Technology Trajectories and Timelines (John Carmack)

Sci-fi benefits from plausible descriptions of technology development, rather than dressing up magic in lab coats in place of wizard robes. Domain expertise is helpful, but you can fake it with analogies to previous technical trends. Inspiration, invention, development, adoption, evolution, and even marketing all play important roles in how new capabilities become available to humanity, and there are patterns to be seen. I'll try to distill some of what I have learned from my personal career arcs in 3D/gaming, aerospace, virtual reality, and artificial intelligence, as well as other fields I have familiarity with. From BasedCon 2023 With John Carmack, Russell Newquist (intro), Robert Kroese