Think further forward

Widening gaps in health, cognition, and wealth are redefining global class structures and creating unequal access to opportunity and longevity.

This raises a critical question: can AI narrow these divides by democratizing information and capability, or will its benefits accrue unevenly depending on how societies adapt?

RBC Imagine explores how technological progress may generate new engines of growth even as deeper structural risks continue to emerge.

Innovation is entering a synthetic era that extends beyond materials and into every element of our economy including logistics, media and biology.

As synthetic systems unlock new efficiency, precision, and control, they also raise complex questions about authenticity, trust, and ownership.

RBC Imagine examines where these technologies will create new markets and redefine value.

Digital platforms are evolving into their own societies, rivaling the world’s largest countries in population, economic activity, and governance power.

These ecosystems operate with their own currencies, incentives, and rules, forming a new digital domain where influence is measured by data and engagement, not geography.

RBC Imagine explores how this emerging digital order is reshaping traditional boundaries and disrupting global production, trade, and value creation dynamics.

Power fragments as the sources of global influence shift from territory to networks of data, talent, and capital.

This shift is accelerating as these resources move faster than policy can keep up, prompting governments to tighten control over strategic industries and digital infrastructure.

RBC Imagine examines how these dynamics will shape new alliances, competitive positioning, and long-term growth.

As instability becomes the norm, organizations are shifting from efficiency to resilience, redesigning systems to adapt, fail safely, and recover quickly.

RBC Imagine explores how this transition will reshape capital allocation and the trade-offs between growth and stability.