[brobdingnagians]

It could be a better machine, which can be improved in several ways, including adding flying capabilities for trading roadways for airways (cheaper and much more space) or going directly to your home in a tensegrity sphere [1], or aquatic vehicles for communities in the ocean (greatly expanding living spaces available as well).

But I think one of the major shifts was from using a living creature to using a machine. Perhaps, with advances in bio-engineering, it could go the other way? Perhaps we could design very efficient animals for transport, including flying, that would double as family pets? And instead of using petrol or chemicals for fuel, you could just feed them the leftovers from your family meals. Thus, it would help reduce food waste, have easy to obtain fuel, and provide a ready-made friend for the lonely.

[1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cloud_Nine_%28tensegrity_spher...

[Godwill]

Yes, the big shift is what I am interested in here, We moved from using living creatures to using machines like cars, but what's next after machines like cars beside flying cars(its still a car) that will mark a huge step for mankind in terms of transportation. Something that is not a car, not a flying car, not a plane, or electric plane, something along the lines of bio-engineering or teleportation. That will rock

[dgeiser13]

The next big shift is not transporting at all and bringing the place to you. And we are currently in the middle of it.

[dalmo3]

It's a very interesting question. The paradigm shift from animal-powered to machines happened in many industries and not just transportation, but especially agriculture.

Can you find cases from other industries where the paradigm has evolved further from machines? E.g. GM plants that produce their own pesticides.