In today’s fast-paced world of daily changes in technology, and the way people interact with it, it is always a challenge to predict trends for a full year ahead. However, I have chosen to put my finger on six technologies that I feel will make a splash in 2016.
Virtual Reality, Ever since Facebook bought Occulus VR in 2014, geeks and fanboys have been eagerly waiting for them to release something mainstream and affordable. I feel 2016 will be the year that happens. All you do is strap on the VR headset, and enter a completely immersive computer-generated environment, like a game, a movie scene or a place far away. The incredible thing about the technology is that you feel you’re actually in another place with other people. People who’ve tried it say it’s different from anything they’ve ever experienced. A rudimentary device from Google called Cardboard brought The New York Times’ VR app to life, using the smart phone, at a cost of U.S. $15. This low-cost option is just the beginning. I look forward to more business and collaborative applications of VR to make it fly in 2016.
Wearables, The Apple watch came and is almost gone like the Google glass, but these are just indicators of greater things to come. 2016 will see a plethora of ‘wearable devices’ being launched — from basic fitbits that track your health and activity and clothes that change colour based on one’s mood, to people trackers that let us know where our near and dear ones are at all times and sportswear that track and correct your gait and form. A truly exciting time for wearable tech.
Artificial intelligence, AI has been part of sci-fi movies for many years now. We have all been truly fascinated by robots and machines that do all our work. IBM’s Watson project module on medical diagnosis can now theoretically tell us with accuracy what our ailments are. Computers now come with cognitive programming, to be able to ‘understand’ and decide. These are again the basic building blocks to AI going mainstream. In the U.S., they have made robot vacuum cleaners that not only clean the house, but also go to their charging docks when low on power, and restart where they left off once charged. AI will soon be part of our daily lives.
3D printing, This is one of the simplest concepts that took a long time to fructify, and even then, there were not too many takers. 2015 saw many innovative uses for 3D printing, including 3D-printed burgers, guns and body parts. 2016 will be the year when it will become mainstream, and the possibilities are endless. Regenerating human tissue Though in its infancy, the use of cell technology is seen to improve the surgical approach to grafting bone, the second-most implanted human material. Labelling as ‘preposterous’, the fact that the only way to get human bone is to cut it out of a person, scientists and doctors are spearheading an astonishing advance in tissue engineering. They are developing a technique to use cells from a patient’s own body to grow living, personalised bone grafts — and in doing so, create a next-generation technology that is inspired by the wonders of the human body itself.
Mobile payments, As the number of mobile phones now far outnumber the number of humans on earth, and due to the fact that all of us use our mobiles as literal extensions of our bodies, the next wave of technology that has been unleashed in the West is mobile payments. It will soon come to India. Now, there will be no need to carry cash or credit cards, etc. All you need to do is show your phone to the cashier machine and either enter a PIN on the phone or just use your fingerprint sensor on the device for the transaction to be completed. This is revolutionising the way e-commerce and regular commerce is transacted and will make us further dependent on our smart phones.