One post on Twitter (now X), gave us an idea for this article. Namely, one person asked what are the worst things humans have ever created, and someone answered – LinkedIn 😊
Now on a more serious note, some inventions really lift humanity to new heights. Others drag us down, sometimes in ways we don’t fully understand until it’s too late.
So, let’s take a closer look at kind of the darker side of human ingenuity.
Chemical Weapons
Chemical weapons are designed not to build or improve but to destroy life en masse.
During World War I, mustard gas (sulfur mustard) introduced a horrifying new way to kill and injure. Victims of these weapons often suffered slow, agonizing deaths, their lungs burned by toxic fumes, their eyes seared shut, and their skin blistered beyond recognition.
Survivors were often left with lifelong injuries and chronic illnesses, haunted by the awful memories of the battlefield.
However, it didn’t stop there. The development of nerve agents like sarin and VX showed humanity’s disturbing ability to refine death into an „art” form.
These substances, odorless and colorless, can kill with a droplet smaller than a grain of rice. Exposure leads to convulsions, paralysis, and respiratory failure, often within minutes.
Modern treaties attempt to ban them, however many governments still keep stockpiles hidden.
Interesting fact: The Geneva Protocol, which banned chemical weapons, was signed in 1925—but didn’t stop countries from developing them in secret. During World War II, both sides refrained from their use, largely out of fear of retaliation.
Landmines
Landmines were, of course, designed for war, but their impact lasts far faar beyond the battlefield. Decades after conflicts end, these hidden killers remain, maiming and killing unsuspecting victims.
Civilians—often children—bear the brunt of this devastation. Stepping on a mine doesn’t just take lives; it leaves survivors with debilitating injuries, amputations, and lifelong trauma.
Communities trapped in mine-infested areas face limited access to farmland, schools, and other necessities, perpetuating cycles of poverty.
And, despite international efforts to ban landmines, millions remain buried worldwide. Removing them is painstakingly slow and expensive, requiring specialized equipment and trained personnel.
Interesting fact: Over 100 million landmines are still buried, threatening lives in more than 60 countries. At the current rate of clearance, it could take over 1,000 years to remove them all.
Single-Use Plastics
In the 1950s, plastic was kind of a miracle. Lightweight, cheap, and durable, it changed industries. Packaging, healthcare, construction—nearly every sector embraced it.
But this durability—its refusal to break down—has turned it into an environmental nightmare. Single-use plastics like bags, bottles, and straws litter our oceans and landscapes, choking wildlife and entering our food chain.
Animals often mistake plastic for food, leading to fatal blockages or poisoning, while microplastics infiltrate ecosystems at every level.
Plastic’s legacy is actually a poisoned planet. Microplastics have been found everywhere, from the depths of the ocean to the snow in the Arctic.
It’s estimated that the average person ingests a credit card’s worth of plastic each week through food and water.
Now just think about that.
Interesting fact: Every minute, about 1 million plastic bottles are purchased globally—many of which end up polluting the environment. It’s estimated that less than 10% of all plastic ever produced has been recycled.
Social Media
What began as a way to connect with friends has morphed into something far more sinister. Social media platforms have transformed how we interact and unfortunately, often in harmful ways.
Algorithms prioritize outrage, misinformation spreads like wildfire, and mental health suffers under the weight of comparison and cyberbullying.
Additionally, the curated perfection of online lives creates very unrealistic standards, leading to extensive anxiety, depression, self-esteem issues, and even suicides.
Companies behind these platforms, on the other hand, profit from our addiction, collecting data while we scroll endlessly.
Literally – social media companies employ people with similar skills like in casinos to create as addictive an environment as possible.
Now think about that and how many hours a day you spend as a product in this addictive environment.
Interesting fact: The average person spends nearly 2.5 hours per day on social media. By the end of their lives, this could amount to over five years spent online.
Reality TV
Reality TV capitalizes on voyeurism and sensationalism. Nothing more. In many cases shows people fighting against each other, fueling conflict for entertainment.
