Introduction

CHAPTER 5

The converging technology revolution in the human development and other sectors is enabling the collection of data on the biological, cognitive, socioeconomic, and other characteristics of individuals and population groups on a mass scale. Within the human development sector, the converging technology revolution is the most advanced at the global level in the health sector because of the integration of multiple technologies in the prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of disease. Furthermore, these technologies are used not only by health care service providers but also increasingly by private individuals, who are able to collect, analyze, store, and transfer their personal health data. Advances being made as well in the application of converging technologies in the education sector are enabling data to be collected on children and young people for everything from test performance to personality traits. Moreover, applications in other sectors that contribute to human capital, such as agriculture and water and sanitation, collect data on other aspects of human activity.

The possibility of combining heterogeneous data from different sectors of human activity and the recognition of new patterns in the data by artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning techniques are fueling further innovation and discoveries that could accelerate human capital outcomes. Services can be customized for individuals (such as through personalized medicine or learning), for groups of people (such as through tracking of epidemics), and through data-driven decision-making and improved monitoring and accountability. However, possible innovations come with