Uber points to Dallas as test city for self driving cars
Uber has big plans for Dallas, including a second headquarters in the downtown neighborhood of Deep Ellum, expecting 3000 employees to be based there. The company halted tests of self driving cars after one of its cars killed a pedestrian in Arizona. Road tests have resumed in Pittsburgh and will begin in Dallas in the near future, the company states. In addition to self driving car tests, the Dallas operations will test the company’s urban air taxi service. The Dallas Morning News
dis-rup-shun: A Town Hall meeting is scheduled in Dallas to get resident’s feedback. Dallas likes to think of itself as a progressive city, so tech leaders are welcome, but is there fear of being run down by driver less cars in downtown Dallas? Given that driver-full cars offer enough danger, Dallasites will be hard pressed to oppose Uber’s move to their city.
15 important tech trends for the next decade
As we near the year’s end, it is time to hear various analysts’ thoughts on the future. Here are the top 15 of 90 trends that were presented in London by CSS Insight. Read them all at ZDNet
- By 2021, algorithmic and anti-bias data auditors emerge to tackle “pale, male and stale” artificial intelligence
- By 2023, psychometric testing of software developers becomes commonplace
- By 2021, Amazon buys 5G mobile spectrum for its own use in at least one market
- In 2020, Apple launches its “Apple Privacy” brand
- By 2021, a Premier League football club launches a facial recognition ticketing system
- Artificial intelligence replaces referees in a major sporting event by 2022
- Samsung launches Galaxy Glasses in 2022
- Environmental pressure sees virtual reality displace 20% of business travel by 2029
- By 2025, one in 50 households in affluent markets owns a domestic robot
- Brain–computer interfaces evolve beyond medical applications into commercial offerings by 2027
- By 2023, a lack of diversity in data sets pushes a wearable device maker to pay users for their data
- Oversupply of 5G smartphones in 2020 sees prices plummet
- In 2020, at least five operators start to offer subscribers an annual smartphone “health check”
dis-rup-shun: Some of these are easier to visualize than others. A vendor needs to take ownership of a privacy standard and make that an asset that differentiates the brand. Apple is a logical player to do so. Others will follow in a race to provide the most private, best secured services and products — and that’s a great achievement for all. Facial recognition in lines at airports, concerts and events would be a convenience, if it works and at airports we are glad to give up our identities as all of us simple travelers know we don’t need to be security checked. The oversupply of smartphones has already started, resulting in a less costly iPhone, and likely to bring on more great choices for a lot less money for those that don’t need a state of the art camera in their smartphone.
3D printed organs replace cadavers
Stratasys’ J750 Digital Anatomy 3D Printer and new synthetic materials together result in a 3D printed heart that is so realistic in texture and structure, that it will replace human cadavers in many institutions. The printer can create an exact replica of a heart with a particular anomaly, to be studied prior to surgery. Tech Republic
dis-rup-shun: As the medical industry is rapidly squeezed by rising costs and labor shortages, technology can impact the level and cost of care in thousands of ways. Building organ models that are nearly realistic enough for human use will increase the level of education and preparation for health professionals, and will enable people with injuries and medical conditions to keep a copy of their bodies available for care professionals as a 3D medical record.