Technology Revolution: The Future of Now

The Buzz: Favorite quotes from Back to the Future, 1985–1990 American science fiction film movie trilogy – "Nobody calls me chicken." – "Roads? Where we're going, we don't need roads." – "1.21 Gigawatts!?!" – "I guess you guys aren't ready for that yet. But your kids are gonna love it." – "This Is heavy!" If you're hoping to gaze into a crystal ball to see what 2023 holds for your company, your industry and the world, we've got the next best thing. Today, December 7, 2022, we're kicking off our live six-week 2023 Annual Crystal Ball Predictions Special. In total, you'll hear predictions from 60 thought leader futurists covering the exciting technologies, strategies, and trends that can help your business, industry, community and the world thrive in 2023 and beyond. Pour a cup of Joe, Earl, Jack or Dom, and join us for Technology Revolution: The Future of Now 2023 Crystal Ball Predictions Special – Week 1. The Special continues on December 14, then takes a holiday break and resumes January 4, 2023. Together, let's make 2023 a better year!

Buzz 1: Smart home is a massive market, growing at 25.3% per year [Mordor Intelligence], expected to hit $314Bn a year by 2026.… Apple's Home app, Google's Nest, Google's Home app, Airthinx for air quality monitors, myQ for smart garage doors, Asmart bed app, Dyson app, Wemo app, Nanoleaf, Govee Home app. [forbes.com] Buzz 2: Safewise surveyed 1,000 Americans 18 and older about tech spending habits. Between May 2021–May 2022, three in four bought a smart home device. 65% purchased cameras or locks, comprising 28% of all smart home tech purchases. Despite inflation, 70+% of home tech spending increased or stayed the same as previous years. [safewise.com] Buzz 3: Security.org's research found 7 in 10 homebuyers are looking for a smart home, with 78% willing to pay more for a home with smart devices – millennials more than older generations. A majority of homeowners use smart devices for convenience and time savings, followed by safety and security. Two in 3 Americans – twice as many women as men – desired a smart home security-related device more due to past 12 months' events. [security.org] We'll ask Bill Pugh at Smart Connections Consulting, Mary Nitschke at RealPage Smart Building, Leonard Lee at neXt Curve and Lee Miller at RealPage for their take on The Future of Consumer Smart Home Tech Trends 2022 and Beyond.

The Buzz 1: Holography is a photographic technique that records the light scattered from an object, and then presents it as three-dimensional. The development of hologram technology began in 1962, when Yuri Denisyuk, of the Soviet Union, and Emmett Leith and Juris Upatnieks, at the University of Michigan, developed innovative laser programs that recorded objects in 3D on silver halide photographic emulsions. [iqsdirectory.com] The Buzz 2: Medical students are being taught using new "mixed-reality" training, learning from life-like holograms. In the entertainment industry, performers can be beamed around the world or even into a mobile game. [lamasatech.com] The Buzz 3: As CEO of Columbia Shipmanagement Ltd., Mark O'Neil travels to far-flung locales for meet-and-greets with the 17,000 crew members of the 400 vessels his company operates. But in January 2022, he showed up in 3D, 6-foot life-size splendor at a conference in Manila—interacting with the audience via a screen in Cyprus. "It was a real 'beam me up' moment. They felt I was really there." [bloomberg.com] The Buzz 4: Companies from Google to WeWork want to help employers reduce Zoom fatigue with holograms for the workplace. Alphabet Inc.'s Google revealed Project Starline, a video-chat system with screens that give participants three-dimensional depth. WeWork announced a partnership with hologram technology company ARHT Media Inc. to bring holograms to 100 WeWork buildings in 16 locations around the world. Microsoft Corp. introduced Microsoft Mesh, a mixed-reality service integrating three-dimensional images of people and content into the compatible displays of smart glasses or other devices. [wsj.com] We'll ask Joe Ward / CEO at IKIN, Allen Proithis / CEO at GXC, James Brehm / CTE at James Brehm Associates and Taylor Scott / CTO at IKIN for their insights on The Future of Holograms in Business and Industry: The Better to See You, My Dear?

