A few weeks ago, some old Silicon Valley hands suggested I take a look at a weapons company called TrackingPoint. I duly perused its website, not knowing what to expect, and quickly found myself both amazed and chilled.

This tiny tech business, currently based in Texas, sells “precision-guided” weapons that “[enable] anyone to accurately hit targets at ranges from 100 yards up to one mile in some cases”. More specifically, these guns are fitted with devices that use laser beams, sensors and computers to track targets and hit them in almost any conditions, irrespective of shooting skill.

They are so effective that there are videos circulating online that depict a blind military veteran hunting with a gun – and hitting the target; company officials say he was guided by a friend with a computing device.