It’s 6:15 a.m. and my alarm clock is ringing, but 15 minutes ahead of schedule. My clock is always connected with Smart, my virtual assistant, an artificial intelligence software that autonomously manages my calendar (among other tasks) and from which it has learned that I will need to catch a flight out of town this morning. Smart has also checked the morning traffic, received from the V2I (vehicle-to-infrastructure sensors installed in 2020 on primary communication routes), which notes some delays along the route that I would normally take to the airport. I’d better start getting ready! Welcome to the future of AI.
Google car in the driveway
Of course, before waking me, Smart checked to make sure that the flight would be on time. After collecting all of this information, it requested that the Amazon drone, which delivers breakfast directly on my balcony each day, move up its delivery time in accordance with my new schedule. In the future of AI, even the driverless Google Car knows that it has to pick me up earlier than usual. My suitcase is already at the airport, thanks to R100, the latest version of R1, the first Italian humanoid robot (sold back in 2017 where it could be purchased by Smart). It contains all the information about my appointments, and it has reminded me that I have a business dinner tomorrow evening and has even packed the appropriate attire.
At the gate in minutes
I enter the airport at precisely 8:09 a.m. and am at the gate within minutes. The AI-powered Precog—the pre-crime software used by the border police—has already checked my travel data, comparing it to information available in banking anti-terrorism databases and to the content of all of my social media posts. My risk profile is low, which allows me to arrive at the airport just 10 minutes before boarding begins. A moment is all it takes for a retina scan and facial recognition and olfactory sensors to confirm my identity to Precog.
Blue Origin, the first company to sell space flights starting back in 2018 has long been my favorite airline. It has software that perfectly profiles passengers to meet their preferences. Thanks to the algorithms on which the Blue Origin software is based, it has selected an aisle seat at the front of the plane beside Mario, another traveler who published photos on Instagram (taken with Google Glass) from a museum that I recently visited. Being able to chat with Mario will make my trip more enjoyable.
Smart keeps me in shape
Unfortunately, according to my smart watch, I’ll need to eat a low-calorie meal today. Because the device recorded a low amount of physical activity over the last 24 hours, Smart is obliged to exclude high-caloric foods from the flight menu. After arriving at my destination, I head directly for the meeting point with the Google Car which, because it is synced with the micro sensor that signals my exact location (implanted just below my right shoulder), shows up at the exact moment that I exit the airport. It will take me directly to the hotel where, since all airport immigration controls have long been abolished, the country hosting me will make all the appropriate controls at the time my flight is booked after receiving all of the information from Precog.
A welcome gift
In the future of AI, naturally there is no need to check in at the hotel. Instead, I can go directly to my room because each door has sensors that detect the biometric traits of each guest, allowing access only to authorized guests. I don’t have to worry about ordering lunch or breakfast: Expedia, which booked my hotel based on instructions from Smart, has taken data supplied by Amazon from my smart refrigerator (which sends data to Amazon when I am about to run out of something), and from my schedule, my dietary preferences and the specialties of the hotel chef to prepare a menu customized for me. Entering my room, I will also find a ticket for this evening’s Celine Dion concert. This is a much-appreciated gift from my credit card, which was used to pay for the trip and the latest Celine Dion album, which I bought last week on iTunes.
P.S. I wrote this post thinking of those who still believe that Google is just a search engine, that Facebook is a community of friends, that iTunes is a site where you purchase music, or that Jeff Bezos (Amazon, Blue Origin) is just a successful entrepreneur. Above all, I wrote it for those who remain surprised at Snapchat’s Wall Street debut and who don’t understand why companies (both “old” economy and Silicon Valley) are investing billions of dollars in developing AI technologies. The future of AI is coming–are you ready?
English translation by www.lettera43.it
