Robots are revolutionizing how humans go about their daily business. Amazon’s robotic “personal assistant,” known as “Alexa,” may be the first of the new personally relatable machines. Rachel Botsman introduced her three year-old daughter Grace to Alexa, and what ensued was an experiment in how the upcoming generation will relate to machines.
At MIT’s Center for Extreme Bionics, Professor Hugh Herr and his team of researchers are working miracles. Through his own determination and scientific prowess, Herr overcame the loss of his lower legs after a tragic 1982 climbing accident. Today, he’s abolishing the debilitating physical and neurological handicaps afflicting humanity.
A monumental wave of distrust in key institutions – government, media, business, charities – is sweeping the world. While this social transformation should bode ill for humanity and business, Rachel Botsman, author of the highly anticipated book “Who Can You Trust? How Technology Brought Us Together and Why It Might Drive Us Apart”, says that’s not necessarily the case. Her groundbreaking book explains how we are at the start of the one of the biggest trust shifts in history – and reveals how business leaders should manage it…
Imagine a new technology that, within only a few years, revolutionized everyday life while rendering obsolete nearly all assumptions about leading companies and planning for future growth. At the beginning of the last century, that technology was electricity. Today, it’s artificial intelligence (AI)….
In 2008, Anindya Ghose predicted the smartphone would ultimately be the most transformative consumer device – ever. Today, nearly a decade later, the foremost expert on mobile economics points to plenty of evidence proving his prediction is now reality…
Immersive technology is having its moment. After decades of development, virtual and augmented reality (VR and AR) are finally catching on – with businesses. Wal-Mart’s announcement last week that it plans to make…
Technology has forever altered the leadership and business strategy landscapes, and it continues to enable disruption across nearly every industry. Surviving – and succeeding – is one of the greatest challenges managers face, and it requires not only a different mindset, but also a …
Emotions influence every aspect of our life – how we learn, communicate, make decisions. Yet, they’re missing from our digital world. The devices and apps so ingrained in our day-to-day routines have had no way of knowing how we feel. Until now…
We’re well on our way to a future of self-driving cars – but uncertainty still paves the road ahead. When a driverless car crashes, who’s at fault? And who pays for the damages? Likely not the driver…
Today’s digital devices are designed to promote efficiency and responsiveness for professionals in every sector, including financial services. But MIT Professor Sherry Turkle says our “always-on,” hyper-connected state undermines relationships, creativity and productivity. And she has the research to prove it…
The mobile economy, projected to reach $1 trillion in the U.S. by 2020, is being almost ignored by retailers and advertisers are only directing about 12% of ad revenues to mobile devices. Also sorely neglected is the the vast stream of data created by every tap on every phone. Companies don’t know how to reach people on their mobile devices, and they don’t know what they would say if they could. Fortunately, Anindya Ghose, the foremost expert on mobile economics, has designed the tools that can help your company thrive as business-to-consumer interactions increasingly shift to mobile platforms.
In 2017, a plethora of changes are approaching the world of education: a new American presidential administration is bringing new policies to K-12 schools, universities are reconsidering graduates’ need for a four-year degree, and modern technology is increasingly altering the times and places of instruction delivery.
Despite what workers may think, findings show almost every job will be impacted by robots. Rapid leaps in artificial intelligence (AI) are putting entire professions and industries on the chopping…
Credit card fraud cost the U.S. retail industry $32 billion in 2014. One of the easiest ways for a scam artist to gain access to credit card information is a “skimmer,” a small device illegally installed on an ATM. Now several banks are going for a technical fix: cardless ATMs. Anindya Ghose, the foremost authority on mobile economics and author of the groundbreaking “Tap: Unlocking the Mobile Economy” (MIT Press, April 2017), details the ways these new mobile-phone-based systems will make retail banking more secure.
The mobile economy is projected to hit $1 trillion dollars by the year 2020. But while we spend 25 percent of our time using mobile devices, advertisers commit only 12 percent of ad dollars to them. While mobile drives only 2 to 3 percent of direct conversions, it is a factor in 40 percent of final sales. Why such slow adoption by brands? Anindya Ghose, NYU Professor and leading thinker on the mobile economy, describes “context” and “balance” as the possible keys.
Are you preparing today for tomorrow’s global trends? In other words, are you thinking like a futurist? Amy Webb’s “The Signals Are Talking: Why Today’s Fringe is Tomorrow’s Mainstream” (PublicAffairs, 2016) has revealed her methodology for answering vitally important questions about the future, and earned the 2017 Axiom Business Book Gold Award in the Business Technology category.
Around the world, trust in our institutions is collapsing. More than a trend, this is a profound shift changing politics, business and social norms. Trust once reserved for respected institutions and brands, we now bestow on complete strangers through digital platforms such as Airbnb and Uber. The shift isn’t just about the failure of institutions; technology is rewriting the rules of trust.
