Small things can make a big impact, and the tiny computing chips in all our digital products is a great example of this.
Since Covid-19 pandemic, we realised how our demand and reliance on computing skyrocketed over the past few decades.
Where in the past, the silicon-based chips, called semiconductors were mainly made for computers, they are now in our phones, watches, screens, medical equipment, industry machines, weapons, cars, and every other digital products.
This has created what the international technology giant company Intel called a Siliconomy.
With the market size of this semiconductors reliant economy growing from a few hundred million Riyals Omani in 2023 to reach RO 385,000,104,500 (or $1 trillion) by 2030 it is important to explore how communities can grow along better. Mainly, for a better impact communities need to harness this synergy through investing in education, enterprises, and the sustainability.
Learning silicon language
While this new term semiconductors is essential for products in our daily life it can be still considered a technical jargon.
Even more so in Arabic language, where the terms is translated literally making it sound even less attractive. Steps to start synergizing with this growing global business begin at schools.
Educators and young students need to be familiar with the meaning and the potential of these tiny chips in our digital products, and how mastering them can make or break future economy.
Curricula and community friendly content will need to be created and shared with all segments of the community so that the community can participate in innovating and improving chips use cases.
Think small first
It took almost two decades for the world’s two leading semiconductors enterprises, Taiwan’s TSMC and the Netherland’s ASML, to be the giants they are today.
In mid 2023, Omani engineers succeeded to design their first microchips to be tested by TSMC and this could open the door wide open for a semiconductor’s startups-lead roadmap and ecosystem, backed by the Digital Economy Programme of the Ministry of Transport, Communications and Information Technology - MTCIT and other entities, according to the MTCIT’s Under-Secretary for ICT Dr Ali Al Shidhani.
Sustainable siliconomy
With the world agreeing on environmentally friendly policies and emissions reductions, as in the recent COP28 agreements, communities will benefit from focusing on stimulating the demand for sustainable raw materials for siliconomy.
As we witness the advancement in computing and artificial intelligence being used and abused in regional and global conflicts by contributing to suffering of defenceless populations, the world needs to have a tough ethical conversation about divesting from markets that support rouge apartheid regimes and invest in ethical breakthrough sustainable medical, climate, housing, and food security markets.
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