What’s next in robotics with Marc Theermann, the Chief Strategy Officer of Boston Dynamics. Known as “the Bell Labs of robotics”, this firm is famous for its mechanical menagerie of legged robots that includes Spot, Atlas, Stretch. These autonomous robots can go anywhere a human can go, and to many places humans cannot, including mine fields. And now they are equipped with artificial intelligence. Autonomous robots are beginning to develop a semantic model of the world.

In this episode our resident futurists make bold forecasts for 2023. Joined by Miss Metaverse, Katie King, the trio discuss what to expect in the global economy, defense and military, health care, climate change, extreme weather and the hottest summer in human history. A special focus on Open AI, ChatGPT, DallE2, Microsoft, Stable Diffusion, Metaverse, VR/AR/XR, gaming and media, software automation, artificial intelligence and robotics. Which industries are ripe for disruption?  Plus a bold forecast about Elon Musk’s tenure as CEO of Tesla and looming competition from the electric vehicle industry.

Legendary sci-fi author, astrophysicist, and NASA advisor David Brin rejoins the Futurists for a special first anniversary show. Topics include: Wall Street’s insatiable AIs, Karl Marx and capitalism, the magic of competition, Hollywood tropes, self-preventing prophecies, the flaw in Asimov’s laws of robotics and hope for a positive sum game.

In this weeks episode of The Futurists Dr. Harry Kloor talks us through the process of working with Ray Kurzweil, Peter Diamandis and others in creating Beomni - a remotely teleoperated, AI-enhanced humanoid robot built for semi-autonomous operation. Kloor has consulted on the X-Prize, written for and directed sci-fi series like Star Trek Voyager, and worked with world changers like Elon Musk.

A look at the trends that will shape the workplace of the future: flexibility, the expanding 1099 workforce, the Great Resignation, the gig economy, telework, remote collaboration, placeless employment, automation, robotics, the rebound in union membership, breaking social contract. Wither the American Dream? According to Future of Work expert Sophie Wade, humans need more autonomy and empathy in the workplace order to achieve their best. In this episode we explore how technology might make that possible. Sophie Wade, Work Futurist, Flexcel Network Website: https://www.sophiewade.com/ Website: https://www.flexcelnetwork.com/ Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sophie_Wade Twitter:  https://twitter.com/asophiewade

This week Brian Solis joins Brett in the hosting chair as Srujana Kaddevarmuth from Walmart labs joins the Futurists to delve into the future of in store and online interactions for the retail giant. From future store design, warehouse robotics through to data science and AI, we cover the gamut of possibilities of 21st century commerce.

In every work environment, from factories, hospitals, retail shops to elder care homes, the future workforce will include robots. Dr Harry Kloor, the founder and CEO of Beyond Imagination has blazed a trail toward building reliable, strong robots that can operate safely alongside human workers. Harry tells the Futurists how to design a robot for a variety of workplaces at an affordable price, and what type of artificial intelligence is best for autonomous robot workers. Harry also answers key questions: why insurability for robot co-workers is a challenge; how to create a friendly-looking robot; the best places to put robots to work; why legless robots are superior; robots for elder care; how hydraulic robots compare to electronic systems; and why it’s so difficult for a robot to open a bottle of soda.

In this weeks TF, Brett King interviews Swedish Biohacker and Futurist, Hannes Sjoblad. The two futurists get into the evolution of biohacking and longevity treatments, the merging of man and machine through implants, neural/brain control interfaces and advanced robotic prosthetics. This is advanced application of technology for the future of health and life span.

In this weeks episode of The Futurists, cognitive scientist and AI researcher Ben Goertzel joins the hosts to talk the likely path to Artificial General Intelligence. Goertzel is the founder of SingularityNet, Chairman at OpenCog Foundation, and previously as the Chief Scientist at Hanson Robotics he helped create Sophia the robot. Goertzel is on a different level, get ready to step up.

In the past, innovation in agriculture lagged behind consumer electronics and telecoms. Today, that's changing. As food futurist Tony Hunter explains, food is technology. In this episode, Hunter shares his view of tech-fueled advances in food production and distribution around the world. Topics include: supply chain disruption, new tech for farming, strategies for waste reduction, changes to food supply caused by the pandemic, the distinction between food security and food sovereignty, alternative proteins like lab-grown meat, vertical farming using hydroponics, genomics, microbiome, cellular agriculture, synthetic biology, plant molecular farming, how computing technologies like artificial intelligence accelerate innovation.   If you’re interested in the future, then you really must tune into the changes afoot in the food industry. As Tony explains, food and drink  are the only absolute non-discretionary items for daily human needs.  https://www.FuturistForFood.com