'Intelligence Replaces Energy as Primary Source Of Power': World Economic Forum Founder

Amid several strategic partnerships, and AI investment announcements being made in India, the Founder of World Economic Forum, Professor Klaus Schwab, said the "intelligence era is not just characterized by artificial intelligence, as it will overturn the logic of the industrial world."

"The #IntelligentAge is not just characterized by artificial intelligence. It will overturn the logic of the industrial world," he said, whilst listing out the key changes that are witnessed as part of the new economic and trade order globally.

Intelligence Replaces Energy As Primary Source Of Power

“The Industrial Age was built on coal, oil, and electricity. The Intelligent Age is built on artificial intelligence and data. Power no longer belongs to those who control resources but to those who control algorithms,” he said. 

The End Of Standardization

Industrial society worshipped uniformity. Assembly lines shaped economies and minds. The Intelligent Age destroys sameness. Personalization at scale becomes the norm. Mass production gives way to mass individuality.

Collapse Of Linear Thinking

Industrial logic was linear: extract, produce, distribute. The Intelligent Age is nonlinear, adaptive, self-learning. Static systems will fail. Only intelligent ecosystems will survive.

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The Redefinition Of Work

Machines once replaced muscles. Now they challenge cognition. Entire professions will disappear. New ones will emerge overnight. Work will not be stable - it will be continuously reinvented.

Education Becomes Permanent Infrastructure

The Industrial model educated once for a lifetime of work. The Intelligent Age requires lifelong reskilling. Learning becomes the backbone of economic survival.

GDP Is No Longer Enough

Industrial success was measured in output. The Intelligent Age will measure resilience, adaptability, sustainability, and collective intelligence. Growth without systemic intelligence becomes fragility.

The Ultimate Shift: From External Expansion to Inner Evolution

The Industrial Age expanded outward - territory, factories, markets. The Intelligent Age forces inward evolution - ethical judgment, responsibility, cognitive maturity. Technology advances faster than moral frameworks. This gap defines our era.