The world is becoming more diverse. In the coming years we will see an increase in the number of persons with disabilities due to increases in chronic health conditions, in addition to demographic changes driven by a new generation that is more diverse than ever. Furthermore, long-term effects of the pandemic and political instability may continue to drive inequality. This means that we will have to consider the needs and challenges of a progressively vast array of individuals and communities. One challenge we can embrace is to think more deeply about principles of our co-existence where everyone, including nature itself, is a stakeholder in our world. We can endeavor to become more united in understanding our interdependence, designing with the values of radical empathy.

If economic uncertainty continues on its current trajectory, people will seek out means of conscious consumption for both cost and sustainable calculations, looking for more independence and self-sufficiency. New considerations around investing in things that can offer longevity and durability will be important alongside buying into the experience of something that brings joy and positivity. In both scenarios technology needs to bring new meaning and value to people. Imagining how thoughtful updates could provide new and heightened sense of purpose, elevating the utility of technology in our lives.

The general health of society is shaped by the reverberations of major socio-political, environmental and economic events. We can expect to see greater investment in investigative, preventative, and responsive practices by the individual to work as an early warning and repair system, leading to a decline in some areas such as heart disease, obesity, and diabetes. A more holistic approach to health, driven by lifestyle changes could also unlock higher aspirations in the wellbeing space. The ongoing mass adoption of supportive technologies such as tracking apps and wearables will grow. This hybrid healthcare between people and technology changes the dialogue to become more personalized.

As the knowledge economy and future education intersects with the digital domain, there will be an intelligence superstorm of young visionaries reforming the world. The digital natives of Gen Z and Gen A will be more informed and more highly skilled to tackle the challenges of our future. Their creative minds will develop the tools that will be required to consider the new infrastructures needed to support mass digitalization. They will ignite innovation on networked communities online, creating, curating, and cultivating their own threads and groups to form micro-communities based on shared interest. The contrasting relationship between Gen Z’s affinity for hype culture and Gen A’s for exploration could see them both navigate the virtual world seeking self-expression, experimentation, education, and even accelerating their own evolution.

The global pandemic drove new behaviors around self-organization. People felt failed by their governments and international governmental organizations, and even now we are seeing instability throughout societies worldwide. The responding protests in response to those instabilities are shaping 2030 as we speak. If we observe closely the critical messages that people are trying to convey we can also envision the world that people are hoping for. The emergence of citizen-driven communities have become a new home for innovation, with a focus on building new and better systems. As people seek to assemble based on shared values, in the future, new systems will be based on co-operation and co-prosperity with technology as the connective thread.

This collectivist culture could move us from an era of centralized value creation led by government and business to an era of boundless, decentralized, permission-less value creation networks. From the micropreneur online brands powered by social media platforms now to the fully decentralized autonomous organizations, crypto-currency, and NFT. This new world will be about communal and open-source technologies and their ability to remove power from the few to unlock the potential of the many. Imagining a future where recognizing common goals between technology and its end users reduces friction in a path to a better world.

Continual development of on-demand products and services combined with the use of data with engrained knowledge will set a precedent for neoteric hyper-personalized lifestyles. When people are able to personalize individual products and services, their investment feels smart and worthy. But in a world where everything interacts together, it could bring a whole new elevation. We can imagine a time where people are able to trust technology with their data and it can respond with a highly intuitive and astute experience. Where it can unlock their potential to augment and enhance both themselves and their environments and foster imaginations and creativity.