of climate change and COP26 on The Future, This Week
This week: all the numbers of climate change and what they mean from the COP26 in Glasgow, with our expert Professor Christopher Wright.
Facebook relaunches itself as Meta in a clear bid to dominate the metaverse
Facebook’s parent company is now called Meta, as part of its move to embrace the metaverse.
Meta and the metaverse on The Future, This Week
Rebranding the company and the metaverse play: we discuss the Facebook announcements, meta and verse.
What Spotify is doing to podcasts on The Future, This Week
The podcast about podcasts: how Spotify’s ambitions might change podcasts forever.
Why music is no longer just for listening: unlearn music
We discuss how the way we engage with music is fundamentally changing - from something we just listen to, to something we create with.
Why CSR is taking off in China
As China grows its economy, how do local private enterprises handle pressing social and environmental issues?
Squid Game and the future of content on The Future, This Week
This week: Squid Game, the biggest hit in Netflix history is re-shaping the future of movies and television.
Crowded skies
Satellites are already blocking out stars for astronomers, but will the crowded skies lead to more issues?
COVID-19 misinformation spread by just 12 people
What are the disadvantages of individual connectivity at scale?
The years of living dangerously: can adolescents be encouraged away from risky behaviour?
Adolescence is a dangerous time, how can we help prompt young adults into making safer choices?
Are temperatures rising in a nonlinear way?
Recent catastrophes could indicate the climate system has crossed a dangerous threshold.
Unlearn computers on The Future, This Week
This week: We’re on a break but we have something interesting in store for you, and it’s not just Mr Goxx the cryptocurrency trading hamster.
Weathering the perfect storm of container shipping on The Future, This Week
This week: COVID, climate and containers: how the world weathers the global logistics crisis.
Town closer to North Pole than equator hits 49.6ºC
What's the verdict as unusual weather patterns become more common?
Cities are on the frontline of climate change – prepare or perish
More than 800 million people could be affected by coastal flooding, how are cities adapting?
Finfluencers and TikTok financial advice on The Future, This Week
This week: Finfluencers - more and more young people get their financial advice on TiktTok and other social media platforms.
The impending apocalypse happening in plain sight: a response to the latest IPCC report
Is the roadmap to net zero emissions afflicted by the politics of predatory delay?
Ray-Ban Stories let you wear Facebook on your face. But why would you want to?
Facebook is adamant its new “smart glasses” won’t be a privacy nightmare. But it is clearly bidding to normalise the use of wearable tech.
More than nudges are needed to save the world from climate change
What is needed to avert climate change? Professor Richard H. Thaler says nudges aren't the only solution.
Why automation makes your job harder: unlearn automation
We discuss why it’s no longer true that automation and AI will make all our jobs easier.
#BreakUpBigChicken on The Future, This Week
This week: we’re back and what does #BreakUpBigTech have to do with your chicken?
Here’s what the High Court decision means for your favourite Facebook pages
Today’s ruling may inspire many social media account managers to more tightly restrict comments — or, where possible, switch them off completely.
Why the unlearn project, and computers
We set out to unlearn old wisdoms and discover new ones, starting with computers.
Chinese companies win clean sweep of smart city awards
The Chinese Government declared it wants to be the world leader in AI, how has that impacted the AI City Challenge?
Human progress is no excuse to destroy nature. A push to make ‘ecocide’ a global crime must recognise this fundamental truth
The push for a new environmental crime has attracted high-profile backers including Emmanuel Macron, Pope Francis and Greta Thunberg. But we must get the details right.
Nudging towards happiness
How does Professor Richard H. Thaler influence our lives?
Happiness plus a smart energy policy – why should the Nordics have all the fun?
The world is waiting for Australia and other countries to deliver credible climate targets.
Who’s afraid of GM crops?
While bans on GM crops are being lifted across mainland Australia, consumer hesitancy lingers.
A tale of two megacities
Cities with affluent residents – and corresponding high consumption lifestyles, account for the largest carbon footprints.
And baby makes three… China lifts child limit
China’s latest census shows its birth rate has continued to fall and is bringing in new policies.
A shrinking middle class, rising global poor
The pandemic has pushed millions out of the global middle class and increased the number of poor.
