00:00200 years ago, thinkers like Ralph Waldo Emerson were already warning that the maker was becoming
00:11subordinate to the make, that humans were being shaped by their tools rather than the other
00:21way around. That insight has only deepened with time. Scholars observe that when technologies
00:31combine, they produce emergent consequences no one predicted. Much as stable compounds in chemistry
00:40can, when mixed, become explosive. Joseph Schumpeter recognized that technology was not merely
00:54a product of economic growth, but its primary engine. And in our own era, we have repeatedly
01:03learned, and then seemingly forgotten, the hardest lesson of all, that we tend to build
01:14first and govern later. The atomic bomb was detonated before the world had any framework for its
01:26regulation. We must not repeat that error with AI, genetic engineering, or the other converging
01:38technologies of this century. They demand governance in advance, not in retrospect. And there is
01:49one domain above all, where the cost of governing in retrospect may prove irreversible. The health
02:00of the planet itself, a subject I will come to shortly. Emerging technologies, artificial intelligence,
02:11quantum computing, biotechnology, and advanced communication, are shifting the balance of risk.
02:23On the one hand, these technologies provide powerful tools to enhance security. AI can be deployed to deter cyber threats
02:35in real time, identifying anomalies and responding to attacks faster than any human operator.
02:47Practical analytics can anticipate risks, enabling pre-emptive action rather than reactive measures.
02:57blockchain technology. Blockchain technology offers enhanced data integrity, ensuring transparency in transactions,
03:09and reducing the risk of fraud and other illicit activities. Advanced surveillance systems, when governed responsibly,
03:21can improve public safety and disaster response. And satellite technologies can monitor environmental changes,
03:33contributing to climate security. But these technologies also carry grave risks. The deployment of AI in military contexts could inadvertently
03:50precipitate conflict. Through automation bias. Humans could place too much trust in machines, allowing them to make life-or-death
04:03decisions that break moral and legal rules.
04:08Mistakes caused by AI in nuclear systems could have catastrophic consequences. In the online realm,
04:21quantum computing poses a huge threat to online security, and deep fakes have the potential to destabilize society through dangerous
04:37distortions of truth.
04:38critical infrastructure, energy grids, financial systems, transportation networks are increasingly digitized, and therefore increasingly exposed to these risks.
04:57Consider the implications. A cyber attack on a cyber attack on a regional financial system could disrupt economies across borders
05:09within minutes. A coordinated misinformation campaign can erode public trust in institutions. A breach of sensitive data could compromise national
05:26sovereignty,
05:27technology without a single shot being fired. Thus, the very tools that promise progress also carry the seeds of instability.
05:43In some ways, of course, our present dilemma is not new. Throughout human history, technology has been an ambivalent force.
05:55only as good or as evil as the humans who wielded it.
06:03zep e.
06:12You
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