Description: "This is a book about the future. But it's not another one of those books that tries to tell you about what the future will be. It's a book about how we think about the future. It examines the origins, strengths, and weaknesses of each mode of thought through interesting asides, historical references, and tales from Foster himself"--
Brief description: Nick Foster is a designer and writer based in Oakland, California. He has spent his career exploring the future for technology companies including Apple, Google, Nokia, Sony and Dyson, and has established himself as a leading figure in the field of Futures Design. In 2021 he was awarded the title 'Royal Designer for Industry' - the highest accolade for a British designer - in recognition of his significant contributions to the discipline. Foster is also an accomplished writer and public speaker, delivering essays, books, talks and lectures to share his thinking with audiences across the globe. He earned his master's degree from London's Royal College of Art in 2001, and in 2018 he was made a fellow of the Royal Society of Arts. He has lived in the United States since 2012, with his wife, Jayne.
Review Quotes:
"This is the book on the future we'd been waiting for--an impassioned argument for replacing lazy certainties and fearful fantasies with a rigorous, rationally optimistic, and ultimately empowering stance toward what might be coming next."
--Oliver Burkeman, author of Meditations for Mortals and Four Thousand Weeks
--Questlove, author of Hip-Hop Is History "Nick Foster started out tracing Garfield cartoons at his kitchen table. I started out tracing Garfield cartoons at my kitchen table! Nick Foster is a genius who helps companies like Dyson and Google envision the future. I'm still hoping for flying DeLoreans. That's why I listen to Nick tell me how to imagine and create what's next for ourselves. Remember, you don't have to outrun somebody if you can outsmart them."
--Bobby Hundreds, author of NFTs Are a Scam/NFTs Are the Future "It's a wondrous thing to read someone who can bring potential futures to life without being stuck in retreads of yet more takes on AI and robotics. Nick Foster's Could Should Might Don't blows a draft of fresh and thrilling air through a genre that has lately become stale, repetitive, and unproductive. It's the kind of book you keep dropping down to your lap as you look up and wonder."
--Stephen Fry "A book about futures work written so thoughtfully, by someone who's practiced it at such a high level and yet can ground it beautifully in stories of everyday life and the possible futures they hold. This is both Nick Foster's method and his particular skill, and this warm, insightful, and ultimately generative book balances critique, care, love, and hope for this kind of work."
--Dan Hill, author of Dark Matter and Trojan Horses "I couldn't put down this brilliant, eye-opening work--it's just the kind we need at the moment. Foster has spent a lifetime exploring tomorrows, and his message is clear: Serious thinking about the future is essential if we hope to shape it rather than be blindsided by it."
--David Eagleman, author of Incognito "I'm thrilled about Nick's book. Rather than more forecasts and projections, Nick brings us the importance of thinking about the future today, in the most accessible and engaging way possible."
--Anab Jain, designer, filmmaker, and futurist