Innovation foundation Nesta today publishes its annual predictions, painting a picture of how, in the coming year, society, health, citizens’ rights and technology are set to change more quickly than ever before - and not all of it makes for comfortable reading.

According to Nesta’s experts, in 2019 the world can expect:

1) A geo-political incident will be sparked by a politician or celebrity being maliciously impersonated, using highly life-like computer-generated ‘deep fake’ video

2) ‘An MOT for your gut’ will become a thing. Using testing kits and apps to show the bacteria living inside our digestive tract, there’ll be a new trend of managing our ‘gut microbiome’ to treat health problems.

3) We’ll demand to know when we’re talking to a machine, and when we’re talking to a human. We’ll start demanding the right to be told when decisions that affect our lives (such as being shortlisted for a job application) are being made, or informed, by algorithms.

4) Robo-lawyers will enter the mainstream. We could soon be suing our employer, disputing an immigration decision or getting a divorce via our smartphones as the next big round of automation in the legal sector will see apps and web-based services replacing a visit to a local solicitor’s firm for many straightforward legal problems.

5) Many of us will know someone who is living with an drug-resistant bacterial infection. Through overprescription of antibiotics in both humans and animals, and despite multiple strategies being put in place in the UK over the last decade, the number of drug-resistant infections in our communities and hospitals continues to grow at an alarming rate. As more people are forced to live with untreatable conditions, 2019 will be the year that everyone knows someone who has, or has had, a drug-resistant infection.

6) China has pressed the button on a new global ‘space race’ - but instead of missions to the moon, nations will compete to develop ‘city brains’. City administrators will integrate sensors, cameras and infrastructure with artificial intelligence to operate whole urban areas - including the management of services, transport and, in some cases, control citizens.

7) The beginning of the end of exams as we know them, as it becomes possible for artificial intelligence to continuously assess students over their entire school careers. From homework assignments and weekly quizzes, to the speed with which they absorb new material, artificial intelligence will lead to a rethink of the need for exams, and if done right, could allow us to reorganise schools around learning, not league tables.

8) Funding for promising innovations will becoming increasingly randomised. Decision-making on innovation funding has long meant time-consuming, peer-review evaluation processes, but to counter bias and back more breakthrough ideas, more organisations will begin to experiment with a new approach: randomly-allocated research funding.

9) A ‘mobility revolution’: a surge in demand, coupled with the rapid evolution of AI, sensors and 3D printing, assistive technologies will get super-charged. Until now, high R&D costs and a difficult path to market have meant technologies which support mobility (like the wheelchair) have been slow to improve. A revolution in assistive technology will have spillover benefits for us all - pushing forward boundaries in the way technology interacts with the human body.

10) A rethinking of the standard work week as we come to terms with the impact of always of 24/7 contactability, flexible working, and the gig-economy. The five-day, 40-hour, working week is a 20th century invention, that is not suited to modern work practices and workers will want ever more flexibility from employers. Demands for a four-day week will go mainstream but radical changes to the way we work could have as many losers as winners.

Celia Hannon, Director of Explorations at Nesta said:

“Nesta’s predictions for 2019 illustrate just how rapidly technologies which would once have been dismissed as Science-Fiction are set to change our everyday lives. Interacting with machines will become the ‘new normal’ - from sitting an exam to seeking legal advice - but we need to tread carefully. While these technological advances promise greater convenience and efficiency, many also risk increasing inequality. We will need to find ways to distribute the benefits of progress more widely and protect citizen rights as Artificial Intelligence becomes embedded in the world around us.’

ENDS

Celia Hannon and a range of Nesta’s subject experts related to the 2019 predictions are available for interview.

For media enquiries and interviews please contact Will Hoyles, Anna Zabow or Juliet Grant at [email protected] / 020 7438 2543 or call Anna on 020 7438 2697 or Juliet on 020 7438 2668.

Notes to Editors

1) As a horizon scanning organisation, part of Nesta’s role is to engage with the emerging trends that will shape our lives in years to come. This year marks the eighth anniversary of the launch of the Predictions series, which since 2011 has seen Nesta experts accurately predict the growth of 3D printing, the rise of crowdfunding, the advent of the mobile wallet and a spike in job automation.

2) Illustrations for each of the predictions are available on request.

3) Nesta’s 2019 predictions can be found via: https://www.nesta.org.uk/predictions2019 from 00:01 on 04/12/18

About Nesta

Nesta is a global innovation foundation. We back new ideas to tackle the big challenges of our time, making use of our knowledge, networks, funding and skills. We work in partnership with others, including governments, businesses and charities. We are a UK charity that works all over the world, supported by a financial endowment. To find out more visit www.nesta.org.uk

Nesta is a registered charity in England and Wales 1144091 and Scotland SC042833