The Metaverse. Virtual Reality. The Blockchain, Crypto, and NFTs. You've probably heard of these techno wonders, and how they will change everything. What they don't tell you is how much of this has happened before, or how Renaissance is filled with pageants, performances, pilgrimages and pecuniary misadventures that "changed everything," in ways remarkably like today's tech miracles.

Quentin Hardy, the head of editorial at Google, spent several decades covering technology, finance, and the habits of the very rich for The Wall Street Journal, Forbes, and The New York Times. His previous talks have covered the Renaissance technology revolution in print, and the Renaissance rise of the artist as celebrity.