In a weekly column, alternately written by Lucien Engelen, Maarten Steinbuch, Carlo van de Weijer, and Tessie Hartjes, E52 tries to find out what the future will look like. All four contributors – sometimes accompanied by guest bloggers – are working on technologies that can provide solutions to the problems of our time. This Sunday, it‘s Lucien Engelen’s turn. Here are all the published columns.
I’m really used to it by now: voice commands to my computer, to my watch, to my car while driving and answering messages and at home. We’re all getting more and more used to voice in our smartphone, in our car and even on our watch and most of all in our homes. Talking to computers is booming (business) meanwhile shifting power in the corporate world as well.
While Google dominates the ads business, Amazon controls the home with smart speakers in your living, bedroom, in your kitchen and now also in your car to help you navigate. Just ask for her (?) attention and ask for the recipe, nearest pizzeria and the cheapest store selling your ink cartridges. Apple tosses in their two cents with their Siri in the iPhone, iPad, computer, Watch, earbuds and soon their speakers as well of course. Even advising you what holiday trip to book or First Aid is in the game nowadays.
This more and more is turning away from Google’s search pages, even though they made them voice searchable with Google Now, but the results are still presented by pages, with ads, hence their main business.
I expect more and more steps from Google and others in this market also to protect their ads-business, with their own Home speakers, Google assistant (that btw rocks when you live in the US) and other products and services.
Interestingly all of this is happening while on the other hand ‘screen’ is getting redefined with the introduction of other forms of reality like augmented, virtual and mixed reality.
I’m curious who will win this battle: ‘voice‘ or ‘screen’. Will we in 15 years from now still be typing our queries on a keyboard showing up on a screen? Or… will just thinking your search give you tons of info … on your retina?
What could possibly go wrong 😉
https://youtu.be/5FFRoYhTJQQ
