MegaTech: Technology in 2050

What will the world of technology look like in 2050? And how will it affect the way we live? Daniel Franklin and Kenneth Cukier offer thought-provoking insights which imagine how big developments in technology might shape the future. They invite us on a journey to the future, contemplating how far and where technology might take us. They examine what the impact of technology might be in 2050 and consider the policies we might need, both to make the most of the opportunities ahead and to tackle the environmental, economic and social challenges in prospect.

The event will be chaired by Jaya Chakrabarti.

Speaker Biographies:

Daniel Franklin is Executive Editor of The Economist and editor of The Economist's annual publication, 'The World in...', which focuses on the year ahead. Since joining The Economist in 1983, he has written about Soviet and East European affairs, covered great European upheavals – from the collapse of communism to the signing of the Maastricht treaty – and been Britain Editor and later Washington Bureau Chief in the US.

Kenneth Cukier is Senior Editor, Digital at The Economist, where he oversees data analytics and digital products (and hosts the newspaper's Babbage podcast on science and technology). Previously he was a correspondent for two decades in Europe, Asia and the US, focusing on business and technology. He is the co-author of Big Data: A Revolution That Will Transform How We Live, Work, and Think with Viktor Mayer-Schonberger in 2013, which was a New York Times Bestseller and translated into more than 20 languages. The book won the National Library of China's Wenjin Book Award, and was a finalist for the FT Business Book of the Year. In 2014 they published a follow-on work, Learning with Big Data: The Future of Education. His writings have also appeared in the New York Times, Washington Post, Prospect, Financial Times and Foreign Affairs, among other publications. He has been a frequent commentator on business and technology matters for CBS, CNN, NPR, the BBC and others. He is a member of the World Economic Forum's global agenda council on data-driven development. Follow him on Twitter

Jaya Chakrabarti is CEO of Nameless media group, one of the leading creative digital agencies in Bristol. In 2014 she launched the Social Enterprise Big Red Square. An active advisory board member and Vice President of the West of England Initiative and a Non-Executive Director of the Bristol Chamber of Commerce and Initiative, she has been involved in many citywide cross-sector initiatives with education and technology such as Connecting Bristol and DC10Plus which aimed to increase social inclusion through the use of technology. She also served on the board of Bristol’s Watershed and the board of the Learning and Skills Council for the West of England as a non-executive director for the West of England until it was replaced by the Skills Funding Agency. She chaired the campaign for a referendum for an elected mayor in Bristol, and chairs the local democracy organisation Bristol Manifesto. In 2014 she was awarded an MBE for services to the Creative Digital Industries and the community in Bristol. Follow her on Twitter

Image: Daniel Franklin

---