Are We Ready For The Future?
I was asked to write a lead for the latest edition of Life in Estonia.
Automation is coming. Soon we’ll have robots and various other autonomous systems surrounding us at every turn. It might not happen in the next 5 or 10 years. But there will be a morning when we wake up and realise that the world around us has changed. Will we adapt and what will be our function by then? Estonia has a crucial role in forming the answers for all that.
On one side, we’ll be the ones generating many of the solutions for that era. For example, our companies, such as Starship Technologies and Cleveron are already developing the robots, while Taxify and Shipitwise are building the platforms that will control some of them. And that’s just a small part of the companies looking to bring innovation to the logistics sector. There are many other sectors — from manufacturing to catering — that will soon see a lot of automation, thanks to companies started in Estonia.
On the other side, we’re also the country enabling foreign teams to live test their solutions, giving an extra boost towards making this future a reality. Fortunately, our government has been very much forward-looking with the latest legislative changes, such as allowing the self-driving vehicles to drive around the cities. Meanwhile, we’ve also done right by not regulating things too fast — first collecting enough data and then deciding whether we need to limit anything or not. Together with Startup Visa and e-Residency program, we’re now looking to attract a lot of innovators here, creating this future.
However, what will become of the people whose work will change due to all this change? Will, the machines built be only used for the benefit of humanity? And how will our species look like in 3100? These are just some of the questions we need to think about, now. We already know some of the answers — e.g. universal basic income, cybersecurity and synthetic biology — but need to educate more people to actually study and implement them. Because then we’ll create the pathway needed to adapt to the future.
That said, I’m happy that Estonia has helped to set up many wonderful initiatives that will help to educate the innovators and prepare ourselves for the future. And we welcome you to implement those initiatives across the planet!
Sander Gansen
Chairman of Robotex
The global robotics ecosystem
