AD Ver. 2.14.00 | Anno Domini version 2014
Year Two thousand and Fourteen. Wow, thats a big number. Our civilization has come a long way indeed. Today, I find that our lives are the fantasies of the futures envisioned by scientists, cinematographers and our forefathers. With the advent of smart technology and role of artificial intelligence, our lives are morphing from past to future via our present reality in smart living.
My favourtite cartoon as a 5 year old were Jetsons a future of fantasy, and here I am living out my life as they did. This is a truly exciting time.Today I can envision going to the moon on a Virgin flight and getting milk delivered to my doorstep by a robot. A future with mass migration to living on a space station or another planet is not a fantasy anymore. Talking to my friends face to face without being in front of them is now a commonplace reality. We are living in an era where time and space are fast dissolving. Humans are evolving and changing the manner of existence.
In the midst of these emerging lifestyles, there are many of us apprehensive of the new, upset at the intrusion and lack of regulations in this fast growing space. We fear that Smart technology is dumbing us down, makinig our kids stupid. While such fears are not baseless, we ought to direct our attention at adoption, correction and customization rather than not. Fears of new technology were prevelant with the growth of the internet for example: just 10 years have passed since the internet was condemned and libraries were hailed by schools and parents. Our parents parents pushed literature and art for learning, and their parents suggested religion and scripture. So it’s a matter of thinking and adopting the new and adapting by adopting. Smart technology is taking our civilization forward but its also taking away our privacy to a certain extent among other things. So one could assume, the smart technology is still learning and needs to be taught how to behave assist.
We now live in the “Internet of Things” where technologies interconnect and help us in our daily lives. They don’t just do what we tell them to — they learn from one another and from us. Devices are helping people be more productive, with less fuss and time wasted.The challenge in this new world is striking that balance between what is engaging and what can be intrusive. Technology should intuitively create a new clutter-free, curated environment and a productive way of living.
People will engage with brands that build an experience that meets their everyday needs and wants. Devices, including mobile, are continuously learning — our likes and dislikes, our musical tastes, our schedules, our homes and who our friends and family are. But more and more people expect the brand to know when to engage, without being told. Recognizing the time and instances when people are most receptive to messages is the key.
Managing intrusions and engaging users via smart technology – without overstepping it’s welcome in user’s lives; is the space that technology needs to place itself intelligently into.
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References and citations: 1. Advertising through smart technologies by Carlos De Torres in the Huffington post 2. Is smart making us dumb by Evgeny Morosov in the Wallstreet Journal