Despite our pessimistic focus on disasters and negative events, the world has significantly improved in areas like forced labor, women’s voting rights, literacy, and environmental protection. Even in tech policy and government handling of data privacy, progress is evident, though challenges remain.
Different platforms require tailored regulations, and so operating systems and app stores should be regulated differently. Given the recent developments in India, where startups have challenged Google’s Play Store policy, there is a need for innovative thinking beyond traditional regulatory solutions.
If we are to take a comprehensive approach to tech sector regulation, we need to identify core regulatory objectives, establish regulatory principles, and involving experts in the regulatory process. We need agile governance that encourages multi-stakeholder participation, and allows for the creation of self-regulatory organizations (SROs). We should also establish technical standards organizations (TSOs) to continuously update and maintain digital public infrastructure standards, ensuring their relevance and effectiveness in the rapidly changing tech landscape.
Technological advancements can have a transformative impact. This includes deep neural networks, augmented reality, autonomous transportation, and personalized medicine. I predicts a future where technology will become more intuitive, education will be revolutionized, personal vehicle ownership may decline, and medicine will become highly individualized, though regulators may lag behind these changes.
Trofim Lysenko’s misguided agricultural practices led to famines in the Soviet Union and China, killing millions. This is no different from the modern-day denial of climate science. We need to learn from the past and try not to ignore scientific evidence for political or economic reasons. Else we risk devastating global consequences.
