Why is it that we cannot predict the technological future? Is the destruction of the old truly an inevitable companion to the birth of the new? Are our reservations about new technologies justified? How will artificial intelligence reshape economic competition among nations? Can the state have any meaningful active role in innovation at all? Why has Europe fallen behind in the innovation race? And why does an invisible iron curtain still exist, one that keeps Central and Eastern Europe from competing with new startups in the global innovation arena? What can we learn from the successes of Silicon Valley, Estonia, Israel, or Singapore?