Facebook’s failure to pay attention to non-English languages is allowing hate speech to flourish
What does Facebook need to do to strengthen enforcement of their community standards to protect persecuted minorities?
Facial recognition for gamers, app store bans for Didi: what’s behind China’s recent crackdown on big tech?
With the recent travails of Didi, and the emergence of Tencent's facial recognition feature, China's tech sector is undergoing major upheaval.
Still zooming on Corona Business Insights
As remote work continues for many people, what is Zoom fatigue and what to do about it, and how are videoconferencing platforms adapting their services to the hybrid future?
Every mainland Australian state now allows genetically modified crops. Here’s why that’s nothing to fear
GM proponents say the technology leads to better crop yields and may solve food shortages and reduce pests. Opponents say GM is a threat to the environment and humans. So where does the truth lie?
Cramming cities full of electric vehicles means we’re still depending on cars — and that’s a huge problem
Electric vehicles deserve government subsidies, but there are even better ways to build greener, less car-dependent cities.
TED Talks and science on The Future, This Week
This week: what if the science behind your favourite TED Talk was wrong?
Degrowth – the promising climate change strategy no politician wants to handle?
Should we focus on deep social change rather than technological solutions to climate change?
Smart street furniture in Australia: a public service or surveillance and advertising tool?
The data collection and surveillance capabilities of smart street furniture raise a number of concerns.
Predicting fashion and replacing solar on The Future, This Week
This week: how COVID-19 reveals how the fashion industry predicts trends, and why the success of solar becomes a problem.
Breaking the internet (badly)
Fastly and Akamai are major internet companies most of us don’t need to know about, but what happens when they go down?
Breaking the internet, and the scientific paradox on The Future, This Week
This week: what we saw when the internet went down and changing minds about the scientific paradox.
How Australians’ commutes compare with cities overseas
A global study of 117 cities finds Australian capitals have fairly poor access by car. Public transport, cycling and walking access isn't as good as in Europe and China.
Emerging innovation with cabbages, eyes, cows and EVs on The Future, This Week
This week: what do cabbages, eyes, cows and electric vehicles have in common? Stories of innovation and emerging industries on The Future, This Week.
The business of bees on The Future, This Week
This week: bees, their economic impact and why it's so important to protect them, with special guest Emily Remnant.
An employee, not a contractor: unfair dismissal ruling against Deliveroo is a big deal for Australia’s gig workers
The Fair Work Commission's ruling that delivery rider Diego Franco was an employee of Deliveroo is a major legal win for Australia's gig workers.
Bitcoin and dogecoin head to the moon. What’s the future of crypto?
Cryptocurrencies may be heading into space, but here’s some down to earth advice.
All work and no play in the future of virtual reality
Does treating VR only as a gaming technology underestimate its potential impact on society?
Politics at work on The Future, This Week
This week: Basecamp banning employees having political and societal discussions at work points to new challenges for leaders deciding what their business stands for.
In Elon Musk – the man most likely to be an alien – we trust
A time traveller, a stranded alien from Mars, or a Quixote with money who likes to make stuff? Just who is Elon Musk?
Crime and punishment on The Future, This Week
This week: the future of crime and punishment, we discuss the high cost and low returns of punishing white collar crimes with special guest Clinton Free.
What carbon neutrality means for the future of coal in China
China’s motivation and ability to shift energy usage away from coal should not be underestimated.
AirTags and suburban retrofitting on The Future, This Week
This week: Apple’s AirTag release raises platform competition issues, and the trend of suburban retrofitting changes what suburbs are for.
The road to becoming a Global Citizen
How will our collective decisions determine the state of the world for our descendants?
Business in the dark as it heads into a climate changed future
Business needs to account for how climate change will impact its bottom line.
Did somebody say workers’ rights? Three big questions about Menulog’s employment plan
Food-ordering platform Menulog has declared it will break with the standard contractor business model. But let's not get too excited yet.
Hybrid work on The Future, This Week
This week: hybrid work models, and their hidden complexities and implications in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Unpacking the gig economy impact on The Future, This Week
This week: as the world sets out to regulate gig work, we look at its surprising consequences and wider impact.
A better deal for Uber drivers in UK, but Australia’s gig workers must wait
Uber has been forced by the UK courts to treat its British drivers as workers. It will probably require legislative change for Uber's Australian drivers to be treated as employees.
