The prediction, in brief:

The players most likely to shape this future will be the ones who shaped it a decade ago – small upstarts able to see the world in entirely new ways.

Predictor: Saffo, Paul

Prediction, in context:

In a 1991 article for The New York Times, futurist Paul Saffo writes about the future of the PC as an information appliance for networking and other uses:”The demise of the PC ultimately marks the birth of something new, a greater revolution in which visions dreamed a decade ago could finally become reality. The two old giants [Apple and IBM] will remain around long enough to see it, but the players most likely to shape this future will be the ones who shaped it a decade ago – small upstarts able to see the world in entirely new ways.” 

Biography:

Paul Saffo was the director of a decades-old research and forecasting foundation called the Institute for the Future, located in Menlo Park, Calif., in the 1990s. This Institute was a non-profit think tank that consulted for a large number of businesses and government entities, including telecommunications and consumer companies. (Futurist/Consultant.)

Date of prediction: October 13, 1991

Topic of prediction: General, Overarching Remarks

Subtopic: General

Name of publication: New York Times

Title, headline, chapter name: Farewell, PC – What’s Next?

Quote Type: Direct quote

Page number or URL of document at time of study:
http://www.saffo.org/farewellpc.html

This data was logged into the Elon/Pew Predictions Database by: Stotler, Larry