written by

Avoncourt Team

Technology Blog - Jul 5, 2017

Technological Progress and the Acceleration of Life

A combination of data and information leads at a simultaneously adding of opinions, skills and experiences to an improved decision making – in the field of technology, these changes and innovations can be designated as the technological progress. Technological progress leads to increases in productivity either by producing the same quantity of production volume using a smaller factor input or producing a higher quantity of production volume using the same factor input. Technological progress is thus a precondition for growth. As a whole, the technological progress constitutes all the technological innovations of a society. Ten pioneering technological innovations of recent decades show up in:

Email

Internet-enabled mobile devices

Online shopping

Online banking

Online streaming

Cloud-computing

Recording of digital TV

Biometric data for identification

Mobile payment methods

Satellite navigation

Through the so-called Hype Cycle for Emerging Technologies from Gartner Inc., a provider of market research and analyses in the field of developments in IT, it is described, which phases of the public perception a new technology passes through at their adoption. The first phase – Innovation Trigger – describes, which existing technologies have achieved a potential breakthrough. The second phase – Peak of Inflated Expectations – refers to the technologies, which are struggling with a presently exaggerated enthusiasm and still unrealistic expectations. The third phase – Through of Disillusionment – expresses, that the technology does not meet all expectations. The fourth phase – Slope of Enlightenment – mentiones that there are realistic assessments of the technology and that an understanding of its advantages, limitations and practical feasibility occurs. During the fifth phase – Plateau of Productivity – the technology becomes more and more reliable and enhances in the second and third generation. According to Gartner, the ten most important strategic trends for the next five years are based on the following technologies. They have a significant impact on the society.

Artificial intelligence and modern machine learning
Systems are able to understand, learn, predict, adapt and act independently with functions of in-depth learning, of neural networks and of the processing of natural language – things become intelligent.

Intelligent Apps
In any industry intelligent apps enable to make day-to-day tasks simpler and more efficient and to significantly improve the working day. Major applications are the virtual personal assistant (VPA) and the virtual customer assistant (VCA).

Smart things
Drones, smart household appliances and self-propelled cars are programmed as systems, which cooperate independently. That way, natural interactions between the human being and the environment occur through artificial intelligence and machine learning.

Blockchain and Distributed Ledgers
The Blockchain and Distributed Ledger technology is a shared database technology. Public and decentralized account books and further characteristics such as verified information allow to change the business model of existing industries (fundamentally). Currently, this technology is being advanced particularly in the financial services industry.

Virtual Reality and Augmented Reality
The immersive dunking in and at the computer will change the cooperation of individuals and software systems fundamentally. This is possible through appropriate apps and services, the internet of things and environments with numerous sensors.

Mesh apps and service architecture
MASA is an optimized solution for targeted networking of endpoints in the digital network e.g. – connections between the desktop computer, the smartphone and the car.

Digital technology platforms
Technology platforms such as information systems, customer service, analysis and business intelligence, internet of things and business networks will accelerate the digital world.

Digital twins
Digital twins use sensor data to proactively improve processes and thus provide a surplus value. In near future, almost every device will have a digital representative.

Conversation systems such as chatbots
Through systems covering the entire range of communication endpoints, the cornerstone for a new digital experience emerges.

Adaptive security architecture
Security systems that are capable of learning enable application architectures for the increasingly complex IT security requirements.

However, the technological progress also has its limitations. The principles – faster, better and more efficient – lead over the dissemination of technological innovations to an acceleration of communication, production and transport processes and thereby affect all levels of everyday life. As a consequence, work is constantly viewed as a lifestyle, which can be carried out with the help of technological innovations 24 hours a day and thus also in leisure time. Path of lives become more dynamic, the life time becomes suddenly scarce. A new era in which a secularized society wants to make the most out of their time, begins. The technological acceleration provides in doing so a strong stimulus for the acceleration of life – material structures of modern societies are changing at ever shorter intervals. Stability and planability are increasingly diminished. These new commandments of the time lead to new principles within the society and economy.