Joel Cutcher-Gershenfeld

What if anyone could make (almost) anything? That’s the promise, and peril, of the third digital revolution.

Two digital revolutions-in computing and communication-have radically transformed our economy and lives. A third digital revolution is upon us, in fabrication. Today’s 3D printers are only the start of a trend, accelerating exponentially, to turn data into objects: the future holds community ＂fab labs＂ to personal fabrication to a universal replicator straight out of Star Trek. While digital fabrication promises us self-sufficient cities and the ability to make (almost) anything, it could also lead to massive inequality. The first two digital revolutions caught most of the world flat-footed; thanks to Designing Reality that won’t be true this time.