The Inevitable ─ Understanding the 12 Technological Forces That Will Shape Our Future

From one of our leading technology thinkers and writers—an inquiry into the twelve technological imperatives that will shape the next thirty years and transform our lives

Much of what will happen in the next thirty years is inevitable, driven by technological trends that are already in motion. In this fascinating, provocative new book, Kevin Kelly provides a road map for the future, showing how the coming changes and disruptions in our lives—from virtual reality in the home, an on-demand economy, and cloud-based artificial intelligence to ubiquitous tracking and an epic robot takeover—can be understood as the results of a few long-term, accelerating forces.
 
Kelly both describes these deep trends—flowing, screening, accessing, sharing, filtering, remixing, tracking, and questioning—and demonstrates how they overlap and are codependent on each other. These larger unavoidable forces will completely revolutionize the way we buy, work, learn, and communicate with one another. By understanding and embracing them, says Kelly, it will be easier for us to remain on top of the coming wave of changes and to arrange our day-to-day relationships with technology in ways that bring forth maximum benefits. Kelly’s book will be indispensable to anyone who seeks guidance on where their business or industry or life is heading—what to invent, where to work, what to invest in, how to better reach customers, and what to begin to put into place as this new world emerges.

Kevin Kelly helped launch Wired magazine and was its executive editor for its first seven years. He has written forThe New York Times, The Economist, Science, Time, andThe Wall Street Journal among many other publications. His previous books includeOut of Control, New Rules for the New Economy, Cool Tools, andWhat Technology Wants. Currently Senior Maverick at Wired, Kelly lives in Pacifica, California.