We are concerned about the present, living exclusively with everyday worries and trying to find solutions for said problems, and between current failures and accomplishments, we don’t even notice that somewhere in the distance our future is already outlined—a situation both problematic and contradictory. Surrendering to the temptation of technological advancement, we have created super-intelligent systems that could be the cause of demise of humanity in the near future. Can this “near future” reduce man’s role and importance on the planet? Will man become a “useless class”?
In 2020, Galaxy Group of Companies, in partnership with Newmag Publishing House, presented in Armenian translation the famous trilogy of the most discussed scientist of the 21st century, theorist Yuval Noy Harari: “Sapiens”, “Homo Deus” and “21 Lessons for the 21st Century”. In the preface to the first book, Gurgen Khachatryan, co-founder of Galaxy Group of Companies, wrote that as a businessman who dreams of seeing Armenia on the global map of innovation, the purpose of the translation of this trilogy is to make the Armenian readership part of the global dialogue and help form their future by further understanding of the world. And thus, Galaxy Group of Companies and Newmag initiated the first discussion in this context in the format of “Book, wine and discussions”.
“21 Lessons and 21 Challenges”. Education, business, the future of job market—what does the future hold for us? War, coronavirus, fake news and political crises—what lessons have we learned from the catastrophes of the 21st century and will we be able to prevent the next wars by means of education and economic development? The speakers of the discussion had an honest dialogue with examples from education, business and the future of the labor market, raising painstaking questions and proposing solutions. One of the speakers, Shushan Harutyunyan, Chief Communications Officer of Galaxy Group of Companies, spoke about the ethical, legal and social challenges posed by the polarization of society and technological progress. Hayk Manasyan, founder and CEO of Manassian Group, spoke about the changing demands and development opportunities for vocational education. Artak Aleksanyan, CEO of Newmag Publishing House, spoke about the collective unpreparedness of the masses.
