I here address a problem which is preventing the development of full molecular nanotechnology (MNT) defined as the ability to exactly arrange the molecular structure of materials — in particular those made of crystalline carbon or silicon. I ask where technological progress is leading and argue that the ability to synthesize any viable material is the only final objective that makes sense. I give a brief account of how this idea developed from the 1950s on and recount one notable debate which illustrates both the fundamental difference between MNT and regular technology and a potential obstacle to the development of MNT if we adhere to conventional approaches. I then describe a novel synthetic method that solves this problem — the directed evolution of nanomineral isomers — and detail its six main steps: nanomineral growth, antibody-nanomineral association, antibody differentiation, antibody-nanomineral separation, nanomineral characterization and/or selection, and iteration. I discuss nanomineral catalysis and the augmentation of nanominerals with functional groups, the nature of the design process for nanomineral components, a few other obvious applications of MNT, the potential of so-called smart materials, and the implications of MNT for medicine and robotics. In conclusion I argue that the development of MNT is essential for fulfilling our potential as a civilization, and that if we want to keep progressing we will need to exploit a much greater range of inorganic materials (just as nature has exploited a huge range of organic chemicals).