Today, we board the TGV in Brussels and within 1 hour and 22 minutes we are in the heart of Paris. We collectively experience this as the pinnacle of speed; a fine example of efficiency that effortlessly transports us across Europe. But is that really the case? Is that 80-minute journey really the limit, or is our perception of speed simply limited by yesterday’s technology?
If we listen to entrepreneurs such as Jurgen Ingels, the key question for tomorrow’s world is how we can compress time. It’s not about going “a little faster”, but about fundamentally rewriting the rules.
Take the Hyperloop, for example. In the near future, this technology will take us from Brussels to Paris in just 18 minutes. At that point, today’s 1 hour and 22 minutes will suddenly seem painfully slow. To make the sheer power of time compression tangible, just look at your smartphone. Order a pizza today via Uber Eats or Just Eat, and you’ll wait an average of 35 minutes for your meal.
In tomorrow’s world, you can order an authentic pizza in a side street off the Champs-Élysées, and it will be delivered piping hot to your door in Brussels via the Hyperloop – before the local pizzeria on your street has even had time to pack your order.
This example illustrates the raw power of technology to do things fundamentally faster. Speed is no longer a luxury; Order a pizza today via Uber Eats or Just Eat, and you’ll wait an average of 35 minutes for your meal.
In tomorrow’s world, you’ll order an authentic pizza in a side street off the Champs-Élysées, and it will be delivered piping hot to your door in Brussels via the Hyperloop – before the local pizzeria on your street has even had time to pack your order.
This example illustrates the raw power of technology to do things fundamentally faster. Speed is no longer a luxury; it is the ultimate lever that removes friction from processes and completely disrupts markets. Those who know how to compress time not only gain minutes, but win the market.
The real question, then, is not whether we can keep up with this acceleration, but how we can use it to our advantage. What impact would speed (or similar time compression) have on your business or your industry? If today’s “impossible” speed becomes tomorrow’s standard, will you be the pizzeria that waits, or the one that delivers?
Bjorn Van Reet is the Chief Information Officer of Fednot, the federation of notaries. He won the CDO of the Year Award in 2021.
