The future that the world is headed in, is determined by many different aspects like geopolitical developments, economic developments, technological advancements, societal evolution and it is very interesting to imagine what the world will be like a few decades down the line.
The opinions on this regard will differ from one person to another and depending on who you ask, the future world could either be a dystopian one portrayed well in fiction or a utopian one, where everything is rainbows and unicorns.
Not surprisingly, many people think that human greed and the centralisation of power could very well lead us into a dark dystopian world. One of the popular scenarios that is often suggested is that of a few corporate giants, ruling over all aspects of our lives.
I remember watching some movies, which centre around the same idea and while I don’t personally believe that it will be anywhere near as bleak as they’d like us to believe, I do think that the future could be a toned down version of what they portray. So, which of today’s corporations could be our evil overlords?
Apple
Apple is one of the largest companies in the world today and is well on its way to become the first trillion dollar company by market capitalisation. Over the last few years, it has done really well financially with one record breaking quarter after the other.
As a result, it now has a cash pile of $260 billion! That’s a lot of money which it could use to buy out several other companies. In fact it could buy out Tesla, Uber, Netflix, Twitter, Snapchat and Airbnb with change to spare.
The point is, even though, going by marketshare, only a fraction of people in the world use Apple products like iPhones and MacBooks, if the company wanted to go on a buying spree, it could easily establish its presence in most people’s lives by buying out companies that do.
In fact, this has been a common trend in tech companies where larger companies simply buy out smaller ones. In the future, as these companies grow, they will be more powerful than ever and could easily become among the handful that control all aspects of our lives, with access to all our data (which is a valuable asset in today’s world).
Amazon
Amazon is one of the world’s largest online retailers and a default options for a huge number of people around the world when they want to shop for. Amazon has dedicated websites for a lot of countries in the world and with it’s global stores, it is truly a worldwide corporation.
Not only that, Amazon has a 45% market share in cloud computing thanks to its AWS (Amazon Web Services) that many other companies in the world use. It is also winning over the online grocery market with a share of 40% and with the recent acquisition of Whole Foods, it is getting even more serious.
Imagine the kind of data that Amazon must have about the hundreds of millions of people that use its services in their daily lives. With the recent push in the smart home accessories market, that will only grow.
Therefore Amazon is another contender to be one of the corporate giants that control many different aspects of our lives. If it overtakes other smaller corporations along the way, it might very well be the case.
Personally, I think that if there ever will be a world controlled by a corporation, the most likely contender for it is Google. In the past decade, Google has positioned itself as far more than just a search company, so much so that just recently, it had to go through a major corporate restructuring which saw the inception of ALPHABET.
Alphabet is now the parent company of Google and several other subsidiaries. Thanks to this, a single conglomerate is now undertaking a search business, AI research, robotics, internet services, smart home accessories, life sciences, life longevity research, venture capital, urban innovation, self driving cars, energy, cloud computing, smartphones, Android operating system and so much more.
If that list doesn’t prove to you the kind of unstoppable power the Google will have in the next 50 years, when the research and development cycles will have completed several times over, I don’t know what will.
It is exactly companies like these that have presence literally everywhere, that are shown as the evil guys in sci-fi movies. I am not saying Google (Alphabet) will go on to become one but it is sure that unless it somehow fails, it will be one of the very few companies that will control all aspects of our lives. Scary indeed.
I've been arguing for a while now that corporations are the biggest threat to international freedom, not governments.
Governments, at least those of democratic nations, have checks and balances. Corporations are only checked by their wealth and greed.
Governments have no product, besides what they use as an excuse for upping taxes for the umpteenth year in a row. Google, Facebook, Amazon et al have your favorite products on their shelves.
Government makes a quick power grab? Armed uprising. Right then and there, little question. If a big corp makes a bigger buy? Who is going to riot when Google buys Netflix? When Google bought YouTube?
Governments don't have to force censorship through armed force. They can just censor their own product, their platforms, and if/when they have a monopoly on that product/platform, you have no choice.
