What will the future look like? Futurologists have been pondering this particular question. A few things seem plausible. First, robots and artificial intelligence may take over our jobs, making us obsolete as workers. Machines and computers have already taken over many jobs. Until now, new jobs have replaced the old ones. These new jobs were more complex, so machines couldn’t do them. However, artificial intelligence may be able to perform these tasks. Artificial intelligence is a computer programme that can learn like a human, but faster and better. And so, artificial intelligence may soon make better decisions than humans and take over many remaining jobs. As a result, we may have a lot of leisure time. Or we could be left without income and become destitute.

In a few decades, we may no longer be driving our cars. We tell them where we want to go. Our cars then plot a route, bring us there, and keep us safe. Perhaps it will be forbidden to drive yourself when human drivers cause more accidents than self-driving cars. When I was a teenager, and Knight Rider was a popular television series, it was science fiction. Today, the technology is already there. Artificial intelligence may soon make other decisions as well. We may still decide what we want, for example, what kind of book we like to read, but algorithms decide the specifics. And you might even be happy with it because artificial intelligence knows better what you desire than you do.

Some people fear that computers and robots will take over the world, controlling or destroying us. Computers and robots don’t have a will of their own. Artificial intelligence is different, which makes it potentially more dangerous. Traditional computers operate according to their programming, but artificial intelligence thinks for itself. It learns and can become more intelligent than we are. We allow smartphones to take over our lives, but this is not what smartphones want to do. Humans have made apps to make them addictive, so we do what the programmers of these apps want us to do. And we are lazy, so we allow algorithms to decide for us. In this way, artificial intelligence can take over our lives. Emotions and desires have a biological origin, so computers and robots don’t possess them. That may change because artificial intelligence can learn to act as if it has desires.

Second, humans may enhance themselves with biotechnology, cyborg engineering and information technology. These beings are no longer human and can be referred to as post-humans. They might still be like us in many ways because we think that our inner selves are precious. And so, we are unlikely to alter our inner selves, even if we can. These post-humans may live very long while artificial intelligence does the decision-making. And so they have a lot of time on their hands, and boredom may be their biggest challenge. That brings us to the third option. These post-humans may create games and imaginary worlds with simulations of human civilisations to entertain themselves. If the technology becomes cheap, there could be billions of virtual universes for every real one, and we live in a virtual reality ourselves.¹

Latest revision: 18 July 2025

Featured image: Dead Sea Scrolls – part of the Isaiah Scroll. Public Domain.

1. Are You Living In a Computer Simulation? Nick Bostrom (2003). Philosophical Quarterly (2003) Vol. 53, No. 211, pp. 243-255. [link]