The importance of relationships on The Future, This Week
This week: a special episode with Marc Stears on the importance of relationships.
The creator economy and mixed realities on The Future, This Week
This week: What Roblox teaches us about the creator economy and we’re talking about AR and VR yet again.
NFTs and Gamestop on The Future, This Week
This week: we discuss how digital ownership through NFTs creates value and new kinds of assets, and what the GameStop saga reveals about new forms of spontaneous digital organising.
5 ways to help prevent AI from deepening social inequality
If the historical data used to train an AI system disadvantages certain minority groups, the system can be swayed to follow these patterns in its own decision-making process.
Facebook and the media code on The Future, This Week
This week: we’re back with a breaking news special as Facebook goes nuclear, banning all news from its Australian platform.
How a Chinese joke about singles triggered an e-commerce revolution
Is Double 11 a showcase of China's private consumption power, or is it highlighting the shift from bricks-and-mortar to mobile commerce?
Business models and big tech on The Future, This Week
This week: reducing the reliance on ad revenue, reducing the reliance on external partners: how big tech companies evolve their business models.
The Asian century with Kishore Mahbubani
As we enter the new Asian century, what will the choppy waters of globalisation hold?
University life and learning reimagined
The Australian university student of the future will not fit identifiable stereotypes. How should the education sector adapt?
Data, privacy and tracking on The Future, This Week
This week: we dive into the complex shadow world of trading location data from innocuous apps.
Hats and fly swatters: big data and audience profiling are changing elections
The data gathering inside political merch allowing politicians to peer inside voters’ brains
Changing cities on Corona Business Insights
How are cities changing and adapting during the pandemic? We talk with urban geographer Dr Dallas Rogers on how COVID-19 is reshaping urban areas.
Double 11, singles’ day and supply chains on The Future, This Week
This week: Kishi Pan helps us unpack the world’s largest shopping event, China’s singles’ day, 11.11.
Misinformation, fake news and elections on The Future, This Week
This week: Jevin West joins us to discuss disinformation in social media in the wake of the US election.
Autonomous vehicles and self-driving cars on The Future, This Week
This week: after a flurry of contradicting announcements, we discuss if self-driving cars have finally arrived, or what it would take to get them here.
Will there be a shake-up in global supply chains after COVID-19?
Even before the outbreak of COVID-19, neoliberal globalisation was exhibiting signs of ill health, has the pandemic accelerated these trends?
CRISPR and Nobel Prizes on The Future, This Week
This week: we finally discuss gene editing and CRISPR, as the 2020 Nobel Prize in Chemistry goes the women behind its development.
If a politician says they want affordable homes, they are lying
What chance does a political party promising to radically reduce home prices to improve affordability have of getting elected?
Post-pandemic powerhouse: China is moving on
Three China experts – a businessman, an academic and a diplomat – walk us through China’s post pandemic story.
Design and design thinking on The Future, This Week
This week: we talk about design and design thinking in an uncertain world, as we problem-solve our way out of the pandemic.
The Social Dilemma and platforms on The Future, This Week
This week: The Social Dilemma, our first movie review on The Future, This Week. We bring in everything we’ve learnt about social media over the past three years.
Facebook’s virtual reality push is about data, not gaming
Facebook's Oculus Quest 2 headset is the latest step in the construction of a 'mirrorworld' built on high-tech surveillance and targeted advertising.
Xiaohongshu (Little RED Book) and social commerce on The Future, This Week
This week: in a special on social commerce in China, we talk to our guest Kishi Pan about the unique experience of Xiaohongshu, or Little Red Book.
GPT-3 AI and clean meat on The Future, This Week
This week: the media hype around AI writing essays, and how to make clean meat innovation palatable.
Epic, Apple and Fortnite on The Future, This Week
This #Fortnite: the epic #Epic #Apple battle.
TikTok, WeChat and the fragmented internet on The Future, This Week
This week: banning TikTok and WeChat, and the fragmented internet.
Foreign investment during a pandemic – friend or foe?
With unprecedented global disintegration, how perceptions on foreign investment are changing during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Apple, Google and Fortnite’s stoush is a classic case of how far big tech will go to retain power
There has been a clash of clans in mobile gaming, with angry birds Apple, Google and Epic Games in a saga over in-app payments.
