“Capitalismo tecnológico nacional” | Santiago Siri | TEDxBarrioSanNicolasSalon

Argentina's Technological Potential

• Argentina is a country with immense potential, often perceived as being on the brink of collapse or crisis, but it has a unique opportunity to develop its technological capabilities (19s).
• The country has a "diamante en bruto" or unpolished diamond, referring to its national technological capitalism, which is a concept that needs to be understood and developed (1m2s).
• Argentina is seen as a country in a Cyber Punk-like dystopia, where significant technological events are taking place, making it an important player in the world's geopolitical landscape (1m36s).
• The country's technological sector has the potential to be a major player globally, and understanding this potential is crucial for its development (1m22s).

The Rise of Argentina's Video Game Industry

• The speaker started their career 20 years ago, programming video games, and was part of a small group of enthusiasts who discussed and shared ideas on how to create video games in Argentina (1m56s).
• This group, which included around 100 people from different universities and backgrounds, was connected through a mailing list called "juegos r," where they shared their ideas and demos (2m15s).
• The group's goal was to create a video game industry in Argentina that would produce games with the country's culture and history, and this led to the creation of the Asociación de Desarrolladores de Videojuegos Argentina (Association of Video Game Developers of Argentina) (3m31s).
• Today, the association has over 80 members and is a significant player in the country's video game industry, showing the potential for growth and development in Argentina's technological sector (3m40s).

Growth and Success of Argentina's Tech Sector

• In Argentina, there are companies that employ over 10,000 people, and the country has transitioned from small experiments to a thriving tech industry, with companies like Globant producing and developing products globally, such as the FIFA video game (3m43s).
• Over the past 20 years, Argentina's tech industry has grown from a niche of enthusiasts to a significant sector that employs people, grows, and has even produced number one products worldwide, with great potential for further growth (4m8s).

The Tech Sector's Contribution to Argentina's GDP and Job Creation

• The tech sector currently accounts for 7% of Argentina's GDP, and there is a desire to see this grow to 20% in the future, driven by a government or administration that recognizes the sector's potential (4m31s).
• The tech sector is not dependent on climate or weather conditions, and it incentivizes education and the creation of high-value jobs, such as programmers and developers, with a high demand for skilled talent (4m53s).

Argentina's Leading Role in the Crypto Industry

• Argentina has a strong presence in the crypto industry, leading regionally and globally in innovations such as cryptocurrencies and blockchain, with notable figures like Vitalik Buterin, the creator of Ethereum, having visited the country (5m41s).
• Vitalik Buterin has a strong connection to Argentina, having visited the country multiple times, and has been recognized and celebrated by the people, with some even spotting him celebrating the 2022 World Cup final (6m37s).

Future Potential of Argentina's Tech Industry

• The country's tech industry has the potential to drive growth and create high-value jobs, with a focus on education and talent development, and there is a desire to see this sector continue to grow and thrive in the future (5m18s).

Argentina as a Cyberpunk Dystopia with Technological Unicorns

• In the year 2038, Argentina has become a cyberpunk dystopia, but something powerful is happening, as the country has the capacity to generate technological unicorns, with over 15 unicorns, some of which are instrumental in the infrastructure of the modern internet (7m40s).
• Some of these unicorns include companies like Mercado Libre, which has a capitalization of over $100 billion, making it the largest company in Latin America, surpassing Petrobras in Brazil (8m23s).
• Another example is Globant, which is a sponsor of the FIFA World Cup and the Formula 1, and is also a technological provider for these organizations, demonstrating the company's global reach and influence (8m42s).
• Globant is an Argentine company with Argentine capital, and it has expanded globally, including the purchase of a French company with 1,000 employees, showing that Argentine capital can be a leader in the global market (9m19s).

The Impact of the Software Law on Argentina's Tech Sector

• The success of these companies can be attributed to the Software Law, which has been maintained across different governments, including those of Néstor Kirchner, Cristina Fernández, Mauricio Macri, and Javier Milei, and has incentivized the development of the sector (9m36s).
• The law has had a multiplier effect, generating new generations of entrepreneurs who help each other, creating a sector that is worthy of celebration (9m56s).

