Exponential: Order and Chaos in an Age of Accelerating Technology

by Azeem Azhar

Part of the reason GPTs are so transformative is the way they have effects beyond any one sector. Consider one of the key GPTs from the start of the twentieth century: the car. To reach their potential, cars needed suitable roads – physical infrastructure that spanned nations. But cars also needed fuel and spare parts, and drivers needed sustenance – creating the demand for fuel stations and roadside cafés. Cars forced changes to the urban environment and so cities started to change, with precedence going to motorised vehicles. Over time, suburbs developed, and with them came the gradual reshaping of consumer practices: reasonably priced hotels for vacationers, and big-box retail stores. New rules slowly emerged, including a slew of safety regulations for drivers. In short, the GPT changed everything. And this hints at why the exponential revolution in our four key sectors is so important. We are witnessing the emergence of a transformative new wave of GPTs. Not a single GPT, as in the time of the printing press. Nor even three GPTs, like the early twentieth century’s offering of the telephone, the car and electricity. In the Exponential Age, we’re experiencing multiple breakthrough technologies in the four broad domains of computing, energy, biology and manufacturing.