Posted by Leonard Steinberg on May 23rd, 2012
We have entered the NEW TECH ECONOMY, an economy that is reliant on, and thrives on technology to improve speed and productivity, lower costs and increase profitability. This Tech Economy makes our world a much smaller place by inter-connecting countries and economies instantly, 24 hours a day. It usurps in many ways the significance of the brick-and-mortar economy of bygone decades. Right now the key focus for investing in Silicon Alley is not Social Media: its all about energy. The world is looking to tech for solutions.
Hewlett Packard announced job cuts of 27,000 to-day: are they looking to Apple for a business model based on Apple’s ability to ship profits and jobs outside of the US to boost profitability?
All this is facilitated by technology. Commerce and industry are driven by it. Even in real estate land the reliance on tech for marketing and advertising is huge, not to mention day-to-day operations. These are the ‘GOOD NEW DAYS’ as opposed to the ‘BAD OLD DAYS’ when we had to run back to our offices to read a faxed memo, type letters and mail them, etc, etc. In the GOOD NEW DAYS of the Tech Economy we can read a newspaper anywhere in the world, anytime of the day…..from the palm of our hand. or receieve an e-mail message, or an important call. This connectivity has accelerated our lives dramatically, and in many ways made our world much easier.
On the flip side, personal interaction is waning, our addiction to a screen keeps growing, and the complexities associated with technology keep growing too: more concerning is that tech reduces the need for humans. The humans that can embrace and thrive on this “New Tech Economy” will reap the benefits, while many will falter. I believe this could further boost the growth of the rich, and further enrich them. Surely the investors of Hewlett Packard will be the biggest beneficiaries of these massive lay-offs? To-day alone the stock rose over 2%.
As crazy as it seems, the STAR TREK fanatsy worlds created for our entertainment decades ago are physically materializing before our very eyes, creating a new world where evolution too is accelerating. This should serve as a warning to all that the ways of the past will change and we had all better adapt fast, or risk becoming extinct.