Bitcoin's Potential and Argentina's Role

• Bitcoin is also mentioned as a significant player in the global economy, with the potential to displace the US dollar as a reserve currency, and is the only asset with a growing geopolitical relevance (10m22s).
• El Salvador is the only government in the world that has understood the idea of adopting bitcoin, possibly due to having a millennial president (10m48s).
• A country holding its reserves in Bitcoin would have a strategic advantage over other nations, with the first G20 country to do so gaining a considerable edge (10m52s).
• Bitcoin is the only economic system that is completely independent of the US dollar, also known as the petrodollar, which is closely tied to energy, oil, and wars (11m14s).
• Any country that attempts to make energy contracts in currencies other than the US dollar, such as Saddam Hussein or Gaddafi, faces the wrath of the United States (11m29s).
• Bitcoin is the only asset that is independent of the US dollar and the world's major powers, which will compete for it (11m47s).
• Argentina has the resources to mine Bitcoin, including the second-largest Bitcoin mine in the world with negative emissions, using methane gas from the Vaca Muerta field (12m7s).
• The idea of holding reserves in Bitcoin would give Argentina's economy a significant global boost and attract global interest (12m31s).
• In 2014, a proposal was made to allocate 1% of the country's reserves to Bitcoin, which would have prevented current debt problems (12m42s).
• The price of Bitcoin is a symptom of its intrinsic value, and studying this technology is essential for understanding the economy of the future (13m6s).
• The cryptocurrency sector is an area where more money enters the country than leaves, and many programmers working in the technological sector use cryptocurrencies to bring money into Argentina (13m22s).
• Bitcoin is the biggest economic story of the 21st century, and Vaca Muerta is an extraordinary resource that could be developed to create immense potential for Argentina (13m46s).

The Future of Artificial Intelligence and its Impact on Argentina

• The next step would be to create data centers that can meet the immense demand for Bitcoin mining (14m18s).
• In the future, artificial intelligence will play a significant role, and countries could shift from mining Bitcoin to providing artificial intelligence infrastructure, which would greatly boost energy usage (14m27s).
• The world is entering a phase where internet energy demands are increasing, with 1% of global energy being used by the internet today, and this is expected to rise to 8% by 2030 due to advancements in artificial intelligence (14m46s).
• Companies focused on artificial intelligence are seeking access to affordable and renewable energy sources, such as flare gas, wind energy in the south, or solar energy in the north, preferably in the south due to cooling requirements for data centers (15m10s).
• To support this growth, investments in infrastructure, including fiber-optic cables, will be necessary, and data centers could potentially use flare gas or other renewable energy sources (15m29s).
• The potential for countries to become exporters of computational power to the world is significant, and artificial intelligence brings many opportunities and challenges (15m52s).
• Artificial intelligence will revolutionize interfaces, enabling people to interact with technology through conversation rather than manual input, and making systems more conversational (16m12s).
• Using artificial intelligence will not make people less intelligent, but rather enhance their productivity, creativity, and versatility, as they will be able to work on multiple projects simultaneously (16m28s).
• The founder of Nvidia's phrase, "a robot won't replace you, but a human using a robot will," highlights the importance of humans working with technology (16m54s).

Developing Sovereign AI Models and the Need for New Leadership

• China and the United States are currently the primary creators of artificial intelligence models, but other countries, such as Argentina, could develop their own sovereign models with the help of institutions like CONICET (17m6s).
• To achieve this technological revolution, new leadership with a focus on technology and innovation will be necessary, and while machines can assist in decision-making, human authority and responsibility are essential (17m28s).
• A new generation of politicians or leaders is needed, one that genuinely uses and is driven by new technologies, making decisions based on more than just instinct or resentment, and this is possible given Argentina's demographics, where half of the voters are under 40 years old (18m2s).
• The current generation of voters is still voting for Generation X or Baby Boomers, but there is a need to find native digital leadership that can improve the quality of decisions made as a nation (18m26s).

Digital Literacy and the Need for Native Digital Leadership

• It is necessary to digitally alphabetize the population, going beyond just reading and writing, and learning to program, interact, and communicate in a digital language to avoid falling behind (18m43s).

The Proposal for a Quantum Computer in Argentina

• Developing a quantum computer in Argentina is proposed, as there is currently no quantum computer in Latin America, and the country has the potential to be a pioneer in this field, just like it was with nuclear energy (19m10s).
• Quantum computers are the future, capable of breaking current systems and providing advantages in various sectors, including military, financial, and technological (19m37s).
• Some requirements for building a quantum computer are already available in Argentina, such as the necessary refrigeration machine at the National Atomic Energy Commission, but a chip from IBM would still be needed (20m6s).
• The idea of building a quantum computer in Argentina is not just a dream, as the country already has some of the necessary components, and it could be a step towards becoming a more technologically advanced nation (20m40s).

Argentina's Potential for Technological Leadership

• The country already has the potential to be a technological leader, and it is time to defend and build on this, striving to be more than what is currently possible (21m4s).