AI and the Future: Why I Stopped Fighting the Technology Trend
- Adam Torres
- Jan 10
- 4 min read
Walking the floor at CES each year has made one thing unmistakably clear to me: AI and the future are no longer abstract ideas — they’re already reshaping how we live, work, and compete.
One of the areas we cover heavily across the Mission Matters platform is technology and innovation. That wasn’t always the case. Before launching our technology-focused programming—around six years ago—I can’t honestly say I was ever really “into” technology.
Sure, I always had a good phone. I was a loyal BlackBerry user for a long time. Probably longer than I should have been. That loyalty finally ended one Christmas when a close friend and his family staged what they jokingly called an intervention. They surprised me with a new iPhone and told me, in no uncertain terms, that it was time to step my game up. Technology was moving fast, and I needed to move with it.
At the time, I didn’t realize how much that moment would change my perspective.
Since hosting a show centered on technology and innovation, I’ve come to understand a few things very clearly.
After walking CES 2026, this is my reflection on technology, momentum, and the choice we all face: adapt and benefit—or get left behind.
One of the biggest lessons is this: whether you’re for technology or against it, it’s going to move forward with or without you. You don’t get a vote on whether progress happens. You only get to decide whether you benefit from it—or fall behind while someone else moves faster.
History makes this obvious when you look back. There was a time when Excel was revolutionary. Entire businesses were transformed by it. Now, we’re living in an era of AI, automation, and robotics, and those tools are evolving at a pace that feels exponential.
Walking the floors at CES year after year, you can actually feel that acceleration. The trends aren’t abstract. They’re physical. They’re right in front of you. You can see what industries are betting on just by paying attention to which booths are drawing crowds.
This year, what stood out to me most was robotics—and how good the robots have become.
I’m convinced that from this point forward, every year is going to feel faster than the last. Five years from now. Maybe ten. But there will come a time—likely within my lifetime—when you walk up to a booth and have a conversation, and you won’t immediately know whether you’re talking to a robot or a human.
Some people are afraid of that idea.Some people aren’t.
Personally, I look for the opportunity in it.
From my investing days, I learned how hard it is to fight a major trend and come out ahead. Betting against momentum rarely works. That doesn’t mean there aren’t real concerns. There absolutely are. Technology raises serious questions about ethics, responsibility, and long-term impact on humanity. Those conversations matter, and they deserve depth and nuance.
But at the same time, I bet on human nature.
I believe that many of the good things people hope will come from technology probably will. And I also believe that some of the things people fear—and actively try to prevent—are going to happen anyway. History suggests that progress doesn’t stop just because we’re uncomfortable with it.
So where does that leave me?
On a very practical level, I still have conversations with my dad, and he refuses to text message. Yes, really. That reminds me that there will always be a segment of the population that simply doesn’t adopt new technology—sometimes not even the basics.
For my company, though, the responsibility is clear. My job is to properly implement technology in a way that creates real value. Value that leads to jobs. Opportunities. Growth. And a chance to use the gifts I’ve been given to contribute something meaningful.
On a personal level, I’ve already crossed a line I can’t uncross.
Once I started using AI tools—whether for cooking, planning trips, organizing ideas, or thinking through how to improve myself—I realized something important: AI has become part of my life. I resisted it at first, at least personally. Not professionally—I always knew where things were headed there—but personally, I tried to keep some distance.
The truth is, it has increased my quality of life.
I also recognize that it’s a double-edged sword. I’m aware that I’ve developed a level of dependency. But when I really think about it, the dependency was already there. The tools just changed. What shifted was my awareness of it.
Walking through CES now, I’m not just aware of my own relationship with technology—I’m conscious of civilization’s relationship with it.
So where does that leave you?
If you’re in business, the message is simple: stop fighting the trend. Whether you like technology or not, whether you fully understand it or not, it’s already here. Those who learn how to use this current wave of innovation—this AI renaissance—will be the ones who win in the marketplace.
You don’t need to love it.You don’t need to master it overnight.
But you do need to stop pretending it’s optional.
Instead of resisting what’s coming, start asking a better question:
How can you use innovation to move forward—rather than letting it move on without you?
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