Part 2/14:
The core premise is that technology acts as a “forcing function”—a catalyst that compels society to adapt, often gradually but with lasting effects. Major epochs like the Renaissance, Enlightenment, and the modern digital age serve as evidence that technological change unfolds over long timescales—decades, centuries—and leaves indelible marks on governance, culture, and epistemology.
While AI is still relatively young—just a few years since its emergence—the societal shifts it may accelerate could rival those triggered by previous innovations, but on an even faster scale due to globalization and interconnectedness.