Technodata and the Need of a Responsible Industry 4.0

The great transformation that will face European industry is driven by the need of digitizing the entire value chain around manufacturing for creating competitive advantages to maintain a dominant position in the global economy. This new paradigm is commonly known as Industry 4.0, and it has a significant policy support from the European Commission as well as different member states. However, this transition is full of uncertainties as the digitization of industry creates different concerns about employment, privacy, labor rights, and other issues related with this technological revolution. In this chapter, the authors trace back the origins of Industry 4.0 to the Web 2.0 phenomenon as well as they reflect upon the role of technodata and technofactories in a postindustrial society. Finally, they stress the need to reflect about developing a responsible digitization of industry that will consider societal concerns.