1940-2026 | Remembering Captain Jean-Luc Picard and the science fiction that became science fact.
Suggested featured image: Sir Patrick Stewart as Captain Jean-Luc Picard aboard the Enterprise.
When I was growing up, one of my favourite television programmes was Star Trek: The Next Generation. Every week, Captain Jean-Luc Picard and the crew of the USS Enterprise would explore strange new worlds, encounter extraordinary civilisations and solve problems that seemed almost impossible.
It was exciting television, but looking back, it was also remarkably educational.
The show encouraged us to think about science, technology, ethics, diplomacy and what it meant to be human. It presented a future where knowledge was valued, differences were celebrated and problems were often solved through intelligence rather than violence.
Following the death of Sir Patrick Stewart at the age of 86, I wanted to remember not just a remarkable actor, but also a television series that helped inspire generations of scientists, engineers, programmers and dreamers.
Because something rather wonderful has happened since The Next Generation first aired in 1987.
Quite a lot of its science fiction has become science fact.
From science fiction to everyday technology
Some of the technologies imagined aboard the Enterprise now have surprisingly familiar counterparts.
1. PADDs became tablets
The crew regularly carried flat touchscreen computers called Personal Access Display Devices (PADDs). They used them to read reports, analyse information and communicate.
Today, iPads and other tablets are everywhere, including classrooms. In fact, a modern tablet is considerably more powerful and versatile than the devices imagined for the Enterprise.
Of course, tablet computing existed before the programme, but Star Trek helped make the idea of a touchscreen future feel natural.
2. Communicators became mobile technology
Rather than carrying the flip phones familiar from the original Star Trek, Picard’s crew simply tapped a badge on their uniform and spoke to someone anywhere on the ship.
Wireless headsets, smartwatches and voice-controlled communication systems now make this perfectly ordinary. We can even speak to people on the other side of the planet using something smaller than a Starfleet communicator.
We may not have a communicator badge as standard, but the principle is already here.
3. The talking computer became artificial intelligence
This is perhaps the most fascinating example.
Picard could simply ask the ship’s computer for information, request an analysis or issue an instruction. There was no need to type commands into a complicated interface.
Today, we talk to Siri, Alexa, ChatGPT and other AI systems using natural language. We can ask questions, generate computer code, analyse documents and create software through conversation.
We still cannot trust AI with the effortless confidence the Enterprise crew seemed to place in their computer, but the resemblance is extraordinary.
For those of us exploring AI and vibe coding, this is particularly exciting. Computers are becoming tools we can collaborate with, rather than machines we must communicate with using rigid instructions.
4. The Holodeck became virtual and augmented reality
The Holodeck allowed the crew to walk into a room and experience an entirely computer-generated environment. They could explore historical events, practise skills or enjoy adventures.
Today’s VR and mixed-reality headsets are far less sophisticated, but they pursue a similar idea.
Students can explore the human body in three dimensions, experience historical recreations and practise activities in simulated environments.
We are still a long way from the fully physical Holodeck, but the educational possibilities are already enormous.
5. Geordi’s VISOR became assistive technology
Geordi La Forge, the Enterprise’s chief engineer, was blind from birth but used a specialised VISOR that enabled him to perceive the world in ways other humans could not.
Today, computer vision, smart glasses, wearable sensors and AI-powered visual assistance are making a genuine difference to people with visual impairments.
These technologies do not reproduce Geordi’s fictional capabilities, but the underlying aspiration is similar: using technology to remove barriers and expand human possibilities.
Perhaps this is one of the show’s most important predictions, because it reminds us that technological progress should improve people’s lives.
6. Medical tricorders became portable diagnostic tools
Dr Beverly Crusher could wave a small scanner over a patient and immediately obtain detailed medical information.
Modern smartwatches can monitor heart rhythms, wearable sensors can continuously collect health measurements and handheld ultrasound devices can provide images that once required much larger equipment.
We cannot instantly diagnose every illness by waving a scanner over someone, but portable medical technology has progressed remarkably far.
The dream of making healthcare more accessible through technology is becoming increasingly realistic.
