This is the time of year that everyone makes lofty sci-fi predictions about the future: flying cars, practical AI, nuclear fusion… hold on a sec… these are no longer lofty sci-fi predictions. There are at least a dozen passenger drones (flying cars) waiting for FAA approval. ChatGPT, Midjourney, Stable Diffusion, and dozens of other practical AI solutions have become available in the past year. Just a few weeks ago, scientists at the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory announced the first-ever demonstration of fusion “ignition”, a process where more energy was generated than was needed to trigger the reaction.

The news is filled with negative stories, and doom-scrolling seems to have become a national pastime, but my predictions for 2023 begin with an optimistic belief that technology will continue to improve at an exponential rate: continuous improvement that will not only lead to greater productivity but offer us greater choices about how we want to spend our days.

Personal drones may not become the flying cars as imagined in The Jetsons, but they will be used for rescue missions and reduce the time needed to accomplish a variety of transportation tasks.

AGI (artificial general intelligence), which is supposed to describe AI models that have an ability to learn that is equal to a human, may not happen as imagined in the movies, but AI is proving itself to be an immense productivity enhancer and a wonderful creative toolbox.

While limitless fusion energy may be years (or even decades) away, it is possible. Practical fusion will end our dependence on fossil fuels and make fresh water available for everyone and everything. Commercialized fusion energy will usher in a new era as it changes how we do absolutely everything.

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