Above: Could Bausch & Lomb and Magic Leap team up to deliver AR via contact lens?
The Consumer Electronics Show is just around the corner and is expecting over 165,000 attendees and more than 3,800 product demos. But as exciting as CES always is, the changes we'll see there will be incremental.
What would really blow our collective 2016 minds is a look a bit further into the future at CES 2025. So my team at SapientRazorfish immersed ourselves in macro trends in technology and consumer behavior to imagine several announcements we could all very well hear at CES in just eight short years.
Here are our predictions. Welcome to the future!
Augmented reality has finally achieved its promise as a low-profile full spectrum solution in the form of lenses worn directly on the eye. And Magic Leap and world contact lens manufacturer Bausch & Lomb have partnered up to deliver Mixed Reality Lens. The lens will change the way we experience the world around us, allowing for synchronized virtual and physical interactions with no visible hardware on the user. Every moment will be connected and data-powered.
The continued interest in publishing moments and sharing updates has evolved beyond the selfie-stick. Micro-drones are now capable of hovering autonomously to record the world around you from many vantage points, including your own. Facebook and Parrot are proud to announce MeDrone, the most advanced micro-drone built to record and stream every moment of your life directly to Facebook's Virtuworld, in 2D and in VR. Every moment captured for eternity.
The new fashionable line of glasses will enable mobile AR computing and communications services through a built-in microphone, directional audio, and gesture/voice recognition, with the glass itself offered in a wide range of digital tints. The new "classic" designs will enable a much broader user base, including with those who have previously rejected AR tech on the basis of bad fashion. The new HoloBans will be sold in Microsoft stores, at Ray-Ban retail, and at your favorite telecom store.
LG has partnered to combine its 3D printing and cooking technologies with recipes from some of the world's greatest chefs to introduce a groundbreaking piece of consumer kitchen technology. Food-e will enable anyone to eat Michelin star quality meals in the comfort and convenience of their own home, with little more than a subscription to LG's patented Ingredient Packs. And when you rate Food-e's meals, LG's optimization engine learns the subtle flavor profile you most respond to, making world class meals even better over time.
Kohler has incorporated the next generation of non-invasive bioscan technology into its smart toilets to give consumers a clear and immediate analysis of their health. "We look at your output and give you valuable input!" stated the Chief Medical Officer at Kohler Labs. Among other things, the technology will provide immediate feedback about antioxidant levels, nutrition analysis, health, and recommend daily food intake.
General Motors Autonomous and Walgreens join forces to provide passengers of their Lyft-powered autonomous vehicle fleet with routine medical procedures while in transit. As the partnership was announced, Walgreens' Chief Health Officer noted that the service would allow anyone to keep up to date with flu shots, vaccines, health exams, or other simple procedures without wasting a single second of your day.
While lagging behind competitors like Oculus, and Apple when it comes to VR headsets, Sony took a big step to regain a lead today in announcing its haptic-VR suits for PlayStation. Sony has delivered a breakthrough suite of haptic technologies previously only available in chair form. Now, users of the Sony VR rigs can be fully mobile in full comfort and full haptics.
By combining electrophoretic displays and integrated Konectit technology, a wide family of personal products will now change their appearance right on a consumer's shelf depending on local and real-time conditions. "Imagine opening your medicine cabinet in the morning to find your bottle of sunscreen reminding you that it's going to be a hot, sunny day. Now our products will change their packaging based upon projected demand, to help consumers with everyday choices," said the Director of Intelligent Packaging.
While these futurist announcements push beyond what is currently possible at consumer scale, the elements of their existence already exist in the world. The reason CES is ultimately so exciting is because you get a glimpse of where the future is going without it being fully realized. That enables all of us to leverage the raw ingredients of these trends and our own company's capabilities and resources to create more compelling and competitive experiences. See you in Vegas this year, and more breathtakingly, in 2025!
Zachary Jean Paradis is VP Customer Experience Strategy at SapientRazorfish.