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Blink 3 of 8 - The 5 AM Club
by Robin Sharma
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The Fourth Industrial Revolution summary
Klaus Schwab
A new transformation in technology and industry
15 mins
Brief summary
The Fourth Industrial Revolution by Klaus Schwab explores the new age of technology evolution and its impact on society, encouraging policies for inclusive growth.
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The Fourth Industrial Revolution
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Key idea 1 of 6
Three industrial revolutions have already transformed our world, and humanity is now experiencing a fourth.
Some 10,000 years ago, a massive shift in the history of humanity took place: humans began to farm. This move away from foraging and hunting was profound. Indeed, it marked a revolution in human history – the agrarian revolution.
This was but the first in a series of revolutions, each of which would transform life on Earth. Over the course of human history, there have been three industrial revolutions. The first occurred when we began using mechanical power rather than sheer human muscle. It happened between 1760 and 1840, spurred in particular by the development of steam power and construction of railroads.
The second industrial revolution dawned with the rise of mass production in the late nineteenth century and continued into the first half of the twentieth. The hallmarks of this industrial shift were the assembly line and electrified power.
And, finally, the third industrial revolution is often referred to as either the computer revolution or the digital revolution. Its contributions were the advent of computers, as well as semiconductors and the internet, which was developed in the latter half of the twentieth century.
But that wasn’t the last industrial revolution to date. In fact, we’re currently experiencing a fourth industrial revolution, which began early in the twenty-first century. This revolution brought about a much more mobile internet, as well as better, cheaper and smaller sensors that are enabling the development of new technologies. It has also seen the rise of machine learning and artificial intelligence.
However, this new industrial revolution isn’t only about smart machines. It encompasses a number of different fields as well, from material science to nanotechnology, energy to biology. What really separates this fourth industrial revolution from those that preceded it is that it merges these fields and connects them across digital, physical and biological platforms.
Naturally, there are a number of other characteristics that distinguish the fourth industrial revolution. In the next blink, we’ll explore this shift in greater detail, teasing out how it’s truly distinct from those that came before it.
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What is The Fourth Industrial Revolution about?
The Fourth Industrial Revolution (2016) tells the story of a new transformation in technology and industry. These blinks explain the major industrial revolutions of the past and go on to tell how a current industrial revolution is spawning new technologies that fuse previously separate fields – with incredible results.
Who should read The Fourth Industrial Revolution?
- Students of political science, technology and economics
- Leaders and educators
- Workers worried about their job security
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