The Buzz 1: Raising kids is tough enough. Add the prospect of dating to the equation, and you've got quite a challenge. But regardless how your circumstance arose, you deserve to date… Divorced dads are usually dealing with limited time with their kids, so they can feel guilty about dating.…You'll know it's too soon to date if you need to talk incessantly about your former wife in glowing or not-so-glowing terms. [menshealth.com] The Buzz 2: "If you got married pre-Tinder and other dating apps, you might feel…like you're a pager guy in a world of smartphones. Apps can be great for some people, but it's important to remember they aren't the only way to find a partner… More conventional methods, like meeting someone through friends, are always an option." [inverse.com] The Buzz 3: Dating can be difficult enough, right? Let alone with all the competition there seems to be in the dating world. The normal thing to do now is online dating, but how does online dating work when you are a single dad? What are the things you need to know and look out for when dating as a single father? With so many variables you need to consider, your children and your lifestyle and routine, how would an outsider fit into that routine and jive with your family's dynamic? [healthyframework.com] We'll ask Karen Gibson, Jason Blount, Ben Trushkov and Dustin Droen for their take on The Future of Single Dads & Technology: Back Into the Dating Pool!

I LIKE IT. NO I HATE IT. IT FITS, NO IT DOESN'T FIT. I'M RETURNING IT! The Buzz 1: Retailers expect 17.8% or $158Bn of merchandise sold during the 2022 holiday season will be returned, according to the National Retail Federation. Returns have become a major headache in ecommerce, cutting into profit and straining resources. [www.digitalcommerce360.com] The Buzz 2: 37% of American households' financial situation is worse than last year. But consumers will cut non-essentials to give gifts and socialize. They plan to pull back on the number of gifts purchased, visit fewer instore and online retailers, shrink the shopping window to 5.8 weeks vs. 6.4 weeks in 2021, and start shopping in October. [www2.deloitte.com] The Buzz 3: Customers during the 2022 holiday shopping season are looking for brands that can provide personalized, convenient solutions…and having an experience around the product versus just purchasing the product. [www.forbes.com] We'll ask Matt Laukaitis, Navjit Bhasin, Praful Karanth and Victoria Wieck for their take on The Future of Retail and Technology: How Many Happy Returns? – Part 2.

Looking ahead to 2030: How will we work? How will we travel? What will we eat? How will we dress? Will we have ANY privacy? Will we all be space travelers? What old and new challenges will we face? The Buzz: The top 7 emerging future technology booms that will redefine the future and the world we live in – from https://unboxingstartups.com: *** Per Statista, 2,028 AI companies in 2018 were working in the US. The number of AI startups could reach 9,000 by the end of 2030. *** The growth rate of self-driving cars may reach 20-30% by 2030. Tesla, Toyota, Google, BMW are developing self-driving cars with an encrypted software system. *** Oxford Economics: Up to 20M manufacturing jobs worldwide could be replaced by robots by 2030. *** American brand Tommy Hilfiger's clothing embedded with smart Bluetooth chips that link to a mobile app and game, will let wearers earn rewards points. *** Researchers in Japan in 2018 experimented with space elevators at the International Space Station. This could open up space to the average person. *** By 2030, cloud computing will be so widespread it will be hard to remember when it didn't exist. *** IDTechEx predicts by 2030, the augmented, virtual, and mixed reality optics and display markets will top $28Bn. And there's much more. We'll ask Colin Dunn, Jon Clay, Debbie Taylor Moore, Derek Harp and Mike Schroeder for their take on Our Cyber Future In 2030: Will The Livin' Be Easy? Part 2.

The Buzz 1: Drones have been around for more than two decades, but their roots date back to World War I when the U.S. and France worked on developing automatic, unmanned airplanes…The last few years have seen significant drone adoption by individuals, commercial entities, and governments: Aerial photography for journalism and film; Express shipping and delivery; Gathering info or supplying essentials for disaster management; Geographic mapping of inaccessible terrain; Building safety inspections; Precision crop monitoring; Unmanned cargo transport. [businessinsider.com] The Buzz 2: Drone Headlines: Drones are helping to restore power in Puerto Rico. Google's drone service will deliver library books. Guy sends drone to rescue his drone. Drone flying cars soar over Dubai. Submarine drone can swim for months and then fly away. Drone waiters will take your restaurant order. People enjoy watching drones crash over and over. ESPN shot the X Games with drones. The military wants a dancing drone that can fly through windows. [popularmechanics.com] The Buzz 3: If you grow tired of flying your drone above your property, try other fun, legal things: Join a Flying Club or Drone Racing League; Create a DIY Obstacle Course; Take Aerial Photos and Videos of Your Hikes; Create a 3D Property Map; Help Locate Lost Pets; Capture Special Events Footage; Start a Freelance Aerial Photography Business; Take Unique Holiday or Travel Photos; Volunteer for Scientific Data Collection and Surveying; Check Your Roof and Gutters for Damage or Debris. [aerocorner.com] We'll ask Chuck Byers, Pharns Genece, Ryan Walsh, Steve Philpott and Alex Backer for their take on The Future of Drones: Landing on a Roof or Planet Near You Soon? – Part 4.

