Actually, Kurzweil is noted for the accuracy of his dated predictions. He is no fool - his book "Age of Intelligent Machines" came out in 1989 and when he released "Age of Spiritual Machines" in 1999, ALL of his predictions had come true.

His predictions included VERY specific things like the fall of the Soviet Union, the explosion of the internet (most people in the late 1980s didn't know there was an internet), a computer program beating a human at chess, and MUCH more. He is a highly respected futurist because he doesn't just wax philosophic about generalities, he aims tights and nails the bull's eye.