The result?
A normalization of toxic behavior. Participants are often manipulated into outrageous scenarios, with producers fueling drama to keep viewers hooked. Relationships, of course, completely crumble on camera and contestants are in many cases humiliated.
The effects aren’t limited to participants. Viewers absorb the negativity, and society as a whole becomes more cynical and weird.
In all reality (pun intended), what was once a light entertainment has become a mirror reflecting the worst aspects of humanity.
Interesting fact: The hidden-camera show Candid Camera, widely regarded as the first reality TV show, debuted on the ABC network in 1948 under the original title Candid Microphone.
Nuclear Weapons
Nuclear weapons represent the peak of human destructiveness. The bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki demonstrated their catastrophic power, killing over 200,000 people and leaving long-lasting scars.
Survivors, known as hibakusha, faced radiation sickness, cancer, and stigma for decades. The destruction wasn’t just physical; it reshaped geopolitics and instilled a fear that persists to this day in every human alive.
The Cold War’s arms race stockpiled thousands of warheads, creating an ultra-dangerous global balance of terror. At the peak of the USA and USSR competition, there were more than 70,000 nuclear warheads in the world.
Unimaginable, isn’t it?
Today, nine nations possess nuclear weapons. These countries and their approximate stockpiles are:
- United States: ~5,200 active and reserve warheads.
- Russia: ~5,800 active and reserve warheads.
- China: ~400 warheads, with ongoing expansion.
- France: ~290 warheads.
- United Kingdom: ~225 warheads.
- India: ~164 warheads.
- Pakistan: ~170 warheads.
- North Korea: Estimated 30–40 warheads, with limited deployment capability.
- Israel: Estimated ~90 warheads, though it maintains a policy of ambiguity.
Humanity’s ability to obliterate itself in minutes is unbelievable.
We’re all humans, and we made something that we know can destroy the whole world 100 times over.
Really, really unbelievable.
Smartphones
Now, of course, it is hard to compare smartphones with some other things on the list, however, stay with us.
We all know that smartphones have transformed our world in ways few inventions can rival.
They connect us, entertain us, and put all of human knowledge in our pockets. However, they also completely changed society – and in many cases not really for the better.
As mentioned on social media part, for many, smartphones have also become a source of addiction. Endless scrolling on social media and apps engineered to exploit our attention leads to wasted hours and increased anxiety.
This constant connectivity has also completely blurred the lines between work and personal life, making it harder for people to unplug.
But the human cost of smartphones doesn’t stop with their users. The factories that produce these devices often rely on horrible labor conditions.
In some facilities, workers endure 16-hour shifts with little pay and no room for error.
The mental toll has been devastating so much that some factories in countries like China installed nets around buildings to prevent employees from committing suicide by jumping.
Now imagine that!
The environmental footprint adds to the problem. Mining rare earth metals, crucial for smartphone production, destroys ecosystems and exploits labor in underdeveloped regions.
And so, when you think about buying a new smartphone every couple of months – think again.
Artificial Intelligence?
AI has incredible potential, but its potential for darker uses can’t be ignored.
robDeepfake technology spreads disinformation, facial recognition threatens privacy, autonomous weapons bring nightmares, and AI robots make us think about what will humanity really look like in 100 or 1000 years.
We’ve really opened a Pandora’s box.
While AI can help solve problems, its misuse could amplify the worst parts of human behavior. As AI systems become more autonomous, the risks grow—from job displacement to malicious uses by bad actors.
In all reality, the fine line between innovation and catastrophe becomes clearer every day.
Besides that, with the help of AI, the not-so-fine line between reality and simulation becomes very hard to comprehend.
Especially in the coming years. Namely, we have no idea what will happen when (if), AI becomes sentient. Will it start to make its own decisions and will we be able to turn IT off if something goes horribly wrong?
This is certainly one of the rare (if not the only) inventions in history for which we cannot predict how it will impact humanity.
At all!
