6 amazing technologies – and when you can expect them
Hans Brechbuhl
Executive Director, Center for Digital Strategies, The Tuck School of Business, Dartmouth College
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Hyperconnectivity
Ever had concerns about how technology intrudes on your life? Ever had hopes of what you could accomplish with technology?
A new Forum report, Deep Shift: Technology Tipping Points and Societal Impact, predicts 21 dates in the future when previously unimaginable innovations will enter our daily lives, transforming the way we live and the way communities and governments function.
Here are some dates for your diary:
2018: This is when 90% of people are expected to have unlimited and free storage. Supported by advertising, the free space will be a vast repository of the world’s data, which is doubling in volume every two years.
2022: The expected date when 1 trillion sensors will be connected to the internet. We are undergoing “the instrumentation of the physical world”, according to Chris Rezendes, INEX Advisors. All things will be smart and connected to the internet, collecting untold data and enabling a host of new data-driven services.
2023: When the first implantable mobile phone will be commercially available. Move over, pacemakers and cochlear implants: a new implantable technology is in town and promises to improve the way we communicate, monitor our lifestyles and take care of our health.
2025: This is when 30% of audits are expected to be performed by artificial intelligence. Computers are great at matching patterns and automating processes, but this leads to job losses among white-collar workers, whose roles are being increasingly automated.
2025: The expected date for more journeys via car sharing than in private cars. The sharing economy allows people to access goods and services as and when they want them, at a fraction of the price.
2025: When 5% of consumer products will be printed locally in 3D, according to the report. The 3D printer will be an office or even home appliance, enabling on-demand printing, creating personalized and niche products, and reducing the cost of accessing consumer goods.
Have you read?
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Author: Hans Brechbuhl is Executive Director, Center for Digital Strategies, Tuck School of Business at Dartmouth.
Image: A visitor takes a picture of the 3D printed shoes, April 16, 2015. REUTERS/Stefano Rellandini
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