Tech guru David Pogue will appear at All in for Tech Day October 10

Self-driving cars, wearable medical centers and employee-less stores. Tech guru David Pogue, a Shaker Heights native with 30 years of experience reporting on technology trends for the New York Times and CBS, says these tech game-changers are a lot closer than we think – and will transform the world as we know it.

Pogue will focus on all of them – and of course, AI – at his highly-anticipated keynote at GCP’s All in for Tech Day on October 10. He recently took some time out of his busy schedule to talk to GCP about what to expect in his keynote, his love of magic, and why Cleveland is ideally positioned for future, tech-centered growth.

Can you share a little about your background in Cleveland. Was tech something that you were interested in growing up?

It was an interest when I was a kid, but in a strange, sublimated sort of way --  I was always building contraptions. I remember when I was eight, I built something called The Automatic Room, which was an elaborate Rube Goldberg contraption, wherein entering my bedroom, you would step on a welcome mat, which would turn on a power strip, which began playing music on the record player while a Lego began to turn. It would slowly open the closet door and a tape- recorded announcement of my voice would explain that you have now just entered “The Automatic Room. “

 In my way, I think I've always sort of conflated technology and magic. There really isn't that much difference. For example: I can be in California, pick up my phone and change the thermostat in Connecticut. I mean, how is that not magic?

 You speak often about disruptive technology and there's nothing more disruptive than AI. Is that something you're going to be talking about in Cleveland?

 I will be talking not only about the AI explosion, but we're going to do some audience participation demos in real time. I think that'll be pretty unforgettable.

 I spoke with somebody recently who said there's been nothing since the start of the Internet that's been as fast moving and powerful as AI. Would you agree?

 One-hundred percent. AI is possibly even more significant than the Internet, because there's nobody and nothing that it won't affect. It isn't affecting just our jobs, but everything we do, every day. It will reshape every aspect of being a person.

 I'm not saying it will turn everybody into drunk or high people lying on their couches with nothing to do all day. I do believe that people will still be employed, but just doing different things than we do now. You know, we don't dig ditches by hand anymore. We don't set type manually anymore. But by and large, there's not a big unemployment problem. Things do change with technology, and this will be the biggest changer of them all.

 If people should know one thing about AI, what is it?

 It’s like dynamite. It's an invention that is incredibly dangerous and incredibly useful. At the same time, it's completely up to us to decide what its net effect is going to be.

 You will be talking about what we will gain and what we will lose with technology.  It sounds like you have a very nuanced take on things.

 Look at the Internet, right? I mean, it's positives and negatives. It's change. But change doesn't always mean worse. It just means different.

 Every time something scary and unpleasant comes along, the people rise up or the government rises up and puts some guardrails in. And we go on through the bad technology and we keep the good technology. That's exactly what's happening with AI right now.

 What are some major topics you're planning to talk about in your keynote?

 I'm going to be talking about self-driving cars, which are getting very close. That is another thing that will trigger a domino effect of changes. So many of the things in life are the way they are because of people's poor driving skills:  speed limits and driver's licenses and driver's ed and even motels.

 And there's also a lot going on in health and technology that's really incredible. Apple watches and the latest Fitbits are saving hundreds of lives a day by alerting their wearers to heart problems that can be detected otherwise only in a doctor's office with a test.

 And I am also to be talking about the children of the Internet of Things …  for example, detectors that indicate where there are parking spaces available on the streets, because research has shown that a substantial percentage of traffic downtown is just people driving around looking for parking. So if they can solve that problem, they immediately solve the traffic problems as well.

 Based on your knowledge of Cleveland, what do you see as the strengths and opportunities for the region in regards to becoming a tech hub?  

I think the big towering benefit is that Cleveland is at the heart of where to live -- the Great Lakes cities are sitting pretty when it comes to climate migration. Much of the U.S., especially in 2023, is really suffering. The entire western half of the U.S. is in drought. It's getting worse and worse. You've got the wildfires in the West, got hurricanes and flooding on the East Coast. You've got unlivable temperatures in the South. And you know, where does that leave us? The Great Lakes.

 Not everybody can pick up and move, obviously, but 40 million Americans do move every year. Increasingly, we know climate crises are part of the decision-making process. Cleveland just comes up over and over again as one of the places.

 Also, there’s infrastructure. When you want to think about the climate future, you have to think about things like the population: Are they are they diverse? Are they friendly? You have to think about jobs. You have to think about health care. Cleveland is in the sweet spot there.  And you have to think about transportation and entertainment. Are there sports teams? Is there an airport nearby? And then there's cost of living. It would be hard to beat Cleveland.

 Do climate concerns make tech-enabled sustainability initiatives all the more important?

 Oh, yeah.  This is Cleveland's opportunity to seize. This is a perfect time and a perfect place to start establishing its leadership.

 Thank you, David. Is there anything else you'd like to add for our Cleveland audience?

 Just that I'm proud to be from Cleveland, and I'm proud to see how Cleveland and its reputation have been quietly rising. It's exciting to be back.

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