How Data Exploded While We Grew Up

You ever feel like we’re drowning in technology?

It’s like the world hit fast-forward, and suddenly everything’s connected, tracked, measured.

From your morning coffee order to the video you just watched—data is everywhere.

To all my fellow 90's kids,

Remember when the only data we cared about was fitting our saves on a 16 MB memory card for our PlayStation?

Fast forward to today, and we’re talking about zettabytes (1 trillion gigabytes)—and it’s only getting crazier.

Chapter 1 of Mastering the Data Paradox takes us to a world where data is the most important fuel for the AI Age.

But here’s the real kicker.

It’s not slowing down.

It’s speeding up.

In fact, data is growing so fast, that it’s hard to wrap your head around it.

In the first chapter of Mastering the Data Paradox, we’re hit with a truth bomb:

Most of the world’s data is less than four years old.

But by 2025, it’s expected to double.

So what does that mean for us?

Let’s break it down.

This is no ordinary world anymore.

Customers have evolved.

People are tech-savvy and more demanding.

They expect instant results, and honestly, who can blame them?

In the age of TikTok and AI-generated music, people want fast, they want personalized, and they want it now.

And businesses?

Well, they’ve changed too.

Technology is no longer just in the background, it’s center stage.

Every company is a tech company now, whether they like it or not.

If they aren’t embracing AI, IoT, or blockchain… they’re already behind.

You’ve probably noticed it, too.

The pace of change is ridiculous.

You blink and there’s a new app or tool everyone’s talking about.

Just like how 90’s kids quickly swapped out our Game Boys for iPhones.

And how do you keep up with all that?

New-age customers are demanding, but they’re also an opportunity.

They want more, and if you can give it to them, they’ll stick with you.

Technology at the core of every business means constant innovation.

No one can afford to fall asleep at the wheel.

The velocity of change is crazy fast.

If you’re not running, you’re getting left behind.

Iterate to innovate.

Quick actions, assess results, tweak, and repeat.

It’s like hitting the gym for your business—it’s about constant improvement.

Collaboration is key.

Finance, HR, marketing, sales—all these departments need to work together.

Innovation doesn’t happen in silos.

And finally, data is exploding—it’s the most important one.

We’re swimming in it.

It’s time to stop being overwhelmed by it and start using it.

But to really get a grip on how massive this data explosion is, look at the numbers.

Between 1999 and 2023, we’ve seen:

Mobile subscriptions grow 15x.

Internet users jump from 248 million to 5.3 billion.

And the real mind-bender?

Data grew 125,000 times.

Crazy, right?

It’s mind-boggling how fast this shift is happening.

Because we didn’t just wake up one day to all this data.

While we were figuring out how to burn CDs, the world was figuring out how to manage data.

But in the last few decades?

We hit the gas pedal.

From early data centers in the ‘70s to today’s cloud systems, it’s evolved fast.

Remember when SD cards held 8MB? Now, our phones casually store 256GB.

And that’s how we ended up with Big Data—data so massive and so fast it’s reshaping the world as we know it.

By 2025, the world is going to generate 181 ZB of data.

That’s zettabytes—a number so large, it’s hard to imagine.

It’s like stacking 3.6 billion Blu-ray discs.

And over 80% of that will be unstructured, which means we’ve got to figure out how to make sense of it all.

If you’re wondering why all this matters, it comes down to the 3Vs:

Volume: The sheer amount of data being created.

Velocity: How fast that data is coming in—millions of messages, videos, and searches every minute.

Variety: All the different forms of data—structured data like credit card numbers, and unstructured data like emails or video content.

And behind all that?

Veracity (how much can we trust the data), Variability (how often the data changes), and Value (how much of an impact it creates).

Here’s the bottom line:

Data is the fuel driving the AI age.

It’s growing faster than we can keep up with, but if you’re smart about it, it’s also the biggest opportunity of our time.

The question isn’t whether we can handle the explosion of data—it’s how we use it to get ahead.

If you’re serious about winning in the AI age, start paying attention to your data.

Master it.

Use it.

And get ahead before someone else does.

Want to dive deeper?

Grab a copy of Mastering the Data Paradox and learn how to harness the power of data to fuel your success.

In June 2024, it was released to the general public

I've read it once and I'm already starting to read it again.

It's worth it.

Ps: If you haven't read my post about the AI Arms race you should click HERE to read about it.

Best,

Jake