I started this book by describing much of the technology industry as surfing a wave propelled by the idea of because we can, meaning that a lot of things put out in the world originate from a technology or business-oriented perspective, as opposed to human-oriented; we’re just making stuff because we can, without really thinking it through. You know these products when you see them buried in the back of the junk drawer in your kitchen or exiled up on a closet shelf somewhere. They’re usually the result of some idea that seemed interesting but was never really tested, or maybe it was a good concept that was poorly executed. These products are always going to be out there—There will always be someone who will buy a bracelet that zaps you in order to break a bad habit, or a bulky wearable that lets you play back the last 60 seconds of audio. There’s nothing we can do about that. The more dangerous products are those that are actually popular and introduce behaviors and habits that are negative for the user.

I’m not saying that all smartwatches are bad and provide no value—a lot of them are decent fitness trackers, and there’s some great location-based stuff happening in Androidwear—but for the most part, they just take the notifications from your phone and put them on your wrist. This doesn’t seem terrible, per se, but when we step back and look at our overall relationship with technology, we need to be honest with ourselves and think about what we really want. Are we better off with a device that primarily functions as a reminder to look at our phones? And, does that give us more or less control in our lives?

We can do better. We’ve must make some tough decisions about the products and services we create. We cannot base these decisions on whether we think we can convince people to buy them, or base them on what’s out there right now. What we currently understand about wearable technology is going to be very different very soon, and we’ve got to move forward with the understanding that these things are going to change people’s lives for good or for bad; thus, we must do our best to move forward doing everything we can to improve people’s lives.

I say that we’re still in the Wild West because even for as far as we’ve come, we still have a lot to learn about wearable tech. The past few years alone have introduced some really great technology, and I guarantee that in another five years, the wearables landscape will be completely different, and unrecognizable compared to today. Thanks to advances processing power, mobile communications networks, machine learning, batteries, and manufacturing, we’re about to experience a very significant shift in how we understand our relationship with computers as a whole. These are the things I’m most excited about.

Mixed Reality

Mixed reality (MR) is finally getting to the point that it’s going to be both portable and useful. I am thoroughly convinced that MR systems will replace desktop computers, laptops, and televisions. MR will enable us to connect, work, and have fun with one another in entirely new and exciting ways.

Figure 11-1. Mixed-reality concept from Magic Leap

Cognitive Wearables

Cognitive wearables are still in their early phase, but will become much more accurate and powerful, allowing us to externalize basic things like stress and relaxation, but also more nuanced parts of our mental lives, such as emotions. Having access to this information will give us the ability to know much more about ourselves, and empower us to take more control over our lives.

Figure 11-2. Muse EEG headband

Machine Learning

Machine learning technology is rapidly expanding, and as activity trackers, camera-based technologies, cognitive wearables, and other devices collect more detailed information about our lives, machine learning will bring that information to us in a way that will make it truly useful.

Figure 11-3. An illustration of reinforcement learning exploration

Sensory Augmentation

Sensory augmentation will not only give us more control over the raw information that we currently perceive, it will give us the ability to sense things outside of our natural abilities and explore the world in new ways.

Figure 11-4. Woman wearing sensory augmentation earbuds by Here One

I cannot think of a better time to be in the wearables industry. Right now, more than any other time in history, we as designers and technologists have the tools and skills to create things that solve real problems. We’re beginning to get an idea of what works and what doesn’t, we’re understanding the human mind better than we ever have, we have access to the tools we need to create new things, and we have the methodologies to determine whether those work. These emerging technologies present a massive opportunity for all of us to grow as a civilization, and whether we like it or not, we’re going to have a hand in that change. The bottom line is that the more knowledge we have of ourselves, our immediate context, and our greater context, the more control we have over our lives, and the more control we have over our lives, the better our lives will be.