Amy Webb: 'AI will be as transformative as the steam engine'

Just before the start of the South by Southwest technology festival in Austin, Silicon Valley correspondent Stephan Scheuer speaks with futurists Amy Webb and Christina von Messling of the New York-based Future Today Institute. Once a year the institute publishes a major report on the most important technology trends of the coming year, which draws strong international attention.

In the podcast the researchers give an exclusive preview of the report: “AI will bring a transformation as profound as the invention of the steam engine,” says Webb.

She is convinced that the technology underlying the ChatGPT chatbot will, within the next 18 to 24 months, reach every area of knowledge work and expand jobs like a digital co-pilot.

Biotechnology will also undergo massive change in the coming years, the researchers say. In the more distant future, robots could emerge that move through the body and develop therapies. Gene therapy will also evolve to treat diseases such as cancer. Webb also explains how robots will reshape the world of work and why, in her view, autonomous driving is still a long way off.