The author argues that Russia needs to turn its focus to technology, both to expand its economic portfolio and to revive its oil industry. One promising sector in Russia is artificial intelligence (AI), which President Vladimir Putin alluded to in a recent talk. “Whoever becomes the leader in this sphere will be the ruler of the world,” Putin is quoted as saying. The meaning of Putin’s comments aren’t exactly clear; some experts speculate that AI programs may even have been deployed during Moscow’s meddling in last year’s US presidential election. Still, the author notes that while Russia has undoubted human potential in this area, the realization of that potential is doubtful, with many of Russian AI experts now working in the West. In the oil sector, Russia needs to deploy technology to adjust to the U.S. shale boom and the growing adoption of electric vehicles, which is diminishing demand for oil. “The only way Russia could escape this vicious circle would be to launch its own U.S.-style shale gas revolution to boost productivity and profitability,” the author notes. But in order to boost its tech sector, Russia needs to give more scope to “the creativity and initiative of its people than the Kremlin has traditionally allowed.”

Read the full article at the Financial Times.