The current generation DREAMS, THINKS, and ASPIRES differently because – ”The current generation has data & information at their fingertips”

Technology has penetrated the life of kids to such an extent that they hardly find it tough to get answers to any question. My daughter calls out “Alexa”, “Siri” and “OK Google” to find a solution to her question before she even reaches out to my wife or me.

This decentralization or democratization of information has indeed happened because of 3 major tech revolutions:

1. Adoption of the internet in the late 90s and early 2000s:
—– The Internet became the single most defining factor that enabled everyone to access information. From having around 16M users (0.4% of the world population) in 1995, the adoption of the internet has skyrocketed to 5.47Bn (69% of the world population) in 2022.
—– The internet revolution truly ”Globalized” the world by connecting people across the globe through a common platform

2. The 2nd important factor was the launch of smartphones:
—– Another defining moment was the introduction of smartphones around the mid-2000s. As end-user devices like smartphones, tablets, and laptops started becoming more powerful, they made it easy for people to start accessing and processing data faster

3. And finally – the introduction of high-speed fiber net broadband and cellular networks.
—– Broadband and cellular networks connect the end-user computing devices and the internet. The adoption of the Internet and the widespread usage of smartphones and tablets can be mainly attributed to the current internet and cellular network that we enjoy. They are not just faster but are also way more reliable. With the advent of 5G – we are at the cusp of another revolution

What these 3 trends have done over the past 2 decades is enable people to consume data from any part of the globe. When one empowers people across the globe to consume data or information, one has well and truly democratized information and has enabled innovation to happen anywhere.

Not long ago one had to get into hubs where these innovations used to happen e.g. innovation hubs/cities (usually metros and top cities of the globe) or get into esteemed institutions where one had the resources to innovate. This meant that people used to follow the standard template of cracking competitive exams, entering Ivy League colleges where one had access to these resources, and then finally coming out and joining the mainstream industry to contribute to the innovation and growth

Over the past few years, I see this trend changing. I see innovation happening in the so-called tier 2 and tier 3 cities and villages because suddenly talent in these places have access to information – information that was never available to them in the past.