MARCH 2 0 1 7

WHAT ROLE CAN

SMART

TECHNOLOGY PLAY

IN HELPING A

FRUSTRATED USER?

DAVID KINNEAR

From connected cars with crash prevention sensors to internet-connected appliances in our homes, smart

technology is increasingly becoming a part of our lives and changing how we interact with the world on a day-

to-day basis. 

But as much as smart technology has begun to integrate itself into 21st- century society, we find ourselves only at the infancy of this revolutionary

innovation.Because smart technology is still new, it sometimes fails to work the way we want it to, resulting in frustration.

Although that programming has gotten better and more sophisticated with

time, computer or smartphone users of any make and model may still experience periodic freezes or app crashes.

However, new kinds of programming in smart technology are being implemented to reduce these crashes, and, thereby, user frustration. Like the smart technology they’re intended to run, these programs themselves are smart because they are able to adapt and learn the

longer that they are used. Powered by a principle called deep learning, these programs offer unique new opportunities for

streamlined experiences with tech.

Deep learning is a kind of artificial intelligence that is modeled on the structure of the human brain. Although computers are able to use binary code and algorithms to perform complex calculations at many times the speed of the human brain, one missing rule in the chain of code can crash the entire system.

The human brain is able to bypass missing links to form new connections. This is because our brains are loaded with the

power of perception, an almost instantaneous ability to identify people and objects without having to search for a

preprogrammed rule that helps us make the identification. Deep learning aims to harness this power of perception and imbue it

to technology.

Alexa, Amazon’s digital assistant found on its Echo brand of products, also functions through a mixture of deep learning and

binary programming.

Deep learning is also paving the way for implementing real-time language translation programs with minimal error rates,

something that will change the way we interact with one another on a global scale.

But innovations beyond deep learning hint at an even more streamlined user experience with technology in the not too distant future. Pepper, a robot developed by Softbank, is the first of its kind to be able to read and remember human emotions. Capable of interpreting smiles, frowns, tone of voice, and even body language, Pepper is the next generation of artificial intelligence.

In the years ahead, AI-enabled technology has the

potential to make UI/UX design implementation easier on

large-scale projects and could also optimize machine-

delivered communications in customer service situations.

Although deploying AI as a solution to user frustration is a

promising concept, we still have a ways to go before we,

the user, can expect to receive personalized, human-like

assistance from bots.

But, who knows? Humans, we know, can’t predict the

future.

Please visit DavidKinnear.net for more information.