From AI to future choc

By Anthony Gardner

The star speaker at London’s FutureFest will not be there—which is hardly surprising, given that his name is Edward Snowden and he is wanted by numberless spooks and irate government officials. But perhaps it’s appropriate that he’s appearing by video link at a festival which asks, “What might the world be like in decades to come?” Staged at Vinopolis by the charity Nesta (National Endowment for Science Technology and the Arts), it promises a weekend of “immersive experience” covering everything from a mixed-reality thrill ride to music that can be felt and smelt. Snowden and Helena Kennedy QC will be discussing the shape of democracy to come, while John Lanchester, the writer who explains the City for the layperson, mulls financial inventions with Amir Taaki, inventor of the Dark Wallet programme to hide bitcoin transactions. Jon Ronson, author of “The Men Who Stare at Goats”, considers social media and artificial intelligence, and the musician Matthew Herbert introduces Country X, a nation defined by principles rather than borders. But some things never change, and a large turn-out of chocolate-lovers can be predicted for the Sweetshop of the Future, presented by a food-trend expert, Morgaine Gaye, and a confectioner, Paul A. Young. ~ Anthony Gardner