Over thousands of years, humankind has faced countless challenges and opportunities throughout its development. We have continually invented new solutions and ideas to overcome these challenges and improve our lives. It began with a simple, palm-sized rock used to crack shells and bones, but a major breakthrough came with the knapped flint knife, which required remarkable ingenuity, skill, craft, and creativity to produce. Even today, we all rely on this basic technological principle of a sharp, straight edge to carry out everyday tasks—from a kitchen knife to a surgeon’s scalpel.
Yet knives are also feared for the harm they can cause. Some, such as flick knives or so-called “zombie” blades, are even banned—not because they are inherently more dangerous than a humble kitchen knife, but because of their association with negative human behaviour, gangs, and violence. We often choose to focus on the darker side of technology rather than see its benefits.
The automobile is another extraordinary invention that has attracted criticism from its very inception. Early cars were seen as fire-breathing monsters that terrified horses and pedestrians alike, to the extent that a person was once required to walk in front of them waving a flag to warn others of the danger. Today, cars are demonised for the pollution they produce and restricted to 20 mph in cities for fear they will mow down pedestrians. Yet cars have given us freedom and independence and have benefited humanity in countless ways. Attempts to drastically curtail their numbers or limit their performance are surely a step backwards.
Every new technology introduces new challenges because it inevitably disrupts the status quo. These challenges should be overcome, not used as an excuse to abandon progress. Rather than constantly finding fault, we should be inventive and look for ways forward. Moving from petrol to electric power addresses part of the automotive challenge; other technologies, such as radar and self-driving systems, can address safety concerns. So perhaps it is provocative to ask: instead of slowing cars to 20 mph, how might we enable them to travel safely at, say, 40 mph in urban environments—shortening journeys and reducing time spent in traffic? Less inventive thinkers may recoil in horror and declare it impossible, predicting chaos and carnage. More inventive minds will ask a better question: what are the challenges, and how do we solve them?
Artificial intelligence is one of the most exciting technologies to emerge in a very long time, yet if you read the newspapers, you might think it is a calamity. We hear about deepfake images, intellectual property theft, and the vast amounts of energy and water required to run AI systems. What we hear far less about is how AI is helping drug companies develop life-saving medicines faster than ever before, enabling farmers to reduce chemical use while improving yields, and helping all of us learn more, organise better, and live healthier lives.
It is easy for the media to highlight the problems associated with new technologies—bad news sells—but much harder for us to find stories about the extraordinary benefits our inventiveness delivers through them. As 2026 unfolds, we can expect to see an increasing number of AI-related horror stories. My only request is this: remain open-minded. Look at each problem as it arises and ask how it might be solved, and take a moment to marvel at the opportunities it will inevitably bring. Britain, like many other developed countries, is experiencing a productivity shortfall. While there is much the government can do to improve the legislative framework, fully embracing the power and speed of AI would allow us to accelerate our development at an unprecedented pace.
