In my last post I talked about how the different technologies being developed right now or that could potentially be developed in due time could lead us to a very dark world akin to a dystopia that is often portrayed with bone chilling narrative in the movies.

Today, I am going to talk about three more such technologies one of which is already well into development, another which could easily be launched even with the current technology and the last one which still remains hypothetical but could well be achieved in the future.

1. Artificial Intelligence

Ok, this must be the millionth time I must be talking about artificial intelligence on my blog but what can I do, the topic really intrigues me and the one at hand is something that has intrigued movie makers for decades!

We are already beginning to see the insanely futuristic capabilities of artificial intelligence and it is something that we are even benefitting from with or without realizing it. One small and familiar example could be that of the virtual assistants in our phones which are slowly being equipped with more of the artificial intelligence features.

But many experts worry that artificial intelligence could one day surpass us humans and that might lead to the beginning of something sinister. What if artificial intelligence decides one day that it doesn’t need us and that we are in fact the problem for this planet.

What if by the time we reach that point, there are already robots that are advanced enough to be equipped with the advanced AI and they go all terminator on us? Although it might not seem like it, these are serious issues which we might one day face.

2. Eye-tracking Advertisements

Nobody likes ads. Not a single person. Before the internet, advertisements were confined to TVs and written media which people could easily avoid if the wanted to. But since the dawn of the internet, we are now living in a world where we are constantly bombarded with advertisements.

Even if you are playing a game, sometimes you have to watch an ad to keep on playing further. The same happens when you are watching a video on YouTube and more irritatingly, on Facebook.

You can still look away while the ads are playing or do something else and come back to the content, but what if these companies start using eye-tracking and literally make you watch the whole thing if you want to continue or even begin to consume a particular content.

I don’t know why but I get a feeling that Facebook could indeed do this someday. If they can pause ads if we switch to a different tab, then they can surely pause an ad if we look away too. That would be one of the most annoying things ever!!!

3. Consciousness Transfer

This one is purely hypothetical and remains in the realm of science fiction. Still, science fiction of today might be the reality of tomorrow and who knows, maybe we will have the ability to transfer consciousness from one body to another, be it biological or a machine.

Although the promise of immortality thanks to such a feat might seem like a magical gift in the beginning, you would quickly realize that it would be curse in disguise.

In my own opinion, death is what gives life meaning and if we could all be immortal one day, then life would lose all purpose. Humanity would cease to exist as most of the humans would probably want to transfer their consciousness to a robotic body with super awesome capabilities.

When bodies start becoming commodities that we can simply buy and consciousness becomes just another software that we can download and upload, I wonder what else would there be for us to even look forward to!