In today’s rapidly changing times underpinned by colossal shifts in economic, societal and political constructs, exponential technologies, be it AI, AR, VR, 3D Printing or Blockchain, to name a few, are at the center of the action. It’s an exciting time to be alive in this world of abundance and with the inaugural Abundance 360 Dubai round the corner, this region will have no better setting to experience this future reality and learn from one of the most influential entrepreneurs and educators of our times, Dr Peter H Diamandis, Co-Founder & Executive Chairman of Singularity University. This weekly newsletter will bring a hand-picked selection of some of his ideas and tease the possibilities on how our MEASA (Middle East, Africa & South Asia) region can work with them.
Exponentially Yours,
Aman Merchant
Editor
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Peter’s Perspectives
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If you could build a city from the ground up using first principles, how would you do it? What would it look like? By 2050, two-thirds of the population, more than six billion people, are expected to live in urbanized areas. Exponential technologies will radically change the way we build and organize our cities in the future. In this article, Peter will cover mass urbanization trends, building future cities, and exponential technology implications.
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Peter “Live”!
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Every week, Peter video-captures for his community the most exciting new developments he comes across in his many interactions with different stakeholders from across the world. This week’s ‘State of the State’ talks about building a real estate business completely in virtual reality - and becoming a $1bn company on the way … nowhere more timely than a region like ours, with large developments led by players like Emaar, Neom, etc.
We see this as the beginning of the demonetization, democratization, and delocalization of our work offices! Do you think your company could go entirely virtual? Would you feel comfortable “going to work” in a virtual space? What if it helps you build market value faster like EXP Realty with a $1bn valuation…
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Amazing Possibilities
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What it is: The field of Supernumerary Robotic Limbs (SRL) focuses on augmenting the able-bodied with extra limbs, with the intent of helping individuals accomplish tasks that are impossible or unsafe to do with their own arms. Typically, these robotic limbs use gyroscopes and accelerometer data to make educated guesses and construct a set of “behavior models”. However, Science Robotics’s new study examines using a mind-controlled prosthesis to perform one task, while using their biological arms to perform a different one. Brain-controlled prostheses require sophisticated software that deciphers a person’s intention from reading brain waves alone, and in the case of multi-tasking, the challenge lies in having the software untangle two sets of intent.
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Why it’s important: The possibilities are endless and because the brain-machine interface only requires an electrode cap, adoption could become widespread. The study also shows wearing a robotic arm can improve multitasking skills when not wearing the extra limb, as overtime, our ability to switch our attention between tasks improves, enhancing our ability to multi-task. Going forward, there are hopes of augmenting robotic arms with context-aware capabilities (e.g. computer vision) that complement brain-issued commands.
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Why it's important: We‘ve seen countless examples of VR‘s potential to deliver fully immersive experiences. It seems only natural, particularly in the context of games, to incorporate the growing set of biometric sensor data to deliver more precise experiences. How do you see this applying in non—game uses?
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What it is: As livestreaming grows inceasingly popular in retail marketing, China’s Taobao is stepping up to the plate. Part of Alibaba’s online marketplace subsidiary, Taobao’s Global Buy division reportedly has 16,000 livestreaming agents overseas, and Alibaba aims to surpass 50,000 within the year. Heavily used by daigou agents -- Chinese expats who buy name brands abroad and resell domestically -- these livestreaming mediums are expanding far beyond the Louis Vuittons and Pradas of the world, now beginning to cover everything from handmade jewelry to unknown local cuisines.
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Why it's important: While reflective of a general trend towards influencer marketing, livestreaming as a shoppers' platform is also quickly bringing about democratized merchant-consumer interaction -- real-time dialogue that remains largely relegated to brick-and-mortar stores for high-end customers. But as millions of new Chinese users come online and domestic purchasing power skyrockets, many seek a more intimate shopping experience: asking questions in real time, witnessing tomorrow's newest products as they’re explored live, and even building loyalty and rapport with brand ambassadors.
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What it is: Last week, General Motors launched a new peer-to-peer car rental service with pilots in Chicago, Detroit and Ann Arbor. Built through GM’s Maven car-sharing platform, ‘Peer Cars’ will soon be available to all 150,000 program members -- newly minted “prosumers” who can now earn a passive income with an idle asset. Securing each peer-shared vehicle through GM’s $1 million insurance policy, Peer Cars will allow any GM car owner (with a 2015 model or later) to rent out a vehicle the minute it’s left unused, reportedly earning 60 percent of each rental. And on the flip side, eligible lessees can now tap an untapped resource, on-demand, at minimal cost.
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Why it's important: Joining the on-demand car sharing model of startups like Getaround and Turo, GM’s Peer Cars marks the next era in transportation’s share economy. While Uber has electrified efficient transit without any inventory, platforms like Peer Cars are now employing unused vehicles without even necessitating a driver. This means GM car owners can truly gain a passive income, sharing idle assets without stepping foot in a vehicle. But far beyond offsetting one’s auto investment, peer car-sharing represents an exciting step towards zero ownership -- a future of self-driving cars, personalized, lightning-fast, and available at anyone’s doorstep.
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Exponential Tips & Tricks
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Would you let AI drive your future social media marketing campaign?
Well, here’s a great tool to get you started Curaite.co
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Experience A360
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Every week, we’ll be sharing a short clip taken from past Abundance 360 US Summits to give you a sneak peek into the live A360 experience. Here is the opening video that was used to kick-off 2018 Abundance 360 US Summit.
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Want more conversations like this?
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At Abundance 360 Dubai, Peter's 360-person executive mastermind, we teach the metatrends, implications and unfair advantages enabled by breakthroughs like those featured above. We're looking for business and government leaders who want to change the world. The program is highly selective. If you'd like to be considered, apply here.
P.S. Send any tips to our team by clicking here, and send your friends and family to this link to subscribe to the Exponential Times.
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to go before the Abundance 360 Dubai Summit on October 29-30, 2018
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