Watch any science fiction movie, and you’ll see a world where robots take on many of our daily tasks. But David Rose, researcher at the MIT Media Lab and keynote speaker at our 2015 Benefits & Pension Summit, foresees a different future.
Technology is becoming increasingly integrated in our lives. And social robots do exist, said Rose, citing Neoteny, a nutrition/diet robot as an example. “It’s designed to sit next to your fridge and make you feel s****y,” he joked.
But the real problem with a robotic-based future, he explained, is we’re uncomfortable with robots when they’re too much like us. “As soon as it looks too human-like, then it appears like a zombie…something that threatens our own humanity.”
So what’s the alternative? Rose envisions a future full of “enchanted objects”: everyday items with “a little sprinkling of AI almost everywhere.”
Remember the fairy tales from your childhood, with their flying carpets, magic swords and invisibility cloaks? They aren’t just bedtime stories, Rose explains; “these stories run in our cultural bloodstream.” And they’re interesting to inventors because they reveal our desires and wishes.
In particular, Rose identified six different aspirations motivating technological invention today:
- omniscience—the desire to know all (think clairvoyance and crystal balls);
- telepathy—the desire for human connection;
- safekeeping—the desire to protect and be protected;
- immortality—the desire for a long and quantified life;
- teleportation—the desire for friction-free travel;
- expression—the desire to create, make and play.
And technology is already making many of these “fantasies” come true. For example, said Rose, there is a “proverbial wallet” giving people real-time feedback on their spending patterns. As the owner gets closer and closer to his or her financial budget, the wallet literally gets harder and harder to open.
One of Rose’s inventions is a “smart” pill bottle cap, called a GlowCap, to improve medication adherence. The cap, which attaches to just about any pill bottle, glows when it’s time to take your meds. It also has an auto-refill function, and it automatically emails your loved one if you’re not taking your medication when you’re supposed to. A study found it actually increased adherence from 71% to 98%. “I think all of these things working together really helped people change,” Rose added.
He also expects we’ll see an increase in the use of wearables, as well as a shift in how we think about them—from function to fashion. Move over, FitBit: Swarovski is now making internet-connected jewelry for the fashion-forward.
Since sensor technology can be embedded in virtually anything, the future of enchanted objects is wide open. And Rose thinks it’s going to transform the way we live and work. “Having information that’s pervasive is persuasive,” he added.
All the articles from the event can be found in our special section: 2015 Benefits & Pension Summit Coverage.