World renowned futurist Thomas Frey, (video above), has a way of making the most startling of glimpses into your near future seem rosy hued, even when he’s talking about your entire way of life changing.

Sponsored by Vodafone to speak at a recent local government information management conference, the man billed as Google’s number 1 futurist, keeps his eyes firmly on the positive aspects of future technology.

The founder and leader of the Colorado-based Da Vinci Institute, Thomas has built an enormous following studying changing trends, and giving insight into the implications they’ll have on an everyday level.

ALGIM Chief Executive Mike Manson said “I was lucky enough to listen to Thomas four years ago in Chicago, and I have watched 100% of what he discussed come to fruition”.

Thomas Frey believes that for the average Kiwi, life in 2030 will look distinctly different.

“You will be wearing clothing you have printed yourself. You will be living in a house that has been printed to your specifications. You will own more than one robot, and you might be using a Drone taxi (capable of carrying a number of people by air) to get to the helipad on top of your building”, Thomas said.

There’s been a lot of emphasis on Thomas Frey’s claim that in just 14 years, more than two billion jobs will disappear – in his own words, downloading apps deletes jobs.

But he emphasises there’s no need to push the eject button just yet – the machines taking over your old job, will in turn create the jobs of the future for us to fill – you just need to change your understanding of what work look like.

Not every job will disappear – there’s good news for accountants, bankers and salespeople - but it will be different.

“Somehow the job itself changes, the tools that are used, the way we interact will be different. One of the questions I get a lot is how long before a virtual meeting is as good as meeting someone in person, and we’re still a long ways from that.

I’ve concluded that when a virtual meeting becomes as good as meeting somebody in person, we’re still not going to go there. Somehow the virtual meeting needs to become better than meeting somebody in person… what would make it better? That’s where there’s an interesting discussion”, Thomas added.

One thing that was clear to conference participants is that it will take technology a long time before it can match the kind of excitement that catching a glimpse into a fast-paced decade ahead with Thomas Frey can offer.