IEEE Future Directions
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Following up on yesterday post, and looking at the first quadrant, technologies that can be applied today, let’s start with those that are aggregated in the Data Ecosystem:
- Smart Nappies (diapers with embedded sensors alerting parents of potential problems). They already appeared in 2013, with the progress of IoT they are getting smarter and, most importantly, cheaper. When they appeared they targeted babies but their cost was too high and the target focussed on elderly people suffering from dementia and potential urinary tract infections. The price per pad is in the order of 4$, quit expensive for a wide adoption. A more recent evolution of smart nappies has been provided by a South Korean company, Monit, selling a coin like sensor that can be placed in the any kind of baby nappies alerting the parents of a soiled nappy via a bluetooth connection to a smart phone. Abena Nova offers similar solution targeting elderly people. Technology is indeed available, but before becoming a disruption is it needs to get cheaper. Expect this to happen in the next three years. This is a piece in the overall trend towards continuous monitoring of health parameter that will disrupt health care in the next decade.
- Cryptocurrencies. Bitcoin, Ethereum, Ripple, Litecoins … are just a few of alternatives to money as we have been used for several thousands years. The first 4 cryptocurrencies (the one I listed here) have reach a market capitalisation exceeding 250B$, supporting a daily market exceeding 6B$.
They offer some advantages over money, like being more secure and non traceable, but are also outside -at least today- from control of trusted regulatory bodies. That classical money, based on coins and bills, will disappear in the next 20 years is a belief getting stronger any day more. Whether it will be substituted by one of the existing cryptocurrency, or by some new ones that will appear in the coming years remain to be seen. There is clearly a need for developing trust and for having them (or at least one of them) backed by a recognised, trusted, body. - Predictive policing. A variety of technologies applied by police to predict probable crime location probable offenders are already available (see clip to understand how they work). Companies are already offering services, like PredPol. This is another area where artificial intelligence, data analytics, is bound to change the way of working. It is also an area fraught with ethical issues, including privacy.
- Distributed ledgers (like blockchain). Little to say since they are already being applied (all cryptocurrencies are based on based on blockchain technology) although I feel quite a bit of hype that may be instrumental in generating interest and stimulating applications in a variety of field. My impression is that the idea has generated so much interest that it is now being applied also in places where there is little need for it. Nevertheless it is an easy bet to see them taking the upper hand in several areas, including Pharma (a big potential user).
- Smart control and appliances. Basically all producers of appliances are convinced that in the coming decade ALL appliances will be connected to the internet. You can get a glimpse on the available offer today.
I was talking to an executive of Electrolux just few days ago and he confided that although he still does not get why a fridge needs to be connected to the internet he is sure that it will be connected to the Internet…. At the same time he told me that appliance companies are very concerned of the potential side effects of this connection to the internet since it is an open door to hackers. Again, he was not sure of what an hacker would do with a fridge, but the idea was a scary one. We can surely expect significant disruptions in this area on several fronts: appliance producers having to change their value proposition and their skill, new service providers leveraging on the possibility to access appliances, seeing them as a platform for service delivery and, last but not least, ourselves that will see our interactions with appliances transformed, and that will eventually transform ourselves…
