2026 is shaping up to be a decisive year — not because of a single breakthrough or crisis, but because multiple systems are converging under pressure.

In this x10 episode of Rethinking Tech, Aparna and Harinda lay out their predictions for 2026 across technology, geopolitics, and ethics — focusing on where power is shifting, where constraints are emerging, and what signals are already visible.

Rather than reacting to headlines, this conversation looks at structural forces that will shape how technology is built, governed, and contested in the year ahead.

What this episode covers

• How artificial intelligence is moving from hype to infrastructure and security concern

• Why technology is increasingly inseparable from geopolitical power

• How economic and political fragmentation is reshaping global coordination

• Where ethics, governance, and trust are becoming operational constraints

• What these shifts mean heading into 2026

  
  

  
  

• IMF Sees Global Growth Holding Steady in 2026 as AI Investment Accelerates
  https://www.reuters.com/business/imf-sees-steady-global-growth-2026-ai-boom-offsets-trade-headwinds-2026-01-19/

• Economic Conflict Emerges as the World’s Top Risk, WEF Survey Finds
  https://www.theguardian.com/business/2026/jan/14/economic-conflicts-are-worlds-greatest-risk-wef-survey-suggests

• AI’s Biggest Risk Isn’t Hype — It’s Security, Warn Leaders at Davos
  https://www.businessinsider.com/ai-security-risks-worry-ey-kpmg-execs-cybersecurity-davos-2026-1

• Eight Ways AI Will Shape Geopolitics in 2026
  https://www.atlanticcouncil.org/dispatches/eight-ways-ai-will-shape-geopolitics-in-2026/

• How 2026 Could Decide the Future of Artificial Intelligence
  https://www.cfr.org/article/how-2026-could-decide-future-artificial-intelligence

• Journalism, Media, and Technology Trends & Predictions for 2026
  https://reutersinstitute.politics.ox.ac.uk/journalism-media-and-technology-trends-and-predictions-2026

• Top Global Risks for 2026
  https://www.stimson.org/2026/top-ten-global-risks-for-2026/

• AI Ethics Trends That Will Redefine Trust and Accountability in 2026
  https://bernardmarr.com/8-ai-ethics-trends-that-will-redefine-trust-and-accountability-in-2026/

Why this matters

Technology in 2026 is no longer a neutral tool.

It’s becoming a core driver of power, leverage, and constraint — shaping how economies function, how states compete, and how ethical boundaries are tested.

Understanding these shifts early isn’t about prediction for its own sake.
It’s about recognizing where friction is unavoidable — and where choices still exist.

🎙️ About Rethinking Tech

Rethinking Tech explores the intersection of technology, geopolitics, business, and ethics — focusing on how systems actually work, not just how they’re talked about.

We analyze structure, incentives, and consequences — without hype.

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👤 Aparna: https://www.linkedin.com/in/aparnabhushan/
👤 Harinda: https://www.linkedin.com/in/harindak/