{"id":140200,"date":"2023-07-24T10:58:09","date_gmt":"2023-07-24T14:58:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/interac1.wpengine.com\/?post_type=content&p=140200"},"modified":"2025-05-30T11:27:44","modified_gmt":"2025-05-30T15:27:44","slug":"everyday-trust-on-exponential-technology-with-debbie-gamble-and-anne-connelly","status":"publish","type":"content","link":"https:\/\/www.interac.ca\/en\/content\/business\/everyday-trust-on-exponential-technology-with-debbie-gamble-and-anne-connelly\/","title":{"rendered":"Everyday Trust: On \u2018Exponential\u2019 Technology with Debbie Gamble and Anne Connelly"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Will blockchain help us build trust across communities? Could digital currencies unlock potential for entrepreneurship in the Global South? Can artificial intelligence serve all groups equally, including marginalized communities?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The 21st century has already brought breathtakingly rapid technological change. And we know there\u2019s more coming soon: in artificial intelligence, blockchain, virtual reality, cryptocurrencies, authentication and verification services, and so much more.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But innovation for its own sake is hollow. The human dimension is what matters. I take the optimistic view that technological change brings with it the potential to build (and rebuild) the foundations of trust that underpin innovation (and society itself).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In this series, Everyday Trust<\/em>, I speak with leading thinkers about the role of trust in a rapidly evolving technology landscape. This episode is about leveraging what my guest calls \u201cexponential\u201d technology \u2013 in other words, technology that grows at a linear pace in a short period of time \u2013 to create better business and social outcomes. It\u2019s our task in the present to think about what the technologies of the near future will do for us.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And by \u201cus\u201d I mean everyone<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The opportunity: Exponential technology, trust, and better outcomes<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Whenever I\u2019m explaining what the pace of technological change means in people\u2019s lives, I like to recall the famous Ernest Hemingway remark about bankruptcy \u2014 that it happens gradually, and then suddenly. This reminds me of up-and-coming technologies like AI and blockchain. For years, they slowly develop while most of us treat them as an abstract possibility. Then suddenly, they break out and rush into the centre of people\u2019s lives.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

My guest, Anne Connelly, is an educator and thought leader in blockchain and social innovation. Recognized as one of CBC’s 12 Young Leaders Changing Canada, she has lectured at Oxford University on Innovation and Impact Finance and teaches at Singularity University and Boston University. She\u2019s also the co-author of Trust<\/em>, a graphic novel, and Bitcoin and the Future of Fundraising<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Anne observes that rapid technological change, despite its speed, is often predictable. Think of Moore\u2019s Law, which says computing power increases at a regular rate because the number of transistors on a chip has historically doubled every two years.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This kind of development is \u201cexponential\u201d technology, and it\u2019s exciting because it means positive social change can ride the wave of innovation at the same rapid speed. \u201cExponential technology is really just technology that grows on a predictable pattern,\u201d Anne says in our discussion. \u201cSo, we can look at where this technology is going to be in five years and be able to know this is what we’re going to have to work with \u2026 So let’s start building applications knowing that.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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In our conversation, Anne and I talked about how more technology also means more connections between people \u2014 and along with that, the potential for meaningful and authentic connections that strengthen business and social outcomes. That may be especially true for people who belong to marginalized or traditionally excluded groups.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

So, as we experience exponential technological growth, we can also push for exponential social <\/em>growth and radical inclusivity. \u201cWe’re not looking at incremental levels of change,\u201d Anne urges. \u201cLet’s wipe the slate clean, rebuild from scratch, and build something incredible that looks nothing like what we had before.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n

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