In this pilot episode of The Future with Friends, Simon Waller and fellow futurist Steph Clarke dive into a thought-provoking exploration of what friendship might look like in the near future.
Tasked with crafting a future scenario, Steph envisions a world where social connectedness is quantified - where Oura rings track the health benefits of our relationships, and algorithms determine whether our friendships are truly enriching our lives. But as with anything measured, there’s always the potential to game the system. Could people start changing their behaviour to boost their "friendship score"?
Their conversation delves into the implications of social scoring, the growing crisis of loneliness, and how communities might evolve in response. They explore bold ideas - co-housing arrangements among friends, new models of shared parenting, and the shifting role of digital platforms in shaping human connection.
As the lines between technology and relationships blur, what does it really mean to have a meaningful friendship?
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