“Don’t get into a field that has one or two generations of development and it’s done.”

That was one of the takeaways from Keith Witek, Senior VP Corporate Development, Strategy and General Counsel at SiFive, during his keynote presentation at the Badger Startup Summit held Thursday at the Wisconsin Institutes for Discovery.

For example, because of the range limits of human hearing, it’s not worth going into the field of audio technology, according to Witek.

“Visual technology will probably improve for 10-15 more years and then it’s done,” Witek, who also spoke at the Badger Startup Summit in 2016, said.

The University of Wisconsin alumnus listed industries that will continue to see innovation for years to come. In virtual and augmented reality, Witek mentioned a brain-computer interface that can recognize words.

“Someday we may just think our papers instead of typing them,” Witek said.

However, innovation is not without challenges. Witek explained the disruptive societal effects of tech advancement in self-driving vehicles may put 3.5 million American truck drivers out of work.

“The march forward of technology has to happen,” Witek said. “The moral, religious … whatever discussion you want to have has to happen faster. We have to continue to innovate and fight for what we believe in.”

The Badger Startup Summit is part of Forward Festival, which begins today and continues through next Thursday.