The world is on the cusp of an epoch known as the Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR). Despite the much-publicised promise of enhanced productivity, flexibility, efficiency and improved quality, Industry 4.0 is a daunting prospect for less-developed nations without the human labour to cope with and embrace the anticipated technological advancement. The paper explores the various opportunities and challenges associated with entrepreneurship in the Fourth Industrial Revolution in developing countries to ascertain their readiness. An in-depth, systematic literature review was conducted. In (...) doing that, we were mindful of the coverage, and data collection was carried out through a rigorous process to ensure the accuracy of findings while keeping the study’s objective. This paper argues for entrepreneurs to rethink and initiate the development of strategies that would make them relevant in the future, through innovation of business models, in preparation for possible disruptions with the evolution of Industry 4.0, while also advocating that more should be done to address the causes of policy and institutional failures. (shrink)

Globally, digital disruption has accelerated in the last few years. It is argued that this technological revolution would fundamentally alter our interactions with one another, our work, and our lives. The Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR) can blur the boundaries between the physical and biological worlds. Although the extent of the effect is unclear, many anticipate massive changes in the economic and educational spheres. Given the close relationship between the economy and the drivers of entrepreneurship in universities, the survival of entrepreneurial (...) universities remains contingent on the influence and preparedness of the 4IR. This review aimed to ascertain South African entrepreneurial universities’ readiness for the 4IR. Systematic literature analysis was adopted for this study; it draws on journal articles, books as wells as online publications relating to disruptive innovation, entrepreneurial universities and 4IR. The paper argues that there is a need for a radical overhaul of the current curriculum, as retraining lecturers to prepare for 4IR disruptions. (shrink)

Socialism is a political ideology that proposes that the state should control the means of production to manage a planned economy. The possibility of realizing this thesis has been debated throughout the 20th century. The Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR) includes technologies such as artificial intelligence or big data that could reopen the debate through the formulation of new digital models of planned economy. This qualitative research presents some theoretical models proposed in academia to update socialism in the 4IR. It describes (...) six new theoretical forms of digital socialism: Platform Economy, Socialist Feedback Infrastructure, Algorithmic Central Planning, Cyber-Communism, Fully Automated Luxury Communism (FALC), and Open Loop In Natura Economic Planning. The study concludes that the study of political ideologies and the debate about the future of society would benefit from further analysis of these models. (shrink)