A Forbes Special: We looked closely at six promising areas that are at the frontier of humanity’s technological efforts. Why is it that the revolution that each promises is not already happening? What are the challenges that face developers – and when could we really give up driving, cure diseases using gene therapy or even fully charge our smartphone in 3 minutes?

Blockchain technology, which brought us Bitcoin, promises much more than digital coins * The foundational principle of decentralization may change the entire economy and create a “new Internet network”, which will focus on cooperation * Getting there will require overcoming big challenges – the huge energy costs, security issues, and regulation

In recent years the war against cancer has experienced a revolution thanks to immunotherapy drugs, which have practically reinvented the field • These innovative drugs have triggered an onslaught – not only of immune system cells on cancerous tumors, but also of the pharmaceutical giants on a market that is swelling to huge proportions • Nevertheless, the road to eradicating the disease is still long

Judging by the conversation, it would seem that we are moments away from trading in our outdated cars for autonomous vehicles • In reality, there are many more challenges before we can declare the completion of the autonomous project: profitability, AI capabilities, and of course, matters of safety and regulation

They can recognize photos, talk, invent new drugs and improve themseleves through constant learning • How far will the abilities of artificial intelligence go? And what needs to happen in order for us to be able to create a complete human brain? • Ami Luttwak, the CTO of Microsoft Israel’s development center, believes that much depends on the availability of information and supporting and making the field accessible to more developers