Decentralized technologies like bitcoin, steemit, Dtube, solar panels, peer to peer based cloud etc. are the best weapons against those corporations.
Exactly. That's why I wouldn't be surprised if more people from the corporate world came out and said that these are fraud! LOL
Yes, corporations are gaining more and more power for sure and with those buy outs of smaller companies, things are getting more centralised with more of our daily activities are reliant on fewer companies.
We cannot have a true monopoly without government interference. So really, as dangerous as corporations are, the ability for them to force you to use their product is always because of a benefit they receive from government in terms of a favorable regulation or law.
That's true but where people are involved, there is always a chance of corruption and with these corporations making more money every year, they can easily buy people off.
That's true. But if the people outside of government, didn't give the people in government so much power, buying them off won't be worth it.
nothing has changed since the antiquity and the middle ages, why? we still have the same pyramid control system... when are people going to take responsibility instead?
The pyramid structure is slowly being challenged with a decentralised system thanks to blockchain. Let's see if this will prevent any damage to our society as a whole.
Good read. What bothers most of us is that we vote politician in to represent us, yet because of big corporations like Apple, Google, Amazon and all their friends, policy making is bought though thee corporations. The common voters have no influence on policy because they do not have fat wallets. They say things go in cycles as an ebb and flow. In this instance I would not count on that. Thanks.
We need to restrict the role of government, and then it won't be a power source that attracts special interests. The problem is we instead ask the government to fix its own relationship with corporations.
that is what statists say... but the secret is really individual's self-control
It's what I say to Statists. Because I can't say "we should abolish the State".
Exactly. That's one of the points I was trying to make. When these corporations become bigger, let's say twice the size they are now, or even more, there will come a point where governments will become redundant because these corporations will get their way with everything just because they have the money to simply buy people off.
Yes, with money, comes influence and there is definite lobbying going around for sure!
it is scary indeed , would love to know your thoughts on utopian world.
I don't have a utopian view on this particular topic really. I don't think it will go the dystopian route either, at least like how they show in the movies but yes, things are getting more centralised for sure.
Good article. I don't have any idea how to stop their metastatic growth. I hope some sort of decentralized,possibly blockchain based, movement will outshine them. I think Equifax just proved that storing data on everyone in a centralized manner only gives hackers a target to aim at. I don't even want them storing data about me, but presently you can't stop them. Scary times.
Blockchain is a huge threat to the status quo and that includes the government, corporations, money and a whole host of other things. My personal view is that it is the only thing that can at least restrict their growth.
Good read, thank you for sharing and spreading awareness of this very serious matter.
Thanks for reading :)
Smart homes? They would only become popular if the society becomes extremely consumer-based. I don't see any pressing need for such homes otherwise.
I know but once they introduce any technology to the market, it is only a matter of time when it becomes mass adopted.
and @hmushtaq -When I first became aware of Smart home technology I thought there couldn't possibly be a demand for it - personally I think it's a sign of insanity, then again in 1800 Robert Owen used his New Year's address to the community in New Lanark to argue that he had 'hope yet for humanity because man is not yet insane enough to bottle water and sell it for profit'....
You are absolutely right! Mankind has always surprised itself and done things that we could have never predicted or even thought possible. Smart homes are simply a no-brainer at this point.
It is indeed scary to think they own majority of the data on the internet and constantly expanding...
Exactly!!!!
I myself am of two minds about this, and I think my third mind is going to win the struggle. One thing that all large companies need are users. Whether it is a user as in "Log-In, or come in and buy something. I do not see them as being EVIL. Some Governments, yes I see some of them as Evil. They want and need to control to the point of brainwashing so they can have their happy little fighters, so they can show the other guy how strong a government they have. With corporations, the greater the peace, the greater the growth, with the exception of War Companies.
So yeah, I think only time will tell, dark dystopian world with evil corporate overlords, or Star Trek Federation type of world. Personally, I think right now, the corporate choice is better than the government one. The corporate one does not require you to die in order to stay in control, just the opposite.
you are not seeing the big picture, that corporations and central banks (all private and corporate entities) RUN the government. That heavily documented on the net.
