2015 is looking to be a challenging year economically if you happen to live in anywhere except the United States, yet investors continue to sit on a huge pile of cash accumulated during the years of quantitative easing. So in spite of the doom and gloom predicted for the economy, I remain convinced that the investment landscape will continue to remain active and vibrant.
With most VCs and PEs coming up with their reports on investment trends for 2015, I thought it might be fun to list three areas of investment that I personally believe will have a major impact on established industries, if not in 2015, then in the coming years. These areas will not provide quick returns for investors but have foundations built on solid science and will potentially change the way we live in the future.
1. Augmented Reality
A lot people confuse augmented reality with virtual reality. The difference is that while virtual reality is a computer generated, immersive environment, augmented reality enhances the real world experience by adding graphics, information and interactive components.
Google Glass was an attempt to build an augmented reality product and Google continues to focus its resources in this area. The possible applications for Augmented Reality are too numerous to list which makes me believe it can be a real game changer. The real challenge lies in the devices used to deliver the service.
Many believe the device will ultimately be a cooler version of Google Glass, but I beg to differ. Glasses only augment one of your senses (sight). I believe the final device needs to have sensors that can not just pick up but also influence brainwaves such that through this transcranial stimulation, you can not only see, but smell, touch, taste and hear. Imagine not only never getting lost again, but also being able to taste that hotdog at the booth you are passing before buying it. I personally can’t wait for this to happen…!
2. Cerebral Manipulation
I’m coining this term because the existing term of Mind-Control has some existing negative connotations associated with it. What it amounts to is this. The ability for devices to be controlled using only your brainwaves. If we look just at the computer era, where we started by typing commands, then using a mouse to shortcut that process, cerebral manipulation is the next logical step in evolution where the mind delivers the control statements to the unit.
This would be infinitely more practical and logical than waving your hands about, like how its depicted in movies, when using your augmented reality device. The people around you would also appreciate it more!
A lot of cutting edge research is already being done in this area, although mostly for academic purposes. At ETH Zurich, bioengineers there have developed a cerebral manipulation device that can alter the genes in a mouse through thought alone. Sadly for commercial applications, though a number of companies like Emotiv, NeuroSky and MUSE are working on such devices, their products are still someway away from appealing to the broader market.
This technology will require us all to learn to focus our thoughts better as the waves generated by the brain control the devices. However, if we were to take this just a short technological step further, and if devices can translate our brainwaves into words we mean to form rather than just to move a pointer, then it might one day be possible for us to communicate without ever having to speak.
3. Power Sources
All these cool technological devices would not be possible without a power source, something that a lot people forget. Research and innovation in this area has seriously lagged that for the devices which rely on these power sources. Technologies driving innovation in power sources that will drive our devices and enable them to stay mobile are:
– Wireless Power
– Super Capacitors
– Batteries
Of the three, super capacitors offer the most hope. Wireless Power (radiative) will require the use of high powered electromagnetic waves such as microwaves or lasers to effectively charge a battery, which poses a danger to people. Batteries take too long to charge and are highly inefficient.
Through the discovery of graphene, however, super capacitors are now becoming a viable option to charge the mobile devices of the future. I won’t go into the technical details, but graphene, by its nature of being extremely thin (and hence high surface area) as well as its relative low cost, is now being considered for use in low cost super capacitors. There are still many technical hurdles to overcome before this can become as mainstream as the rechargeable batteries in our phones, but it definitely represents the future of power for mobile devices.
Some Meowsings...... 