As you may have heard, the Geeks turned the big 2-0 this year! And one of the ways we’ve been celebrating is by ruminating on awesome tech—past and future.
Earlier this year, we put together a totally tubular photo album of righteous tech from our 20s.
Today, we’re turning off memory lane and taking a side trip to (what we hope is) the near future.
![Tweet by @DontShowYourCat that shows a patient gray kitten in a red Iron Man suit. The text reads: "the latest in top secret technology"](/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/tweet-cat-ironman.png)
We asked a few of our Geeks what tech they’re most looking forward to in the next 20 years, and the answers ranged from tech advances already in development to tech that’s still the stuff of science fiction.
Check out our photo album below of tech we hope to see by 2042—and daydream along with us. ⬇️
![A raft of thin-film silicon bubbles that are positioned to block the Sun’s solar radiation from further warming Earth](/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/spacebubbles-popular-mechanics.png)
Renewable energy and carbon capture
Climate change is probably the most challenging problem of our times, and it will be fascinating what solutions we find to combat the crisis. — Todd
Image source: Popular Mechanics
Lab-made health products
I’m excited for 3D-printed bones and more lab-made dairy products. Coolio stuff. — Cathy
Image source: Ossiform
![A 3D printer printing a piece of white bone.](/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/3d-bone-printing-ossiform.jpeg)
![Three non-branded silver-colored batteries (one AA and two coin batteries) photographed against a white background](/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/battery-insideevs-1024x576.jpeg)
Battery tech
I’m excited for the day that battery tech takes a massive leap forward. I’m quite ready for my phone to last a month or so on a single charge. — Chris
Image source: InsideEVs
Human transporters
I cannot wait for the day when transporter tech is safe for human use. It will revolutionize virtually everything we do, from where we work to visiting aging family. — Rebecca
Image source: The Guardian
![Screenshot from Star Trek (TOS) of five people on the transporter pads in the middle of dematerialization](/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/star-trek-transporter-the-guardian.png)
![A person is sitting in the driver's seat of a car with black interior, but they're not touching the steering wheel while the car id driving](/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/autonomous-car-change-agents.png)
Autonomous vehicles
Imagine traffic being a problem of the past. You could travel 12 hours in the middle of the night—it’s almost teleportation at that point! — Steven
Image source: Change Agents
Hair loss, be gone!
A cap that, when worn for only a few minutes, results in instant and substantial hair growth. That would be pretty cool. — David
![A series of three headshots of David showing the hair-renewal procession: Without hair, David wearing a white hard hat, and then David sporting a fresh head of hair (with a touch of gray)](/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/david-hair-progression-1024x331.png)
![Virtual movie set. POV is standing behind the director and camera person, with the digital monitor to the right, which is projected onto a panorama screen behind the actors](/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/virtual-set-engadget.png)
Virtual movie sets
I’ve been really fascinated by virtual sets for movies over the last couple years. Such a cool concept! — Graden
Image source: Engadget
Want even more future tech fun? You got it!
Read 👀
- MIT scientists have proposed using “space bubbles” to deflect solar radiation in an effort to ease climate change.
- The Secretary-General of the United Nations has outlined five critical actions the world needs to take now to transform our energy systems and speed up the shift to renewable energy.
- Will Star Trek-style matter transporters ever exist?
- Virtual studios could offer a real alternative to green screen special effects.
- Self-driving vehicles are steadily becoming a reality despite the many hurdles still to be overcome – and they could change our world in some unexpected ways.
- Our energy-storage strategies are currently shaped by lithium-ion batteries – at the cutting edge of such technology – but what can we look forward to in years to come?
- Check out these 5 new battery technologies that will change the future.
- Going bald? Lab-grown hair cells could be on the way.
Watch ►
- Why The Mandalorian Uses Virtual Sets Over Green Screen
- Saft develops solid state batteries with “IDOLES” R&D program in Bordeaux, France
- This Is The First LIQUID Robot, And It’s Unbelievable
Visit 📶
- Ossiform – Ossiform is the developer of a patented 3D printing technology to produce natural, patient specific, and resorbable bone implants that remodel into real living bone.
- Perfect Day – Perfect Day is rethinking food to create a kinder, greener supply chain.
Follow @
- @emergingtechbrew – Drones, automation, AI, and more. The technologies that will shape the future of business, all in one newsletter (and also on social).
- #futuretech – Follow along on the future-of-tech convos on Twitter.
<— Ready to go back to the past?