8 The PCB Magazine • May 2014
by Ray Rasmussen
I-connect007
January's big news was that Google was
getting into robotics in a big way with some
very strategic acquisitions. In February we
heard that Foxconn and Google were partner-
ing to build the "factory of the future."
In an interview with The Observer, Ray
Kurzweil, Google's director of engineering,
believes that by 2029 computer systems (au-
tomation and robotics included) will be as
smart as people and much more capable.
Kurzweil, famous as a futurist and focused
on the exponential changes in technologies,
predicted the Internet, among other technol-
ogy breakthroughs. He also predicts that that
by 2030, solar energy will be able to meet all
the energy needs of the planet. That's just 15
years away!
If you're interested in gaining a better un-
derstanding of the difference between robot-
ics and automation, check out this link.
As I've mentioned before, robotics are go-
ing to have a profound effect on people, both
positively and negatively. In fact, I believe
the automated and robotic factory along with
the evermore automated business will dra-
matically change our society—it has to. IPC
APEX keynote speaker and X-Prize Founder
Dr. Peter Diamandis talked about this very is-
sue during his presentation. What's both ex-
citing and scary at the same time is that, as he
pointed out, technological change is accel-
erating and our society is transforming into
what he called "technological socialism" as
machines replace workers. Societies will need
the way i see it
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Googlebotics
