Abundance: The Future Is Better Than You Think (Exponential Technology Series)

Since the dawn of humanity, a privileged few have lived in stark contrast to the hardscrabble majority. Conventional wisdom says this gap cannot be closed. But it is closing--fast. In Abundance, space entrepreneur turned innovation pioneer Peter H. Diamandis and award-winning science writer Steven Kotler document how progress in artificial intelligence, robotics, infinite computing, ubiquitous broadband networks, digital manufacturing, nanomaterials, synthetic biology, and many other exponentially growing technologies will enable us to make greater gains in the next two decades than we have in the previous two hundred years. We will soon have the ability to meet and exceed the basic needs of every man, woman, and child on the planet. Abundance for all is within our grasp. Breaking down human needs by category--water, food, energy, health care, education, freedom--Diamandis and Kotler introduce us to dozens of innovators and industry captains making tremendous strides in each are: Dean Kamen's Slingshot, a technology that can transform polluted water, salt water or even raw sewage into high-quality drinking water for less that once cent a liter; the Qualcomm Tricorder X PRIZE which promises a low-cost, handheld medical device that allows anyone to diagnose themselves better than a board certified-doctor; Dickson Despommier's "vertical farms," which replaces traditional agriculture with a system that uses 80 percent less land, 90 percent less water, 100 percent fewer pesticides, adn zero transportation costs. The authors also provide a detailed reference section filled with ninety graphs, charts and graphics offering much of the source data underpinning their conclusions. In this antidote to today's pessimism, the authors explore how four emerging forces-exponential technologies, the DIY innovator, the Technophilanthropist, and the Rising Billion--are conspiring to solve our biggest problems. Diamandis and Kotler examine the stunning impact of these forces while establishing hard targets for change; laying out a strategic road map for governments, industry, and entrepreneurs, adn giving us plenty of reason for optimism.