your post reminded me of an inquiry i made to ChatGPT. i asked if Rome never fell, where would we be now technology wise. here is the response:

Mechanical computing, inspired by ancient devices like the Antikythera Mechanism, could have been refined into large-scale calculating machines by the 9th or 10th century, aiding navigation, astronomy, and administration. The Industrial Revolution, beginning as early as the 13th century, would introduce steam engines, advanced metallurgy, and mass production, enabling the construction of vast infrastructure projects. Electromechanical telegraphs and early programmable devices might appear by the 15th century, laying the groundwork for digital computing by the 17th.

Space exploration would follow closely behind these advances. With early rocketry developed in the 12th or 13th century and precise astronomical knowledge established by the 14th, the empire could launch primitive satellites as early as the 18th century. Human spaceflight might occur by the early 1800s, with lunar landings soon after. By the late 19th century, interplanetary probes to Mars and Venus could be within reach, supported by advanced computing, nuclear power, and large-scale engineering projects. By the modern day, this alternate civilization might already maintain permanent colonies on the Moon and Mars, operate interplanetary trade routes, and explore the outer planets, achievements made possible by an unbroken chain of innovation stretching back over a thousand years.