The coming Wave, by Musfafa Suleyman – Book Reflection

The Coming Wave initially introduces us to all the main technological innovations that are currently being created, these range from AI to robotics and genetic modifications being done in garages. It goes on to tell us why this is the start of such a huge societal transformation, and what we can do to contain it.

After reading the book you might be tempted to tell everyone that will listen “We are at a threshold in society where everything is about to change, life as we know it is on the brink of profound transformation. How exactly it is going to evolve is entirely unknown, none of us are prepared.”

Inventions of general purpose technology have been historically extremely rare, think of electricity and the internet, if the book is to be taken sans-salt the coming wave looks likely to overshadow both. Technology democratizes power but it also democratizes risk, it has the potential to save our species from extinction but equally to be the cause of it.

Many people are scared of AI and what it can do, this is nothing new, people were terrified of rail, the telephone, anything that was unfamiliar. One of the main arguments given by people that oppose it is that it will take our jobs, but if we look at this historically also, there certainly will be jobs made obsolete however those jobs will be replaced with other jobs needed to support the new technology. People will lose their jobs to AI often by people who are using AI.

What does all this mean for the fashion industry? Just take a look at the recent first of its kind AI Fashion week. Yes, there are no models, photographers, designers, pattern-cutters; the entire supply chain is disrupted. Yet, AI is still a technology programmed and harnessed by people. There is still one thing that AI and the best and biggest technological innovations cannot do; make physical garments without human intervention. My job is safe.. for now…