What is the Fourth Industrial Revolution?

The Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR) is a term coined in 2016 by Klaus Schwab, Founder and Executive Chairman of the World Economic Forum (WEF). It is characterized by the convergence and complementarity of emerging technology domains, including nanotechnology, biotechnology, new materials and advanced digital production (ADP) technologies. The latter includes 3D printing, human-machine interfaces (HMIs) and artificial intelligence, and is already transforming the global industrial landscape.1 Incorporating ADP technologies into industrial production processes has given rise to the concept of Industry 4.0, also known as the Smart Factory – one that learns as it works, continuously adapting and optimizing its own processes accordingly.

The Fourth Industrial Revolution is more than a technological leap forward

The First Industrial Revolution was triggered by the invention of the steam engine in the 18^th century, the Second in the 19^th century was powered by widespread electrification, and the Third, in the 1960s, was chiefly the product of advances in computing. Although 4IR is also the product of technological advances, it is uniquely marked by a blurring of the boundaries between the biological, the physical and the digital realms. Machines ‘speak’ to each other through the internet of things, processes respond to intelligence devised by algorithms, and humans engage in real-time ‘conversations’ with mechanical processes through bidirectional interfaces…