7. Replicators became 3D printing – sort of!
One of Picard’s most memorable routines was ordering his favourite drink: “Tea, Earl Grey, hot.”
The Enterprise’s replicators could produce food, drinks and other objects almost instantly.
Today’s 3D printers manufacture complex physical objects from digital designs. Food printing is also being explored, although it remains far removed from the fictional replicator.
The interesting connection is that we can increasingly describe or design an object digitally and ask a machine to manufacture it.
We are not quite ready to replicate a perfect cup of Earl Grey, but we’re getting closer to a world in which making things is as important as buying them.
These comparisons do not mean that Star Trek invented these technologies. Many ideas existed earlier, and several modern equivalents fulfil only part of the fictional vision. Nevertheless, the parallels are striking.
The technology we are still dreaming about
Of course, there are still some rather important inventions we are waiting for.
Transporters that can beam people across enormous distances remain firmly in the realm of science fiction. Warp drives that allow spacecraft to travel faster than light are equally elusive.
Then there is the possibility of meeting intelligent life elsewhere in the universe. Despite decades of scientific progress, we have yet to make that first contact.
And perhaps that is a good thing. There should always be something left to discover.
What I find particularly interesting is that some of the technology we now take for granted would have seemed every bit as extraordinary to a child watching Star Trek in the late 1980s.
Imagine telling that child that one day they would have a computer in their pocket capable of holding conversations, translating languages, making video calls, navigating the world and creating new software.
They might have thought you were describing the 24th century.
Instead, it is 2026.
Perhaps the greatest invention was a different kind of leader
For me, though, the most important thing about The Next Generation was never the technology.
It was Captain Picard himself.
Unlike many fictional heroes, Picard was not defined by his ability to fight or intimidate others. He was thoughtful, articulate, curious and deeply committed to doing what was right.
He listened to different perspectives. He consulted experts. He valued science and evidence. He understood that leadership involved difficult ethical decisions, not simply issuing orders.
And, importantly, he was willing to change his mind.
These are qualities that seem just as relevant today, particularly as we navigate rapid developments in artificial intelligence.
We have created increasingly powerful tools, but we still need human judgement to decide how they should be used.
The Enterprise had extraordinary technology at its disposal, but its most interesting stories were often about the choices people made with that technology.
That remains an important lesson for education.
Inspiring the next generation
As someone involved in computer science and digital learning, I think there is enormous value in science fiction.
It encourages young people to ask one of the most powerful questions in learning:
What if?
What if we could talk naturally to computers? What if a person with impaired vision could use technology to perceive the world differently? What if students could explore a simulation rather than simply read about something? What if we could manufacture an object directly from a digital design?
Many of those questions are no longer purely hypothetical.
But perhaps the next generation of students will ask questions that we have not even considered.
That is why creativity, imagination and problem-solving matter so much. The first step towards inventing something is often imagining that it could exist.
Science fiction does not necessarily predict the future. Sometimes, it encourages people to create it.
Farewell, Sir Patrick Stewart
Sir Patrick Stewart’s achievements extended far beyond the bridge of the Enterprise.
He enjoyed a remarkable career in theatre, including many years with the Royal Shakespeare Company, and brought Professor Charles Xavier to life in the X-Men films. He also used his public profile to speak out against domestic violence and support charitable causes.
But for those of us who grew up watching The Next Generation, he will always be Captain Jean-Luc Picard.
A leader who made intelligence admirable, compassion a strength and curiosity a virtue.
It is rather wonderful to think that so many of the technologies we watched on television as children are now part of our everyday lives.
Perhaps the greatest tribute we can pay to Sir Patrick Stewart is to continue imagining a better future – and then do our best to build it.
Thank you, Sir Patrick. For the adventures, the inspiration and the belief that humanity could become something better.
The final frontier has gained another star.
Make it so. 🖖
Further reading
- Reuters – Sir Patrick Stewart obituary (29 October 2026)
- Associated Press – Remembering Sir Patrick Stewart
- HISTORY – Inventions inspired by Star Trek
- StarTrek.com – Trek Tech vs Reality
