On June 25th, the 15th World Economic Forum’s Annual Meeting of the New Champions (also known as “Summer Davos Forum”) opened in Dalian, Liaoning Province. On the opening day, the World Economic Forum released the latest edition of the “Top Ten Emerging Technologies Report,” featuring artificial intelligence (AI) driving scientific discoveries, high-altitude platform communication systems, and genomic research improving organ transplantation, among others. The World Economic Forum stated that these technologies have the greatest potential to positively impact the world in the next 3-5 years.
Possessing Disruptive and Applicable
This marks the 12th release of the “Top Ten Emerging Technologies Report” by the World Economic Forum. According to the Forum, this report draws insights from scientists, researchers, and futurists, identifying ten technologies that are poised to significantly impact society and the economy. Apart from their potential to generate substantial social and economic benefits, these emerging technologies must be disruptive, attractive to investors and researchers, and capable of achieving significant application scale within the next five years.
The technologies listed as the top ten emerging technologies for 2024 include: artificial intelligence driving scientific discoveries, privacy-enhancing technologies, smart metamaterials, high-altitude platform communication systems, integrated communication sensing, immersive technologies for constructing worlds, resilient thermal materials, carbon-capturing microbes, alternative protein feeds, and genomic research improving organ transplantation.
The World Economic Forum believes that the aforementioned emerging technologies focus particularly on applications in health, communications, infrastructure, and sustainable development. Jiang Ruijie, Managing Director of the World Economic Forum and Head of the Center for the Fourth Industrial Revolution, also highlighted in the report the technologies with enormous potential in fundamentally transforming network connectivity, addressing urgent challenges posed by climate change, and driving innovation across various fields.
Since its first publication in 2011, the “Top Ten Emerging Technologies Report” has identified numerous technologies initially little-known but later having groundbreaking global impacts. For instance, gene-based vaccine technologies highlighted in 2016 later became foundational for most COVID-19 vaccines; and AI-driven molecular design technologies introduced in 2018 were applied in drug development and entered clinical trials within two years.
AI Emerges as the Most Attention-grabbing Technology
During this year’s Summer Davos in Dalian, discussions and presentations by representatives from various countries broadly echoed the aforementioned top ten emerging technologies. This to some extent validates the recognized potential of these technologies. Artificial intelligence (AI) alone was a prominent focus during the conference sessions, with dialogues and seminars such as “Defending the AI Revolution,” “Deploying AI for Expanded Social Impact,” and “The Future Development of AI Assistants.”
Vietnam’s Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh mentioned during the opening ceremony on the 25th that the world’s future is driven by three factors, including rapid technological advancements and the impact of climate change. He emphasized that effectively harnessing AI can lead to frontline growth.
During the conference, Amina Mohammed, Deputy Secretary-General of the United Nations, highlighted the critical importance of AI in today’s world, while also acknowledging its challenges such as energy consumption. She stressed that global AI investments should consider infrastructure and demographic factors to ensure technology benefits everyone, promoting equal rights and opportunities as crucial components of inclusive development.
Speaking at a press conference on the 25th, Rwanda’s Minister of Information and Communication Technology and Innovation, Paula Ingabire, expressed Rwanda’s focus on AI and its expectations for AI to address challenges across Africa, including healthcare systems, food security, and resource scarcity. She emphasized the need for learning from China’s advancements in AI and enhancing talent exchanges, noting similarities in demographic structures and the youthful population’s enthusiasm for new technologies that can foster talent development and create employment opportunities.
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