Reshaping society
From map to mindset
What's your relationship to the GPS unit in your car? Do you lament the loss of serendipity that resulted from depending on the tinny voice on your dash? More likely, you've learned to lean on your satellite siren and have blissfully embraced paperless travel.
This adjustment to technology represents a step toward artificial intelligence, in which machines can learn our behavior and improve the way we live. Adopting GPS not only saves us time in our travels, it lets us clear our mental palette to make space for other thoughts, a "prethinking" process mirrored in augmented reality. Still in its nascent form until the majority of the public owns enabled smartphones, AR's ability to layer 3-D images on a phone's screen in the context of a person's actual location makes it the touchstone technology galvanizing artificial intelligence and the promise of social marketing.
The tech you shouldn't see
The trailer for Microsoft's Xbox Project Natal announcement provides a key insight into the future of augmented reality, human behavior, and commerce. Noting from the outset that "no controller is required," a typical family runs through a set of game scenarios based on their varying interests. A teenage boy karate-kicks an avatar, his older sister video chats with a friend who recommends a virtual dress to wear, and so on.
Although facial and voice recognition enhance the game, we're reminded that to enjoy the Xbox, "the only experience you need is life experience." This idea is key -- like your GPS, you forget about the tech and focus on the benefits. You augment your reality in the context of what you're presented.
