AI is here to stay. To outcompete in the future, organizations and individuals alike need to get familiar fast. This series of McKinsey Explainers dives deep into the seven technologies that are already shaping the years to come.
Generative artificial intelligence (AI) describes algorithms (such as ChatGPT) that can be used to create new content, including audio, code, images, text, simulations, and videos. Recent breakthroughs in the field have the potential to drastically change the way we approach content creation.
Artificial general intelligence (AGI) is a theoretical AI system with capabilities that rival those of a human. Many researchers believe we are still decades, if not centuries, away from achieving AGI.
Generation Z comprises people born between 1996 and 2010. This generation’s identity has been shaped by the digital age, climate anxiety, a shifting financial landscape, and COVID-19.
Economic inclusion is when people not only have their basic subsistence needs met but also are productive, fulfilled, and fully empowered to make choices about their lives.
Tokenization is the process of creating a digital representation of a real thing. Tokenization can be used to protect sensitive data or to efficiently process large amounts of data.
Fintechs are companies that rely primarily on technology and cloud services—and less so on physical locations—to provide financial services to customers.
Fast fashion retailers have sped up their production processes, getting new styles to customers at a record pace—and creating significant environmental and social challenges.
Broadly speaking, a chief information officer focuses on internal technology, while a chief technology officer focuses on emerging technologies and product strategy.
The CFO role was named for its original function of overseeing an organization’s finances, but it’s now seen as a cross-cutting common denominator linking every part of an organization.
CMOs are responsible for more than marketing their company’s products or services. They should also forge strong partnerships with their C-suite colleagues to drive growth.
The global stocktake is an assessment of progress made toward mitigating global warming since the Paris Agreement in 2015. The results from the first-ever global stocktake will be discussed at COP28.
Web3 is a term used to describe the next iteration of the internet, one that is built on blockchain technology and is communally controlled by its users.
COP refers to the United Nations’ annual conference on climate change. Its 28th meeting (COP28) is scheduled to begin November 30, 2023, in Dubai, United Arab Emirates.
Good brain health means more than just the absence of disease. It also includes overall healthy cognitive functioning, resilience, and a state of well-being where individuals feel able to fulfill their potential.
Generative AI has hit the ground running—so fast that it can feel hard to keep up. Here’s a quick take pulled from our top articles and reports on the subject.
Financial inclusion is when everyone can access financial services that can help them build wealth, including savings, credit, loans, equity, and insurance.
A digital twin is a digital representation of a physical object, person, or process, contextualized in a digital version of its environment. Digital twins can help an organization simulate real situations and their outcomes, ultimately allowing it to make better decisions.
A board of directors is a governance entity that oversees and supports management on behalf of shareholders and other stakeholders to maximize value creation.
E-commerce is the buying and selling of goods online. By optimizing e-commerce as part of a broader digital commerce transformation, sellers stand to attract more customers and earn more profits.
Bioengineering is the application of engineering principles to improve disease prevention and treatment, agricultural production, energy sustainability, and more.
Talent management includes all the ways that organizations bring employees on board, keep them happy and productive, and help them continue to develop their skills over time.
Semiconductors are the unsung heroes of the technology world: parts manufactured from pure elements that work behind the scenes to power and connect everything from smartphones to cars.
Business transformations are designed to boost overall performance through increased revenue, lower operating costs, and better customer satisfaction and workforce productivity.
Decision making is simply the process of making a choice. But decision making often isn’t easy and can be particularly complex in an organizational context.
Design thinking is a systemic, intuitive, customer-focused problem-solving approach that organizations can use to respond to rapidly changing environments and to create maximum impact.
Proof of stake (PoS) is a consensus protocol in blockchains. It is a way to decide which user or users validate new blocks of transactions and earn a reward for doing so correctly.
5G is the fifth generation of wireless technology. Its increased speed, lower latency, and improved reliability stand to revolutionize a wide variety of industries.
Blockchain is a secure database shared across a network of participants, where up-to-date information is available to all participants at the same time.
Net zero is an ideal state where the amount of greenhouse gases (GHGs) released into the earth’s atmosphere is balanced by the amount of GHGs removed. Decarbonization efforts are needed to reach net zero.
Exascale is the next milestone in computing. It’s a higher level of computer performance that will have unprecedented impact on society and the economy.
Davos, Switzerland, is where the World Economic Forum holds its annual meeting. Delegates from many sectors converge for several days of talks and meetings to address urgent global issues.
The term “food insecurity” refers to the economic and social conditions that limit access to safe, nutritious food—and sufficient amounts of it. More than two billion people worldwide experience food insecurity.