Who decides if we are hired? Who decides if we get a loan? The answer is simple, an algorithm. Many people still ignore this aspect, but the reality is that more and more algorithms make decisions for our lifetime. Of course, technology is fundamental in our lives, and I could not imagine a life without it; but its development without control could bring us many social and ethical issues.
Firstly, an algorithm works from all the data that all the users from the media provide, and then, taking all this data, the system learns to pull out its conclusions. This process is known as machine learning.
Imagine an algorithm that it's learning through social media, for instance, Twitter. The algorithm takes many tweets from different users and analyzes them, but what happens if one tweet is homophobic? The algorithm won't know that, and it will think that insulting gay people is right. This is just an example, but there are plenty of cases like this and even more complex ones.
In 2040 I imagine a future where the development of technology is under control and whose progress is taking part at the same time that human evolution. A future where people of all knowledge branches (philosophers, engineers...) are working together to solve all the social dilemmas and to improve the citizen's quality of life through the right improvement of technology.