Data will play a huge role in shaping the direction of AI. It is not that we will lack data, as humans will continue to provide enough of it cumulatively to train extremely capable systems, but rather a lack of quality data. By training models to sift through and only process high quality data, it may be possible to come up with novel solutions to most of humanity's concerns. AI systems will be able to run simulations that humans cannot, even potentially finding cures to diseases previously thought incurable.
Some of the biggest challenges faced by humanity today such as climate will likely be solved by AI. Data is critical for this, for as much as neurochips that are compartmentalized like the brain begin to come into fruition and datacenters begin to reach 10+ exaflops, algorithms become more efficient like the human brain and robotics reaches a point where it is feasible to replace human workers, data will still play the biggest role of all in powering these systems.
