Blog Posts

If you didn’t have the ability to see, whose voice would you trust to guide you every day?
Who would accompany you on trips, read to you, help you shop? Who would adapt to your routine, pick out your smartest shirt, inform you about the best places to eat, and even remember to record your favourite TV show while you dine?
No human could be so constant, so patient, or so responsive. But AI can.

It’s not every day that a piece of research strikes a chord. But a Cushman & Wakefield report on exponential technological change and its implications felt personal. It read: ‘An executive moving from graduation to management over 20 years will face technology 500,000 times more powerful than the day they started work.’

“Leave no one behind.” This was the message the World Water Day championed this year. The plea to leave no one behind – a basic tenet of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (UN SDGs) - is a powerful call for universal inclusiveness. It envisages a world where the water-stressed areas of today do not face the same challenges in the future. Water is a precious resource for every nation, but it is particularly incumbent upon the water-scarce regions to proactively work towards sustainable and innovative ways that ensure access to safe and clean water for all.

Since Amazon’s purchase of Whole Foods, a deal that sent shockwaves across the retail world, the question that every brick-and-mortar retailer faces is how they propose to stem the tide of ‘follow-suit’ competition that will now inevitably engulf their market.

We live in a world with so many questions and few clear answers. “Too many laws, too few examples.” Uncertainty is the new norm, and we are called upon to make major decisions while figuring out what tomorrow will look like.

The region must reclaim its rich scientific heritage, but it needs billions of dollars annually and government and institutional support. Today’s world is full of disruption. The rate at which new entrepreneurs and fresh business ideas are emerging, continues to gain momentum globally and regionally. Every day, we read about new start-ups pushing the boundaries of technology, exploration and experience.

We live in times of unprecedented complexity. Global forces and technological changes have catalysed disruption to the point it has outpaced our ability to adapt. 2016 was the year in which rising dissident voices rose to an undeniable pitch. Brexit, the election of Donald Trump to the US presidency and the shift towards extremes in many European countries. Around the globe, social contracts are breaking down and a new narrative between the governing and the governed has not yet been crafted.

New products and services are often created to enable businesses to sustain their success, diversify their investment and protect revenue from volatility. Success stories and failures are easily found, but in the era of climate change, diversifying away from risk cannot rely on products and services alone.