On September 29th, the “Technological Singularity and the New Information Technology Revolution” sub-forum was held at the NEXT Summit (Singapore 2021). Dr. Jun Chen, Secretary General of the NEXT Federation, presided over the forum.
In the 21st century, humanity has entered the information age, and the information technology revolution serves as a vital driving force and bridge for economic globalization, as well as a dominant force in promoting global economic and social development. The new technological revolution centered around information technology (represented by the Internet of Things, cloud computing, big data, and artificial intelligence) represents both the vertical upgrade and the horizontal integration and fusion of information technology. Ultimately, it will become a highlight in the history of global economic development.
According to the viewpoint of technological singularity, human technology is in a state of exponential acceleration and is approaching a technological breakthrough. In today’s society, new technologies provide unprecedented impetus for economic development. Technology is changing people’s way of life and the pace of socio-economic development and progress.
There is a reflection on the blind optimism of human beings towards technological development. Will we witness a technological singularity that disrupts everything? Are we prepared for it?
The social transformation brought about by a technological revolution permeates every corner of society, and this is especially true for the new information technology revolution. However, any fundamental technological revolution brings not only opportunities and positive expectations but also fundamental changes to existing social structures, organizations, and operational modes. This brings enormous challenges in transition, including adapting to the challenges of networked behavior and structure, facing risks associated with exposed behavior and privacy, and the competitive challenges posed by artificial intelligence.
Zhu Yu, Vice President and Secretary-General of the China Information Association, delivered a speech titled “Reflections on the Construction of Smart Cities in China.” He believes that promoting new smart cities is conducive to the synchronized development of new industrialization, informatization, urbanization, and agricultural modernization. It facilitates the integration of informatization and urban development, leading to sustainable urban development. Zhu Yu believes that the smart city industry covers a wide range of areas and has intersecting relationships with many industries. The construction of smart cities will become an important guarantee for urban development. The global smart city market is vast, and secure and intelligent governance will be the main drivers of market growth. The cultural and security aspects of future cities are trends and foundations for the healthy development of smart cities. Regarding the advantages and disadvantages of building smart cities, Zhu Yu suggests paying attention to the “Three Emphases and Three Lights,” namely: emphasizing control and lightening the ecological impact; emphasizing technology and lightening application; emphasizing construction and lightening operation.
Qi Guosheng, Chairman and CEO of Guoshuang Technology Co., Ltd., delivered a speech titled “The Acceleration of Societal Digital Transformation with Next-Generation Information Technology.” Qi Guosheng believes that informatization has undergone several decades of development, starting from computers and personal computers to the internet, and we are currently experiencing a digital era, with an intelligent era awaiting us in the future. Digitalization is represented by big data, the internet, and cloud computing. The intelligent era will involve the use of artificial intelligence, 5G, 6G, and cloud intelligence. At the national level, big data is considered an important element and has been included in future development plans. Qi Guosheng introduced three aspects of data elements: improving the allocation efficiency of resources, mining and enhancing the value of resources, and sharing knowledge. Qi Guosheng believes that when the era of digitalization and intelligent transformation arrives, industrial intelligence will be the future form. It can be applied to the field of government affairs, helping governments gain knowledge penetration, build city data brains, and enhance governance capabilities. Guoshuang Technology Co., Ltd. is dedicated to the industry practice of realizing enterprise digital transformation.
He Xi, Vice President of Singularity Cloud, delivered a speech titled “Creating a Data Intelligence Platform that Transcends Technological Singularity.” He Xi believes that the essence of digital transformation is the shift from material production to data production. The problem we need to address is the interaction between humans and machines. The future development trend of digitization is transitioning from system construction to data exchange.
Simon Ng, Founder and CEO of LEACOV Singapore, presented their positive practices in online education, informationization transformation, and information security in Singapore.
Rudi Rusdiah MA, Chairman of ABDI (Asosiasi Big Data & AI) Indonesia and CEO of PT Micronics Internusa, delivered a speech on the topic “Artificial Intelligence Enhancing or Replacing Human Intelligence.” He discussed the three challenges related to big data in the field of artificial intelligence: data threats, data leakage, and data leakage by external participants. Rudi believes that data is a technology, but from an ethical perspective, technology does not represent everything, yet humans need data. Rudi emphasized that robust governance of big data and artificial intelligence singularity is a necessary condition for maintaining world security.
Academician of the International Academy of Astronautics, Corresponding Member of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Deputy Director of the Strategic Information Technology Department of the Institute of System Research, Nikolay Nikolayevich Smirnov, gave a speech introducing strategic information technology and its application in predicting and simulating natural, technological, and social processes. Academician Smirnov believes that by reverse optimization of software and hardware components focused on solving specific tasks, significant improvements can be achieved in the efficiency of high-performance computing.
The NEXT Summit (Singapore 2021), with the theme of “Promoting Total-Factor Cooperation,” invited more than 70 international political figures, renowned scholars, business leaders, and entrepreneurial leaders from over 10 countries including New Zealand, China, Indonesia, South Korea, Egypt, Pakistan, the United Arab Emirates, Singapore, the United States, Germany, and Russia. Through important sessions such as the opening ceremony, keynote speeches, global roadshows of international projects, the Hurricane Lamp Award ceremony, and seven thematic sub-forums, they delivered cutting-edge speeches and shared case studies on various industries.
To watch the “Technological Singularity and the New Information Technology Revolution” sub-forum of the NEXT Summit (Singapore 2021), please scan the QR code link below.