The Chinese smartphone market has produced companies, leaders, and, of course, phones. But its most significant output is perhaps more unique: a user-centric innovation by Xiaomi that treats hardware as an afterthought rather than the main driver of sales. Clay Shirky, an NYU professor living in China for this academic year (he returns to teaching at New York University later this year), has been studying the $20 billion start-up and its techniques – the centerpiece of his new book, “Little Rice” (Columbia Global Reports).
Kevin Kelly with advice for confronting a future filled with AI, robots, and constantly upgrading systems.
Abuse on social media is terrible for victims and can even hurt your business. We need “rules of the road” for social media just like we need them for highways.
What does trust mean in this new world and how can you build it with people?
In short, if private citizens are now vulnerable to having their online accounts broken into and reported on for merely being associated with public institutions, then everyone else is in danger as well.
You’re collecting data, but are you using it to build connections to your customers? Is it meeting your customers where they are, moving “at the speed of content?”
Like it or not, at some point in your life, you will live with a robot, says Guy Hoffman. And that’s why the renowned robotics expert is on a mission to make robots more fluent, more engaging, more graceful, and well – more likeable.
Yes, virtual reality (VR) can make you more empathetic. And, according to renowned VR guru Jeremy Bailenson, it can also cut business costs, boost employee productivity, help you save money…
Collaborative consumption. On-demand services. The gig economy. Peer-to-peer business. Numerous names describe the same phenomenon: the rise of technology-enabled sharing. The likes of Uber, Airbnb, TaskRabbit, Lending Club and Rent…
Virtual reality (VR) and hype have a long-standing relationship. After more than two decades, the long-promised future of VR is finally here. Oculus – Facebook’s $2 billion bet on VR…
By the end of the decade, every company will be a software company, predicts Robert Tercek, business futurist and digital media pioneer. We’re entering a new era defined by data…
Our cars are getting smarter. They dictate (and recalculate) directions, sync with our phones, help us park or switch lanes, and brake if we don’t before it’s too late. The…
Congressional testimony is underway in Apple’s stand-off with the U.S. government over the FBI’s request for what the tech titan equates to a master key for its devices. The issues…
The way we think about it and get it done, how businesses organize it, and its impact on global competitiveness and quality of life – “work” is undergoing a sea…
As Big Data continues to change the way we live and work, companies are recognizing the importance of analyzing and communicating data findings with business leaders across the company. To…
Robots aren’t coming – they’re already here, and have been for quite some time, though mostly behind-the-scenes in manufacturing and factory contexts. Today, they’re entering different and more personal facets…
We’re used to being connected all the time. Yet, we’re uncomfortable with conversation – at least conversation that isn’t aided by technology; conversation that is open-ended and spontaneous. And it’s…
At home, families sit in silence at the dinner table. We text (and shop and tweet) during class and while on dates. At work, executives email during meetings. We live…
By the middle of this century, global population will reach nearly 10 billion people, consuming ever more resources and leading increasingly complex lives. What will our cities be like? What…
Familiar things are disappearing before our eyes. Remember photo albums, audio CDs and DVDs? Maps or road atlases? Even the trusty GPS unit has been replaced by an app that…
NFL training camp 2015 is in full swing, but it’s not just players who are practicing their skills. NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell recently visited the Virtual Human Interaction Lab (VHIL)…
There is perhaps no greater force for change than a powerful idea. Thousands of ideas have come to life through the Aspen Ideas Festival, commanding the attention – and inspiring…
Have your house cleaned by Handy or Homejoy; your groceries bought and delivered by Instacart; your clothes washed by Washio. TaskRabbit will send someone to pick up a last-minute gift;…
Why We Need to Get Smart about Artificial Intelligence We’ve long been fascinated by the concept of artificial intelligence (AI), but only recently has technology advanced sufficiently to bring it…
Deflated game balls may be one way to get a handle on the competition, but virtual reality (VR) is proving to be a much more powerful performance enhancer. While the…
Last week, President Obama promised a sustained military campaign to rout the rampaging insurgent group ISIS – the militants who captured and deployed U.S.-supplied equipment (Humvees, helicopters, antiaircraft cannons, tanks)…
The World Wide Web has not yet fulfilled its promises – and full potential – for enabling more social interaction, stimulating business growth, and promoting greater equality and opportunities for…
Do ordinary citizens have the right to demand that outdated, misleading, or even simply potentially embarrassing information about themselves be removed from Google? Earlier this week, the European Court of…
The internet and social media sphere exploded with the recent news of Facebook’s $2 billion acquisition of Kickstarter-funded virtual reality company Oculus VR. The move signaled a momentous turning point…
There is perhaps no greater force for change than a powerful idea. Thousands of such ideas have come to life through TED, commanding the attention – and inspiring action –…
Higher education – formal degree programs taught by brilliant, tenured professors in idyllic campus settings – is undergoing full-fledged disruption. But MOOCs and other more accessible, affordable, Internet-driven “alternatives” are…
The world is all abuzz about bitcoin. The closest thing to cash in the digital realm, its valuation has skyrocketed, fueled in part by big brands’ recent decisions to accept…
Will Nicholas Negroponte’s predictions of today turn into the reality of tomorrow? We have no reason to doubt it.
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