I have written about digital twins over the past year and participated in several articles describing a future where virtual representations of all things physical are viable. You can explore the topic here. The art of the possible is coming into focus.
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Governments Need A “Digital Twin Division”
I wrote about the expanding possibility space for digital twins earlier this month. One domain that stands to benefit from the use of digital twins is the public domain. Government use of digital twins in the coming years, if pursued, can help leaders prepare for disruptions and disasters. This article – which I authored – was just published by Government Technology Insider. Several scenarios are described, with a vision towards a specific division focused on the possibility space.
What The Community Said about Interacting With Lost Loved Ones
In this post from February 2nd, I once again posed the question of interacting with a lost loved one. This scenario is part of a broad digital twins discussion, whether it is a digital version of a lost loved one, or a version of ourselves that lives on forever. In a post from February 2020, I included this video that showed a women reconnecting with her lost daughter virtually (digital twin):
Continue readingThe Expanding Possibility Space For Digital Twins
I have spent the last several months focused on all aspects of digital twins. The maturing of foundational building blocks has expanded their possibility space. Industrial applications are familiar to many, but the breadth of applications are now more visible. If we view digital twins through the lens of possibilities, we can apply them to the various challenges that continue to impact society. Using some of the UN sustainability goals as a guide, and with the help of ChatGPT via a question and answer session, let’s explore the possibilities:
Continue readingSpeaking To Those Who Have Passed
In early 2020 I wrote a Post about reuniting with a lost loved one. Since that time, the capacity to do so has expanded.
Continue readingRememory, the act of talking to the dead, is an idea as old as man himself. For pagans, it was a means of venerating ancestors who had passed. In Christianity, it remains the belief in afterlife through purgatory, heaven, or hell. What used to be science fiction for some and customary beliefs for others has now become a reality, by using the artificial intelligence technology created by DeepBrain AI.
Nana Coupeau – Rememory, The AI that Helps Us Talk to the Dead
Digital Twins Are Set For Rapid Adoption In 2023
Interest in Digital Twins is ramping, as evidenced by the number of media outlets showing interest in the topic. I have added a number of recent articles to my media library. A very good CNBC article was launched a couple of days ago. It provides a broad view of digital twins and the growing possibility space.
Continue readingBig Things In Store For Digital Twins In 2023
I had the pleasure of talking to Paul Barker in an interview with IT World Canada. The resulting article just launched. We discussed the possibilities for digital twins in 2023. I really enjoyed our discussion, which he captured via a series of quotes in the article. In the context of foresight – a question that comes up a lot these days – he asked me what it is like to be a futurist:
Continue readingThe Impact Of Virtual Worlds On Travel
Continue readingThe tourism sector stands to benefit tremendously from the use of Metaverse technology. The greater availability of new and better sources of inspiration for travelers is one of the perks that stands out the most
Jai Hamid – Survey shows Metaverse will have an impact on how people travel
Rehearsing 2023
As a new year approaches, it is natural to want to predict what’s next. But, a caveat: I prefer not to speak in terms of “predictions.” I speak about “rehearsing possibilities” – understanding possible futures and envisioning outcomes.
Frank Diana – Digital Twins Reach a Tipping Point & Save Lives
That quote above was included in a recent article about digital twins. That article focused on the role that digital twins are likely to play in 2023.
Continue readingHumanoid Robot Mimics Facial Expressions
She’s baaaack. Every new video of Ameca gets more fascinating. We watched her come to life. We saw her defend her personal space. We watched as she practiced facial expressions in a mirror. We then watched her have a conversation with her creators. Now, we see her mimicking the facial expressions of an engineer. Check it out.
Continue readingA Conversation With Ameca – The Humanoid Robot
Ameca has already proven to be an impressive demonstration of state-of-the-art humanoid robots, with her uncanny ability to contort her face into extremely believable, human-like expressions, ranging from disbelief to disgust. Now, thanks to the power of GPT 3, Ameca is able to converse as well, in an impressive extension of what modern robots are capable of.
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The Metaverse Handbook
The Metaverse is now one of those buzzwords we can expect to hear about for some time to come. With that in mind, I just finished reading my latest book titled The Metaverse Handbook. The book covers the following:
Continue readingRobot Shows A Wide Range Of Facial Expressions
When I first posted a video of Ameca defending her personal space, the reaction ranged from fascinating to creepy. I would expect a similar reaction to this new video released by Engineered Arts. They have been working on teaching Ameca a wider range of facial expressions, with twelve new actuators added. See for yourself.
Continue readingDigital Twins Have Evolved
I had the pleasure recently of talking to Fernando Guarneros Olmos about the evolving world of digital twins. Fernando is a journalist with a special interest in business related to technology and video games. Our discussion was captured in an article titled Digital twins also help prevent famine.
Continue readingInvisibility Cloaks
Continue readingLong a staple of science-fiction and fantasy, the ability to become invisible would be a revolutionary technological development. By bending light of all wavelengths around an object, irrespective of its shape, both metalenses and metamaterials offer the potential to effectively “cloak” any object. Recent research has demonstrated that combining the two nanotechnology devices may in fact pave the way to the first working, universal invisibility cloak.
Ethan Siegel – Invisibility cloaks are not just possible, but are becoming reality
Our Immersive Future
I have long believed that the way we interact as humans is on an accelerating journey towards massive change. Whether the next interaction frontier involves the brain or a broad Metaverse vision, it is almost certain that how we interact will change. There have been several waves of change to our interaction paradigm through at least three stages of transformation. However, the next transformation will alter many long-standing beliefs, and as we explore possibilities, emerging scenarios can be very illuminating.
Continue readingFord To Use Robots To Operate 3D Printers
A recent article describes how Ford intends to use robots to operate 3D Printers. According to the article, Ford’s Advanced Manufacturing Center has developed an interface that allows machines from different suppliers to speak to each other in the same language and operate parts of the production line autonomously. The article explains how Ford’s patent-pending system solves a crucial bottleneck in the production line by using robots to operate the 3D printers through the night without human interaction. The video below provides a glimpse into the process.
Non-Fungible Tokens
The hype surrounding non-fungible tokens (NFTs) is reaching a fever pitch. A recent article describes NFTs as data added to a file that creates a unique signature. It can be an image file, a song, a tweet, a text posted on a website, a physical item, and various other digital formats. Another article explores NFTs from the perspective of value.
Continue readingWeb3
The current buzz surrounding Web3 represents the convergence of multiple domains. In the past, Web 3.0 represented the semantic web, which focused on making Internet data machine-readable. Web3 has moved to a broader place, including the Metaverse and decentralization. The metaverse is described by Wikipedia as a network of 3D virtual worlds focused on social connection. The metaverse itself is a huge buzzword these days, but its origins date back to Author Neil Stephenson when he coined the term in Snow Crash, a dystopian cyberpunk novel published in 1992. In the novel, the metaverse is described as a 3D shared virtual world – a whole universe of shared virtual spaces seemingly linked together with an ability to teleport between them. Games like Minecraft and Fortnite are close to the vision that he foresaw. You can explore more on the metaverse here.
Continue readingHumanoid Robot Defends Personal Space
Many prognosticators expect a robotic tipping point this year. We are witnessing the acceleration of the robotic journey with advancements appearing at a dizzying pace. Unlike the robots of the past, these advancements might freak us out – as it did to the folks at Engineered Arts when they witnessed this reaction by their humanoid robot. See video below.
Reimagining the Future 