Apps Gain Intelligence, Get Future Ready

Technology surrounds us. It is an integral part of our lives, and we take it for granted mostly, not realizing that our way of life is so deeply impacted by it. Another important factor that we often forget is that most of these life changing technologies were considered insignificant when they first got launched. Take the example of blogging. It started as an online journal, and today it’s a critical business, journalism and techno-social communication medium. Social networking is another great example. What started as a mechanism for dating and flirting, is now a primary content consumption platform. Something very similar is happening in the world of mobile applications

There are a number of mobile applications that are considered experimental or unnecessary today because of their far-fetched functionality. However, they represent the future of how people will interact with the technology. They are at an initial stage, a first step towards a revolutionary trend that could become the reality in as little as 2-3 years from now. Some of the functions performed by these next generation applications are –

1. Pattern analysis and learning – through our interaction and choices, the program can understand and even predict our next move, or requirement.

2. AI based decision making – decisions are made based on the input data after it is converted to information by removing the unimportant stuff, and the ability to identify and segregate relevant inputs.

3. Pre-emptive information output – Without the user initiating an action, the software can provide the user with information that is contextually relevant, and perceived important by it. The user gets a response without even asking a question.

4. Proactive execution of actions – The action is taken without the user interaction. Before the user gets down to doing something, it is already done.

5. Inter app automation – the user (active) or the app (proactive) can set up what-if scenario simulations, and execution patterns across applications and services. The scenario execution happens when certain conditions are met.

6. Act as a proxy to the user for communication – The code learns the communication patterns of the user, like whom they communicate with, what do they communicate about, and when does the communication happen. Based on this learning, the app can initiate communication on its own. The communication target feels as if the user is communicating, but in reality, it is one piece of code talking to another.

7. Predictive action facilitation – The application can predict what you will want to do, and can help you take that action easily. It can turn a multi-step transaction into a single one.

8. Unapproved actions – The actions are executed without the need of the users’ permission, and even without intimating the user.

While these features might seem far-fetched and complex, we are using them in parts today too. IFTTT (if this then that) lets you create automation scripts called recipes, with conditional execution. For e.g., if someone is selling a corvette on craigslist, let me know, or if someone tags me on Facebook, change my status to “I got tagged”. Another classic example is Google Now, an interface that gives you answers, and not search results. It also learns your location patterns, and deduces the location of your work and home. Every morning, it tells you how much time it will take you to reach work, depending on the traffic on the way. Similarly, there are so many Facebook apps that post on your behalf. Apple’s voice input assistant, Siri, lets you execute complex processes in one command. The examples are aplenty. However, the users are still looking at these features more as fun additions.

The new smart apps and services are definitely fun to toy with, but they also keep you informed, and make you productive. Most of them are free and easy to use, but they're not trivial. In fact, these products represent the future of computing.