Technology continues to shape our world. It always has, and it always will. It can be difficult to precisely predict what our devices will be like in ten years, let alone one year. Will wearables like the Apple Watch be a fad? Will our phones become obsolete? I do not know, and neither does Kevin Kelly, the author of The Inevitable. What we do know is there are several seemingly inexorable trends influencing technology. Consequently, there are inevitable outcomes. Kevin Kelly outlays these trends that will steer technology towards the inevitable. Some of the trends include added cognition (“cognifying”), atoms to bits (“flowing”), and filtering of information.
Smart Devices
The most exciting trend is added cognition. Kelly has a simple formula for aspiring entrepreneurs: Take x and add AI. Think about that. Dumb couch + AI = smart couch. Your couch will now read you the news, adjust to whoever is sitting in it, and alert you when you’ve gained weight and it knows you need exercise. This, of course, will happen around the same time your smartphone, smart watch, and smart toaster (“lay off the bagels!”) do the same thing.
Voice vs. Screens
The one trend I disagree on is “screening.” Kelly predicts everything will have a touch screen. Who needs screens when you have your voice? As devices get smarter, they will also get better at listening. “Lamp on,” “fan on,” “toaster, make that two bagels, please.” One day, interaction with devices via voice will be as commonplace as interaction via touch.
Parker’s Recommendation
I am a management information systems major, and nothing in this book particularly surprised me. I have already covered it in classes. I agree with most of it, and it was a fun, interesting read. I recommend it to anyone who is looking to learn more about technology and technological trends. The future can seem far off, but indeed, it is not. It is, however, inevitable.
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