Why

For a plethora of reasons I've been silent on all the usual digital platforms for almost a year. It's not just that I've been silent, I haven't been reading or following there much either. And I must say it has been a soothing experience. There were simply more pressing things to do in my life than constantly reading posts on Twitter, LinkedIn, etc. It felt like a constant background buzz slowly dying out and things that really matter slowly coming in perspective in its place. I spent more time with my family, read many great books, honed my 3D modelling skills, refreshed my AI knowledge and skills, met interesting new folks, made new music and played a lot of guitar. But most of all I pondered, with my feet on the table, about the (future) state of the world, the role of technology in that journey and the role that I could or should play in it. There is no simple answer to that question, but I do have an almost unlimited number of ideas about it that could explain or set the course of that journey. I feel a deep urge to share those ideas because it forces me to structure my thoughts and truly hope that someone someday finds value in them. That's why I'm starting this blog. I've tried every possible medium for sharing my ideas (hello Blogger, Google Buzz, Google+, Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Medium,….), and got disappointed again and again by the apparently inescapable route to walled garden-like situations on those corporate-led platforms. So I'm now going back to writing on my own blog, on the open web, where I'm in control and nobody else. This choice directly touches upon one of my deepest interests: The role that new media have, can and will play in our lives. The importance of a value-free medium for our societies at large is hard to over-estimate. And this is not just a philosophical or societal discussion, but increasingly also a technical one. And this broad realm is where my ideas are rooted.