Since at least 2018 there has been a major shift within ‘Business America’ away from ‘shareholder capitalism’ towards ‘stakeholder capitalism’, a move which has already had some global impact. Our approach is, however, realistic and we also make the reader aware of the challenges for countries, particularly where shareholder primacy is deeply embedded in statutory law and case law, to move from shareholder primacy to an all-inclusive stakeholder model of corporate law and corporate governance. In this chapter we extract some of the ‘essential’ principles of corporate governance and illustrate that there is a ‘business case’ for good corporate governance. We conclude the chapter by discussing broader trends and debates with a present and likely future impact on corporate governance. These include what can be described as the ‘Fourth Industrial Revolution’; the widening gap between the ‘rich’ and the ‘poor’, or, put differently, ‘the price of inequality’; the growing problem regarding profit-sharing or capital distribution in large public corporations; and a short discussion of the so-called ‘Great Reset’.

The introduction offers a brief overview of the Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR) and its implications on different sectors. It then discusses the opportunities and risks of structural transformation that will be brought on by technological innovation. Following this, the 4IR is framed as an inevitable acceleration of digitalization, resulting in market disruptions that the African continent cannot escape. After this, questions about the implications, advantages, key players, and leaders of the 4IR are discussed. This concludes with the final question of Africa’s ability to grow and develop in the 4IR. The research questions are followed by an explanation of 4IR technologies and the methodology of the book, in addition to an overview of the remaining chapters.

The advantages of acquiring and exploiting advanced military technologies for increased military leverage is self-evident. At the same time, we must recognize that we live in an era when the notion of what constitutes a “militarily relevant technology” is becoming harder to identify and define. The 4IR – particularly artificial intelligence (AI), autonomous systems, “big data,” and the like – is largely embedded in the commercial high-tech sector; at the same time, the military potential of the 4IR is both vast and mostly self-evident. For all these reasons, therefore, militaries and governments around the world are increasingly focused on how and where advanced commercial technologies, innovations, and breakthroughs might create new capacities for military power, advantage, and leverage. This process of exploiting such civilian-based advanced technologies for military use is increasingly known as “military–civil fusion” (MCF). MCF is essentially about transferring advanced commercial technologies to military use through the joint civil–military development and application of cutting-edge technologies to military products.

As the fourth industrial revolution (4IR) has become one of the central paths to military modernization, the ability of states to implement military–civil fusion (MCF) will likely factor more in how militaries gain advantages over their rivals. Critical 4IR technologies are increasingly viewed as key force multipliers. Many countries have adopted measures to promote MCF in order to exploit the 4IR for military needs but the implementation of MCF remains challenging. Constraints include differing priorities between the military and commercial sectors when it comes to 4IR and the reluctance of civilian enterprises to enter into technology partnerships with the military. Countries with restrictive, statist approaches toward economic development, such as China and India, may find themselves stymied by a culture that hinders innovation, as opposed to the United States and Israel where entrepreneurism, experimentation, and risk-taking are encouraged. Nevertheless, MCF is likely to become a core military-technological development strategy for most countries seeking great power status or who see technology as a critical force multiplier in national defense.

The defense industry in the United States that emerged during World War II is embedded in the nation’s civilian sector but arms manufacturing has remained segregated from the civilian economy. Earlier rounds of civil–military integration, particularly in aerospace and computing, resulted in military and civilian technology silos, despite efforts in the post-Cold War era to create a dual-use technology base. In the twenty-first century, however, the US military’s emerging technological requirements have driven a new effort to exploit fourth industrial revolution (4IR) technologies through military–civil fusion (MCF). In particular, the US military seeks to exploit such 4IR technologies as AI, quantum computing, microelectronics, and autonomous systems. The US Department of Defense has undertaken several initiatives to access advanced commercial innovations, particularly in the IT sector. AI is particularly driving MCF as this is seen as a critical force multiplier in future warfare. It is too soon to ascertain how successful current US efforts at MCF will be as many of the current programs sponsoring MCF are still at the initial stages of exploration, experimentation, and evaluation.

Many advanced commercial technologies increasingly offer new and potentially significant opportunities for defense applications that, in turn, could greatly affect military power and the metrics of military advantage over potential rivals. This book is grounded in two interconnected arguments. First, the technologies of the emerging fourth industrial revolution (4IR) will have a significant impact on future military effectiveness and advantage. Second, if militaries want to harness the technological potential of the 4IR, then they must craft a new kind of civil–military cooperation, which has become known as military–civil fusion (MCF). MCF will likely grow as a competitive strategy for nations seeking to exploit advanced technologies for military innovation and, subsequently, military advantage.

You wouldn’t call it a classic joke. It’s more of a quip, to be honest; something you might hear at a computer-science convention. It is said that the number of people predicting the end of Moore’s law doubles every two years. Lol.

For the uninitiated, Moore’s law refers to Gordon Moore’s prediction, in 1965, that the number of transistors on a computer microchip would double every two years while the cost of computers would be halved. It was a brave prediction to make when microprocessors and home computers were still just a distant dream. But despite the countless experts predicting the demise of Moore’s law, as the quip insinuates, it has remained true for almost five decades, as Figure 31.1 demonstrates.

The 4th Industrial Revolution (4IR) is having, and promises to have, profound impacts on the world. While the 4IR could help to resolve key development issues Africa currently faces, there is lack of understanding of the opportunities and challenges 4IR presents, but also policies that could help African economies benefit from 4IR technologies. This chapter contributes to the literature from this vein.