Digitization, artificial intelligence, and human traceability ... 7 technical aspects of Corona's rapid arrival

Millions of people worldwide are adapting to the "new normal" since the outbreak of the Corona virus began in China early this year, but what is the impact of this boom in accelerating digital transformation and automation? How will it shape our future?

We are beginning to get used to working remotely, just as medical workers are used to working alongside new fleets of robots, and many are beginning to follow movies and series on various platforms.

History repeats itself
History shows us how the social and economic impacts of the epidemic can lead to large-scale innovations and changes in infrastructure.

After the Black Death destroyed the world and reduced the population of Europe by 30% during the 14th century, the great shortage of manpower led to technological and societal innovations that catalyzed what became known as the Renaissance.

Meanwhile, the 19th-century cholera epidemic led to the construction of new advanced sanitation systems and the writing of zoning laws to prevent overcrowding.

This effect is also evident with countries such as Singapore, Taiwan, and Vietnam, where the SARS outbreak in 2003 led to changes in infrastructure and protocols, which have made these countries relatively successful so far in containing the new Corona virus. Taiwan and Singapore have not recorded any deaths from the Corona virus until the time of Writing this report.

These historic changes lead experts to highlight key sectors that will be directly affected even after the pandemic has ended.

Here are seven areas that will likely become the "new normal" for years to come:

1. The machine takes the place of the human
Peter Shing, associate director of technology and growth initiatives at KPMG Consulting, says the Corona virus outbreak is "an opportunity to automate in the last mile".

This means that if restaurants today, for example, are working to automate parts of the delivery process, the current situation will lead to more companies expanding the automation limits in their service.

In China, for example, the use of drones has already increased since the outbreak began, which means that new technology has been introduced in deliveries.

Companies that were about to try out automated ways of parts of their chain or delivery services would have to take this step to survive. If they invest in this technology and appear to be working successfully, they will likely see no need to re-employ people to fill those roles after controlling the pandemic.

2. Artificial intelligence, robots and big data
Difficult moments in history provide opportunities for strange innovations to emerge. In general, data analyzes, artificial intelligence and robotics play a major role in fighting the Corona virus.

Data analysis and artificial intelligence work to discover drugs, and they help assess the spread of the virus, while robots help medical teams carry out their work remotely and safely not previously possible.

There are countless examples of the way these technologies have transformed the global response to the epidemic, including that the demand for robots that test patients with ultraviolet radiation has risen dramatically since the outbreak began, and doctors use artificial intelligence to check patients with the virus, and companies deploy Deepmind created automatic forecasts of how the disease would evolve and spread.

All of this has led to a widespread reflection of the role this technology can play in the future of cities in the future.

3. Digitization of work and leisure
We are currently in the midst of what could be considered the largest remote work experience in history using remote work tools such as Zoom and Slack, which are experiencing an unprecedented increase in demand.

The remote working tools will continue to grow. The Corona pandemic has already led to historical numbers of jobless claims in countries including the United States and Spain.

Much of this workforce is likely to review their future jobs and look for safer jobs against future crises, relatively stable jobs in the face of rapid city automation, including jobs that can be easily done from home.

Then there is the way we practice entertainment and art, and its impact on these sectors. Big movie studios like Disney and Universal have put many of their big releases online. Many people use Contflex broadcasting services, which is a major player even before the pandemic.

And the Financial Times notes that many cinemas will see a permanent shutdown due to corona virus. In general, any sector that was suffering even slightly in the face of innovation and city automation is likely to be severely affected by the Corona pandemic.

Although people who burn mobile phone towers and 5G networks as a result of conspiracy theories linking them to the spread of the virus, this will not prevent the spread of 5G technology.

4. Redesigning cities to address future epidemics
The outbreak of cholera in the nineteenth century led to the construction of new sanitation systems worldwide. This is just one example of how epidemics have historically influenced urban urban design.

Automating the city to handle and adapt in the future to these crises will be at the heart of future innovations in the wake of the end of the Corona pandemic.

For example, Singapore's Changi Airport recently switched to inspection without returning to citizens to reduce waiting times and rallying passengers.

Examination technology may be built in public places, while cheap ventilation solutions and UV technology can also be implemented to combat disease effects.

5. Public transport infrastructure
Lok Airong, director of sustainable engineering at SOM, says the air on planes is filtered well to prevent easy circulation of viruses. However "we can transfer this technology to our public transportation system." Thus, clean and well-drained air may become a more priority in the future of public transportation after the Corona pandemic.

Public transportation, another sector that operates automatically, may be part of the focus on large-scale city automation.

6. The disappearance of other functions and appearance
In 2016, the World Economic Forum's report predicted a loss of 7.1 million jobs between 2015 and 2020. This is largely due to "artificial intelligence, robotics, nanotechnology and other social and economic factors that will replace the need of human workers".

7. Track subcutaneous devices
Yuval Noah Harari, author of Sapiens and Homo Deus, wrote in a Financial Times article, "Many short-term emergency measures will become an essential component of life. This is the nature of emergencies. They accelerate historical changes."

Harari claims that the Corona pandemic outbreak can legitimize temporary control measures, which will lead to unprecedented monitoring of the population even after the pandemic is over on the pretext of preventing epidemics in the future.

"Today, for the first time in human history, technology allows everyone to be monitored all the time," Harari writes. China has already started monitoring smartphones using facial recognition cameras, forcing people to report their body temperature and medical condition, and tracking large-scale individual cases via big data.

Even after the Corona virus has disappeared, many experts predict that surveillance technology will remain and expand in the future.