“Industrial Revolution 4.0″ is taking place in many developed countries. It gives mankind the opportunity to change the face of the economy, but there are many unpredictable risks.
In the past few months, the concept of “Industrial Revolution 4.0″ has been widely talked about in the media and social networks. Along with that is the promise of “life changing” of businesses in Vietnam if our country can catch up the wave. Therefore, how should this revolution be understood?
Definition of Industrial Revolution 4.0
Industrial Revolution 4.0
According to Gartner, the Industrial Revolution 4.0 (or the Fourth Industrial Revolution) comes from the “Industrie 4.0″ concept in a German government report in 2013. “Industrie 4.0″ connects embedded systems and intelligent manufacturing facilities to create digital convergence between the Industry, Business, functions and internal processes.
If the Gartner definition is confusing, Klaus Schwab, founder and president of the World Economic Forum, gives a simpler view of the Industrial Revolution 4.0:
“The first industrial revolution utilized water and steam power to mechanize production. The second revolution took place through the use of electricity for mass production. The third revolution uses electronics and information technology to automate production. Now, the Fourth Industrial Revolution is flourishing from the third revolution that combines technologies together, blurring the boundaries between physics, digital and biology. ”
According to Klaus Schwab, the breakthrough speed of the Industrial Revolution 4.0 is “without precedent”. Compared to previous industrial revolutions, 4.0 is evolving under an exponential rather than linear speed. Moreover, it is breaking most of the industry in every country. And the breadth and depth of these changes signal the transformation of the entire production, management and administration system.
How will the Industry Revolution 4.0 work?
Followed by the definition of Klaus Schwab, the Industry Revolution 4.0 will take place on three main areas: Biotechnology, Digital and Physics.
The core elements of Digital in Industry Revolution 4.0 will be: AI, Internet of Things (IoT) and Big Data.
In the field of biotechnology, the Industrial Revolution 4.0 focuses on research to create leaps in agriculture, fisheries, medicine, food processing, environmental protection, renewable energy, chemistry and materials.
Finally, the field of physics with new robots, 3D printers, self-driving cars, new materials (graphene, skyrmions …) and nanotechnology.
Currently the Industry Revolution 4.0 is taking place in developed countries like USA, Europe and part of Asia. In addition to the new opportunities, the industrial revolution 4.0 also pose challenges for mankind to face.
Opportunities along with global risks and challenges
The downside of the Industrial Revolution 4.0 is that it can cause inequality. Especially can break the labor market. When automation replaces manual labor in the economy, when robots replace people in many areas, millions of workers around the world may fall into unemployment, especially those who work in the field of insurance, real estate brokerage, financial consulting, transportation.
Machinery will push millions of workers into unemployment. Photo: Siemens.
The report of the World Economic Forum has raised this issue at different stages. The first stage will be the challenge for office workers, intellectuals, technical workers. The next stage will be cheap labor, which may be slower. With the movement of this revolution, in the next 15 years the world will have a new face, requiring businesses to change.
Then, the economic turmoil that has arisen from the Industrial Revolution will lead to life insecurity. Its implications will be political instability. If governments do not understand and fully prepare for the 4.0 industry wave, the risk of global instability is entirely possible.
In addition, changes in the way people communicate on the Internet put people at risk for financial health. Personal information, if not safely protected, can lead to undesirable consequences.
The 4th Industrial Revolution brings opportunity, and also challenges for humanity.
