OT, somewhat, re killer apps and transforming technologies:
When those tropical areas get rich enough so Air Conditioning is ubiquitous, the societies will be very different than today. But the AC will be an effect, or a correlating variable, not a cause.
The other thing to consider is that lots of killer apps and transforming technologies have profound effects on society, but no company makes a profit offering it. Railroads, airlines are examples. If there are low barriers to entry, if no one has a proprietary lock on an indispensable intellectual property, then it becomes a commodity, with margins trending towards zero (with wide year-to-year variability, meaning there are years when everyone is losing money).
We all drive a car, but who is making money building cars? We all make phone calls, but who is making money offering phone service? In 20 years, maybe everyone on the planet will have a cellphone in their pocket, with a 5G wireless modem in it, and that might change our lives a lot (or might not, if consumers don't see the value-added in high-quality color streaming video on 2" X 2" screens), but.........maybe no company makes a profit on it. |