When houses earn more than jobs: how we lost control of Australian house prices and how to get it back
In some quarters, the median Sydney home earns more from capital gains than the median worker earns from wages. Now's a good time to wind back the measures that push prices up.
How the shady world of the data industry strips away our freedoms
In the past decade, the Australian government has commissioned data analytics projects worth more than A$200 million. We have little information about what they involved.
Curb your screen time and you improve mental health
Our ever-expanding online lives are putting our brain health and broader well-being at risk.
In our post-COVID economy, Australia needs a liveable income guarantee
A liveable income guarantee turns the idea of an unemployment benefit on its head.
The pandemic, poverty and business
With developing countries now accounting for three quarters of new COVID-19 cases, what should businesses be doing?
#VanLife, cashless society and facial recognition on The Future, This Week
This week: #vanlife during the pandemic, going cashless and no more facial recognition.
Protests, platforms and free speech on The Future, This Week
This week: protests, free speech and the responsibilities of social media platforms
Innovating through the crisis with IBM’s Bob Lord
How has global tech giant IBM responded to the COVID-19 pandemic?
Economic forecasting on Corona Business Insights
The disruption caused by the COVID-19 pandemic challenges economic forecasting as fundamental assumptions of economic models will have to be rethought.
Coronavirus will change the world permanently. Here’s how.
A crisis on this scale can reorder society in dramatic ways, for better or worse. Here are 34 big thinkers' predictions for what's to come.
Returning to work and AI confusion on The Future, This Week
This week: will Silicon Valley finally move online? And AI is confused by our weird behaviour.
Australia’s links with China must change, but decoupling is not an option
Despite veiled threats from the Chinese government, and the desire in some parts of the Australian community for a split, China and Australia need each other.
Moving with technology
How mobile technologies are not just portable computers – they change how we see and act in the world (and even shape it).
The car industry and food delivery on The Future, This Week
This week: where will the sputtering car industry go? And struggling food delivery apps.
Live-streaming, Zoom dating and dropshipping on The Future, This Week
This week: farmers live-streaming, singles Zoom dating, and dropshipping.
How the economy will look after the coronavirus pandemic
COVID-19 will change the economic and financial order forever. Nine leading global thinkers give their predictions.
Smart brands and marketing on The Future, This Week
What smart brands can during the crisis - a special with Andrew Baxter.
The gig economy: a tale of two workers
COVID-19 spawns two classes of employees: The under worked vs the overworked.
The oil industry on Corona Business Insights
How the slump in oil prices during the COVID-19 pandemic presents a stress test for the oil industry in a low-carbon future.
Emergency adoption of remote working: beware of productivity implications
With the COVID-19 lockdown has come a sudden and somewhat forced shift to remote working and adoption of digital collaborative work tools. Companies, wherever possible, are trying to move work online.
Airbnb and travel bans on The Future, This Week
This week: as travel stops, Airbnb and its ‘super hosts’ struggle for survival.
Climate and the environment on Corona Business Insights
What coronavirus means for climate and the environment.
Contact tracing and surveillance during COVID-19 on The Future, This Week
This week: contact tracing with Apple and Google, and the big picture of surveillance during the pandemic.
Gig work changes and worker protests on Corona Business Insights
As some gig workers become essential workers others face long term unemployment. Gig workers are striking, walking off the job and protesting among changing labour circumstances.
Internet culture and AI struggles on The Future, This Week
This week: the internet made old again, and why AI struggles with the new.
Universal basic income on Corona Business Insights
Why universal basic income could make economies more resilient to crises shock.
Quo Vadis air travel after COVID-19?
The world has never been more connected and people have never enjoyed more freedom to travel the globe, a fact that contributed to the swift spread of the virus.
From Neo-Liberalism to Neo-Keynesianism
Having survived a near-death experience during the Global Financial Crisis, neo-liberalism now looks to be in a terminal state.
The conversations hidden by coronavirus: space, tech and climate on The Future, This Week
This week: the conversations gone missing during COVID-19: space, tech and climate.
Big tech and automation during COVID-19 on The Future, This Week
This week: big tech in the time of corona, and why robots are not taking your job.