Let’s do a quick thought exercise today. Just bear with me for a moment. Close your eyes, and think about the future — let’s say 30 years ahead.
I’ll do it with you.
Now, when you think about the world in 30 years, what do you see? I see a world of self-driving cars, smart machines that “talk” to each other filling up homes, aggregating data — perhaps even augmented reality screens set up in windows to reflect your perfect day.
I see a world that is relying ever more on robotics to drive it. Perhaps more than many of us might expect.
And it seems Masayoshi Son, chief executive of SoftBank Group Corp., sees the same world. Recently, he forecast that within 30 years, artificial intelligence will be smarter than the human brain. To put this in perspective, while a genius’s IQ is roughly 200 — superintelligent robots will have IQs of 10,000. And in 30 years, these robots will actually outnumber humans.
As for smart machines — more than a trillion of those will be up and communicating with the Internet in three decades.
At the Mobile World Congress this past Monday, Mr. Son said those forecasts have been an enormous driving force behind his company’s recent deals.
For example, SoftBank bought ARM Holdings, a computer-chip design firm, for $32 billion last year, and it’s now focused on increasing its research and development funding. SoftBank also started a $100 billion technology-investment fund focused on artificial intelligence, smart robots and the Internet of Things last year. (The Internet of Things refers to smart objects that connect to the web.) This fund — titled the SoftBank Vision Fund — is larger than the $65 billion in combined investments from the venture-capital world.
And this tells me one very important thing — traders shouldn’t be waiting on the sidelines anymore.
It is undoubtedly the time to invest in the tech revolution that will hand us the world we’re rapidly approaching — the one we envision 30 years down the line.
Because the tech revolution that our expert, Paul , is always talking about is already capturing the interest of big money. It’s already reshaping business strategies around the world to the tune of billions of dollars. All because those who are paying attention see a profitable opportunity in the offing.
So if you haven’t yet, I recommend shifting some of your investment focus to this tech world. Follow robotics developments, watch tech trade shows, track the industry as much as you can. In fact, you can get a head start by clicking here.
And if you’re interested in the other mega trends that are still in their infancy, Paul has uncovered one that’s being largely ignored — and it’s the biggest development in the energy industry in 200 years. You can read more about it here.
As investors, we want to stay ahead of the curve — and that means getting in at the forefront of trends before they take off.
Catch you next week.
Regards,
Jessica Cohn-Kleinberg
Managing Editor, Banyan Hill Publishing