Surveillance Capitalism and the 4th Industrial Revolution (4RI)
The 4th Industrial Revolution (4RI), promoted by the World Economic Forum (WEF) since Davos, is well underway. Research and development centers for the deployment of the 4RI have been opened in many countries since 2017, and the WEF can count on its network of "young global leaders" to promote it. Canada is taking a very active part as Policy Horizons Canada prepares for biodigital convergence, which foresees the fusion of digital technologies and biological systems. Colombia is also on board, with its Centre for 4RI in Medellin looking at the strategic use of artificial intelligence in agriculture and the public sector.
The 4RI comes with a list of complex words and acronyms: Artificial Intelligence (AI), Internet of Things (IoT), Internet of Bodies (IoB), blockchain technology (Blockchain), nanotechnology, biotechnology, virtual reality and augmented reality (VR and AR), and so on. In reality, all our internet searches, our posts on social networks, our emails, the data from our GPS, every purchase we make with a bank or credit card, all our everyday actions and gestures leave a trail of data behind us, so that we can be tracked. They are collected and analyzed on a massive scale because they constitute a mine of information for companies that want to know us better than we know ourselves, in order to sell us solutions to 'make our lives easier' and to be able to influence our behaviour…
The global elite, gathered in Davos once a year, speak of a "great opportunity" to save the planet and build a more just and inclusive world... but how exactly? These leaders of governments and multinational companies are offering us on a silver platter the poisonous solution of surveillance capitalism as a remedy for pandemics and ecological disasters: the fusion of human beings and the living with technology. We need to understand these plans if we are to continue to cultivate life, its ecosystems and our human relationships.
To talk about these issues, we are offering a training course on the theme of "Surveillance capitalism and the 4th industrial revolution". If you are interested in taking part, contact us and we will arrange a time to meet you at a time that suits us both!
You can also read the article "Surveillance capitalism and pandemic shock: as reality becomes virtual", published by PASC (in french) in the fall of 2020, at the following address : https://mtlcontreinfo.org/capitalisme-de-surveillance-et-choc-pandemique/