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Within in the decade, Quantum technologies are poised to
transform communications, the next generation of AI technologies will
understand human emotion and screen-free ‘ambient’ computing will make
technology ubiquitous.
These three emerging technologies may be over the horizon
but it doesn’t stop us salivating about the prospects. Deloitte Consulting, who
came up with them, suggest that these trends should be on the radar of large
companies today. A decade is not a long
time.
“By taking a wait-and-see approach, you could miss critical
opportunities to test and experiment while your competitors gain a competitive
advantage,” it warns.
Let’s take a closer look.
Quantum Plus
Quantum research is gaining momentum and is expected to
migrate from labs to real-world commercial environments within this decade.
Technology giants, governments, and early-stage start-ups are investing
billions in a race to achieve quantum breakthroughs, reports Deloitte.
Quantum computers will probably be used alongside
conventional computers to solve specialized calculations at a fraction of the
speed.
Another potential use is in ultra-secure communication
networks that can detect interception and eavesdropping. Among several
techniques for achieving this level is quantum key distribution (QKD), in which
parties exchange highly secure encryption keys to transmit data across optical
networks. Even though QKD technology is not fully mature, several quantum
communication networks have either been deployed or are in development.
It may also be possible to use the sensitivity of subatomic
particles, to build quantum sensing devices which are way more responsive and
accurate than conventional sensors. Researchers are working to make them
cheaper, lighter, more portable, and more energy-efficient.
AI gains emotional intelligence
During the next decade, affective computing – or emotional quotient
(EQ) - will continue to grow as machines are trained to both recognize and
emulate human traits such as charisma, charm, and emotion. Further, deductive
reasoning and logical inference capabilities will be embedded into AI networks.
“In our quest for efficiency and insight, we are now
designing [AI] to have a level of emotional acuity that is erasing the
traditional human-machine cognitive hierarchy.”
Deloitte’s futurists continue, “Soon, these technologies
will be able to look at a statistical correlation and, much like the human
brain, determine if it makes sense or if it is just a random feature of the
supporting data that has no intrinsic meaning. In other words, machines will be
able to appreciate the world more as humans do, and less as a context-free
collection of zeros and ones.”
The next step might be, for example, creating a senior-care
bot with sensors that can distinguish between a lamp falling off a night table
and an individual who has fallen and needs assistance.
“As AI grows in both intuitive and emotional capability over
the next decade, bots may begin working as educators, writers, physicians, and
even chief information officers.”
AI development is on an exponential growth curve. This train
is not stopping. Things that seem uniquely human today will increasingly be
expressed as sequences of code.
That leads Deloitte to address the elephant in the room: how
can we develop artificial intelligences that embody our explicitly shared
financial, social, and ethical values?
The analyst has no answer other than for organizations,
governments, and regulators to closely monitor the ‘curriculum.’
“We must teach our digital children well, training them to
do as we say, not necessarily as we’ve done.”
Open the pod bay doors HAL.
Ambient
experience: Life beyond the glass
IMAX, 100-inch TVs and giant LED signage tends to mask the
trend that most of our screens are getting smaller, not larger. The
smartphone’s functions are already being dissipated into wearable or
environmentally transparent sensors. With smart speakers, for example, we
interface with the cloud “without the intermediation of glass.”
“During the next decade, ambient computing—a catchall term
for a growing field of technologies and techniques that make digital reality
available to users anytime and anywhere—will become our standard modality and,
in doing so, will usher in an era of life lived beyond the glass.”
Indeed, ambient interfaces “will lie in wait”, predicts
Deloitte, patiently inferring what next steps are needed and proactively
offering the most efficient way to accomplish them.
We are already seeing how smart glasses and VR / AR headsets
overlay digital information onto our field of vision.
“Think of this as bringing reality itself online,” suggests
the analyst, “or painting atoms with bits, albeit with somewhat primitive
brushes.”
Researchers and entrepreneurs alike are already exploring
possibilities for using smart contact lenses (e.g InWith Corp.
www.inwithcorp.com) and even implanted brain chips to augment our senses and
(literally) read our minds.
“Think about it: Why wouldn’t it be natural to look at the
sun and see how many hours until sunset? Or look at a bus stop and see how many
minutes until the next bus arrives? Curious to be sure, but perhaps preferable
to staring at our phones all day.”
Why
M&E leads this future
According to Mike Bechtel, chief futurist at Deloitte, many
of these technology innovations will first be manifested in art and leisure,
“where people take more risks”.
“We’ve seen ideas such as the ‘like button’ embraced first
in consumer circles and then implemented in workplace chat platforms.
Similarly, viral videos on social media today could pave the way for new forms
of workplace training and onboarding. In other words, tomorrow’s IT department
might look to us like they’re playing games in the metaverse, but, to them,
that might be optimal knowledge-sharing.”
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