Get hyped for this

With both artificial general intelligence and quantum computing looking like they're further away than ever, it's probably a good time to remember that technology isn't all AI and qubits. Other future technologies are almost here, including one that I associate with sci-fi almost as much as the flying car: vat-grown meat.

As reported by Newsweek:

Laboratory-grown meat could soon be available, with the U.S. Department of Agriculture and the Food and Drug Administration announcing that they would oversee its production so it could be safely sold to consumers across the country. 

A joint statement released by the two agencies said they would be working together to “foster these innovative food products and maintain the highest standards of public health.” The FDA would be in charge of regulating the collection, banking and growing of the cells used to make artificial meat, while the USDA would work on the production and labeling of food products.

[...]

There are many benefits to lab-grown meat. It would eliminate the need for animals to be bred and slaughtered—in the U.S. alone, around 9 billion chickens and 32 million cattle are killed every year. It would also help limit climate change—agriculture, and meat production in particular, is a major source of greenhouse gas emissions. There would also be major financial incentives if the technology could be successfully scaled.

It will be a while before lab-grown meat becomes generally available, or cheap enough to be generally affordable, but this technology has the potential to be truly game-changing if this catches on. The environmental benefits alone could have an enormous beneficial impact on our rapidly warming climate. Stand aside, VR; this is what a transformative technology looks like.