Introduction

CHAPTER 4

Converging technologies will have a great impact on the preparation and protection of human capital, but they will have an equally if not more important role in the utilization of human capital in the job market. The potential of the Fourth Industrial Revolution in production to fundamentally alter the demand for labor is immense. On the one hand, it will disrupt and displace jobs. On the other, it will possibly create higher-quality jobs. Without adequate policy measures in place for massive reskilling and for dynamic social protection, the impacts on human capital could be devastating.

Meanwhile, advanced, highly specialized human capital contributes to the development and deployment of new technologies across the economy, as part of the innovation ecosystem. The production, sharing, and utilization of this scarce human capital is essential if countries are to benefit from the ongoing technological revolution. The relationship is rendered even more complex by the fact that converging technologies are changing the way in which innovation is taking place globally.