Heavily documented, I guess it is not that well documented on the Net, I know people for a number of reasons do use that or similar comments about the government and corporations. Can you honestly name even four companies that own the government? People thought that Bethlehem Steel at one time owned the congress, people thought that AT&T was to big to break up. People thought that Microsoft was to big to be sued by governments, same with google. How many banks have disappeared over the last 50 years, If banks have so much control over the government then how did Credit Unions come about.
What Corporations own the government? Or is it a secret that you and the internet can not let me in on? So what is the "Big Picture"?
Yes, you are correct that log-in and buy is not evil at all. They are solving our demands and that is a very good thing. The problem arises when we as consumers have no other option and are completely depended on a handful of companies to meet our demands. That's when the power shifts to the corporations.
Don't forget the most greedy bunch, us Norwegians! (lol)
Our sovereign wealth fund just passed $1 trillion last night which I felt like doing a post on today. It also got me thinking about who will be owning equity, what change will they help see in the world through their investments, and how can others thrive when some lives off passive income from wealth that they already have?
I hope like our fund, people will put pressure on them to ditch all investments in coal, weapons, etc, and to hold certain ethical standards.
Norway is of the world's largest exporters of oil, natural gas and seafood.... the government has majority or full ownership of the largest operators in the Norwegian oil fields, and that any "surplus wealth" from Norwegian petroleum income is invested straight into the government pension fund.
no secret :) but did you know that the oil age is coming to an end with the rise of electric cars?
You're absolutely right. Norway is a country who, more so than most, will need a transition. Both in terms of industry, jobs, and research to enable growth in new future industries, but also in terms of policy and the social structure and welfare system in the face of lowered revenues .
It will be an interesting development to follow :)
indeed. That is why I am working on a Blueprint for a futuristic and money-free society. This is the end as we know it... and we need a bold solution.
tesla is maybe one of the companies that this post talks about
Oh yes, all countries should start doing that. If the money dries up for coal, oil, weapons, then there will naturally be a shift towards better option and peace. At the end of the day, it's all about the money, no matter where.
I agree... Google could totally take over the world. I remember when the ALPHABET was bought be them! Genius move.
Alphabet wasn't bought by them (I think) but it was set up so that a lot of different companies and ventures could come up under a single umbrella. Yes, I believe it was a genius move too.
Awesome post the world is on a really dark path
Check out this post if you like it follow
https://steemit.com/photography/@martinn1017/collage-from-million-mask-march-denver-nov-5th-2013-the-1st-one-2017921t234418176z
Thanks for reading :)
You should have posted this in #education - it's one of the most pressing questions of our time.
I agree with you on Google - I'm shit scared of it - the main problem being that I have absolutely no idea exactly what algorithms it uses to calculate searches and thus control access to knowledge, and of course the algorithms change -
At least with the old oil companies you could see the damage they were doing and you sort of knew what you were fighting against - now we don't even know the 'rules of the game'!
To what extent do you think Steemit's success depends on Google?
Oh it didn't cross my mind to post it under that tag.
Yes, Google is the scariest of the bunch. It is so similar to the evil corporations in all the novels about a dystopian world.
I don't think Steemit's success depends too much on Google. There are many other ways to market a product and till now, word of mouth has already been the reason for so much growth. Imagine what will happen if and when marketing kicks in.
Awesome post
Thanks! :D
Aren't these theories too pessimistic though? I am just curious to why people think large corporations must always be evil.
I think it stems from the belief that power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely.
I don't know. We use all these products everyday and it's not like it's turning us into evil people. We are not all terrorists. Maybe perhaps, some of us are just unhappy and want to complain instead of doing something about it.
Do we need an internet state that enables global justice?
Check this Post: https://steemit.com/blockchain/@paule/003-blockchain-state-dangerous-utopia-or-real-chance-blockchain-staat-gefaehrliche-utopie-oder-echte-chance-engl-deutsch
Kind of reminds me of the movie The Circle