We are living in a time of profound transition, marked by a global climate crisis, explosive technological innovation, and an extreme concentration of wealth in the hands of a very few.
Two contrasting futures are already beginning to take shape in the present: a utopian scenario of a decentralized, post-industrial society, and a dystopian scenario of refeudalization and a return to a medieval power structure.
Both scenarios are built on technological innovation — and paradoxically, the very same innovations. The difference lies in who reaps the rewards: the many or the few.
In this essay, I will focus on the utopian path — the dystopian one already has more than enough powerful advocates among the techno-libertarian oligarchs who flock around Donald Trump.
I explore how the next generation of the Internet could serve as the foundation for a robust and resilient system of governance — effectively functioning as a virtual global government. Such a system could sustainably meet everyone’s basic needs while ensuring a fair distribution of wealth and power.
You can download the essay as an e-book in pdf format.