The Buzz 1: Dozens of song titles have "Edge" in the title, including: Darkness on the Edge of Town by Bruce Springsteen, Edge of Seventeen by Stevie Nicks, and Living on the Edge by Aerosmith. But what does EDGE mean in our tech-driven world? The Buzz 2: Edge computing reduces the volumes of data to be moved and the distance that data needs to travel for quicker movement of data and a reduction in transmission costs. [theceomagazine.com] Now imagine your own connected home, car, and energy provider work together to run more efficiently, lower your energy bill, and help reduce the impact on climate change. Sounds good? That day is coming faster than you think. This is where the edge in technology comes into play. As part of a digital-first evolution, organizations in every industry are beginning to seize opportunities presented by edge computing and IoT – from doorbell cameras and smartwatches to sensors on windmills and in fleets of cars. An IDC January 2022 report predicted worldwide edge spending to hit $176Bn this year—up 14.8% over 2021—and nearly $274Bn by 2025. Soon, edge and IoT infrastructure, pervasive connectivity, and lower technology costs will ensure that people like you, devices, and data can communicate, collaborate, and innovate efficiently and affordably. We'll ask Dr. Angela Nicoara, Ali Benfattoum, Aditya Varma and Sam Lakkundi for their insights on The Future of IoT and Edge Computing: What's In It For YOU?

Buzz 1: For some, a 'smart house' is chock-full of gadgets that automate or monitor almost every conceivable part of a house. For others, a smart house is extreme simplicity with only the slightest of technological intrusions as necessity demands…Apple's Home app, Google's Nest, Google's Home app, Airthinx air quality monitors, myQ smart garage doors, Dyson app, Wemo app, Nanoleaf, a Govee Home app. [forbes.com] Buzz 2: Managing smart home is hard. "You do need an ecosystem, fundamentally, because you can't say, 'Oh, here's your brand-new house, but oh, now you've got 300 apps with 300 passwords and you now need to connect them all up yourself, and you've got to figure out how all these things attach to your wireless network." [KB Home VP Dan Bridleman Bridleman] Buzz 3: Increasingly, what makes a home smart…is the fundamentals of what a home is supposed to provide: heat, light, shelter, power…a smart house does its job. Even when your power provider doesn't, or can't. Buzz 4: At CES 2020, CTA's Steve Koenig suggested the IoT needed a rebrand to the "Intelligence of Things" for the decade ahead…to smartly integrate all these devices in a secure way that makes consumers comfortable sharing the data required to make smart homes truly smart. Builders are front and center in smart home technology conversations. [forbes.com] We'll ask Lee Miller at RealPage Smart Building, Pierre Calzadilla at Local Logic, Leonard Lee at neXt Curve and Mary Nietschke at RealPage for their take on The Future of Smart Homes & Sustainability: Your Intelligent App Ecosystem?

The Buzz 1: "Reading and 'riting and 'rithmetic – taught to the tune of the hick'ry stick." School Days, song written in 1907 by Will D. Cobb and Gus Edwards, is about a couple looking back sentimentally on primary school. The Buzz 2: "In the past, financial literacy has been pushed aside within K-12 schools. There has been a lack of agreement about how and what to teach.…Because financial education prepares students for the realities they'll face in the real world and contributes directly to their future success, it deserves to hold the same priority as any other K-12 subject." [Alice Lee fastcompany.com] The Buzz 3: "Students in states with financial education curricula are more likely to save and less likely to pay credit cards late…also more likely to be banked…Digital financial literacy is more front and center…." [ibid] The Buzz 4: "Preschool-aged children are capable of learning simple spending plans. Early training in categorizing money establishes patterns for future money-management behavior… the concept of dividing their money into categories – save, spend, share… understand money is limited in quantity…" [incharge.org] We'll ask Karen Tenenbaum, Rumbi Petrozzello, Kelly Kirk-Xu, Mac Gardner and Annamaria Lusardi for their take on The Future of Financial Literacy: Can We Raise Our Kids' 'Money IQ'?