Editor’s note: In addition to covering technological advancements and innovations, our author is a Juilliard-trained musical composer. He has composed a musical piece titled “The Uncertainty Hustle” for you to enjoy while reading this column.
We live in a time of immense uncertainty. That much is clear. But uncertainty isn’t new. It’s just that for many people alive today, the level of change we’re experiencing feels especially overwhelming. Still, uncertainty isn’t always a curse. For those willing to embrace change, it can become a gateway to innovation, opportunity, and even reinvention.
When old paths close because industries collapse, institutions falter, or circumstances shift, we’re forced to consider new directions. This is not just theoretical. Many people who’ve faced unhappy relationships, job loss, or relocation realize, in hindsight, that what followed was often more suitable, fulfilling, or expansive than what came before.
The same applies to systems, industries, and technologies. A man cannot carry as much as a horse. A horse can carry a quarter of a ton, but a barge can carry 30 tons. This is why horses gave way to canal barges, which were later replaced by railroads, which could carry even more. Now the Erie Canal is primarily used for recreation, not commerce. And the popularity of air travel belies the fact that it was resisted early on. When I built the first digital pianos, no one wanted one, even though it seemed so obvious to me that a portable piano, which did not go out of tune, had a place, not to replace acoustical pianos but to live alongside them.
In every era, innovation has faced resistance. But change is unavoidable. The universe doesn’t stand still, and neither can we. Progress doesn’t always seem fair. Electricity replaced human labor. Fossil fuels made things easier while also paving the way for climate change. And yet, humanity has continued to adapt. We no longer heat homes with wood or coal, and eventually we will stop using fossil fuels altogether. New solutions will emerge to replace the old; they always do.
Right now, we’re witnessing a new kind of transformation, where technology allows individuals to leverage more than ever before. A child today has access to more free information through a smartphone than the wealthiest, most elite university students did 50 years ago. As my mother was a librarian, I was fortunate enough to grow up in a house with more than one encyclopedia. This was incredible for a curious youngster. Most people did not have even one, but we had both a Britannica and a Collier’s because my mom thought the World Book Encyclopedia was not good enough.
Today, a curious ten-year-old with access to the internet has far more information, knowledge, and misinformation available to them instantly than almost all of the human race had for millennia. Just think of the last time dinner conversation needed a fact checked, and someone at your table pulled out a phone.
This democratization of information and tools has lowered barriers to entry in nearly every field. That means innovation is no longer the exclusive domain of the powerful. It also means there is simultaneously an incredible amount of competition. This means that, as always, to get ahead, people have to hustle.
We may even see the first trillionaire in our lifetime. This week, on July 31, 2025, Figma (ticker: FIG) raised approximately $1.2 billion and soared to a market cap of nearly $70 billion by the end of its first trading day. Also, this month, the two companies entered the $4 trillion club for the first time. Microsoft shares climbed more than 5 percent Thursday, July 31, following a better-than-expected earnings report, lifting the software giant’s market cap above the $4 trillion mark. The company joined chipmaker Nvidia, which hit $4 trillion for the first time earlier this month. Apple, Microsoft, NVIDIA, Alphabet, Amazon, and Meta Platforms all have market caps exceeding $1 trillion! Their total is just under $19 trillion. Only five countries, the United States, China, Germany, India, and Japan, have GDPs greater than $ 4 trillion.
I’m not defending these numbers, but I am observing them. The size and reach of these companies raise serious questions. What happens when private corporations grow larger than
most national economies?
This tension between decentralization and consolidation characterizes our era. While some institutions become irrelevant because they were designed for economies and societies that no longer exist, others grow so large that they threaten to become governments unto themselves. The answer isn’t clear, but the pattern is.
People who were already discontent with the status quo now find themselves pushed further. For many, this will be the moment that triggers a leap forward. Just like second marriages tend to be more stable and satisfying than first ones, transitions, painful though they may be, often lead to better outcomes when the dust settles.
We’ve gone from floppy disks to the cloud. From library encyclopedias to global search engines. From analog processes to AI-powered automation. If you lose your job today, you may be able to build a new career from your laptop. If your school closes, you might find a better education online. The tools are already in your hands.
Of course, not everyone is equally positioned. But the ability to innovate is no longer confined to massive organizations. In some ways, this is the most exciting time in human history for resourceful individuals with initiative and curiosity. We have the opportunity to redefine what progress looks like.
Yes, there’s chaos. Yes, institutions are crumbling. But was life ever truly stable? Was it stable for our parents or grandparents? From the Lewis and Clark expedition to the dot-com boom, periods of expansion have always been messy and controversial.
What we’re living through now is no different. And the most powerful response to uncertainty isn’t fear but innovation. The pursuit of meaning, contribution, and community has always prevailed over the pursuit of status, power, and wealth, especially in the long run.
We aren’t entering the end of civilization. We’re entering a reshaping of it. Whether that reshaping works for us depends on how well we adapt and how courageously we innovate.
