Imagine a world with billions of desktop-size, nonpolluting, cheap machines that can manufacture almost anything – clothing, furniture, electronics, cars, even food. Today, such devices do not exist, but in the future, a small Star Trek-like replicator called a “personal nanofactory” (PN) will sit on your kitchen counter enabling you to create nearly anything your heart desires at little or no cost.

These incredible machines receive raw atoms from supplied chemicals or from something as inexpensive as dirt, air or water. Then, using Internet-delivered software, they instruct atoms to assemble into the final product; a sweater, refrigerator, health medicine, tonight’s dinner; even a duplicate PN.

In their latest book, Revolutionary Wealth, Alvin and Heidi Toffler argue convincingly that we are on the verge of a post-scarcity world that will slash poverty and “unlock countless opportunities and new life trajectories”.