IBM's Five Predictions for the Future

I like creative public relations. IBM has built a reputation for innovation by embracing cool stuff, like holding a machine vs. Grand Master competition to demonstrate how it embeds intelligence in computer chips.

Now IBM has announced five future predictions that sound fairly doable to me. At the least, it's a good PR idea that generated tons of positive, brand-building news for IBM. At the most, some of these will happen.

1. DRIVING WILL BE SAFER: A "wave of connectivity" between vehicles and roadways will help keep traffic flowing smoothly, drive down pollution and get you to your destination easier, "without the stress." Your car will have driver-assist technologies that will make it possible for automobiles to communicate with each other and with sensors along the road -- allowing them to behave as if they have 'reflexes' so they can take preventive actions under dangerous conditions.

2. YOU'LL KNOW MORE ABOUT THE FOOD YOU EAT: In the next five years, new technology systems will enable you to know the exact source and make-up of the products you buy and consume. Advancements in computer software and wireless radio sensor technologies will give you access to much more detailed information about the food you are buying and eating. You will know everything from the climate and soil the food was grown in, to the pesticides and pollution it was exposed to, to the energy consumed to create the product, to the temperature and air quality of the shipping containers it traveled through on the way to your dinner table.

3. YOUR CELL PHONE WILL BE YOUR WALLET, YOUR CONCIERGE, AND TICKET BROKER: Your mobile phone will be a trusted guide to shopping, banking, touring a new city, and more. New technology will allow you to snap a picture of someone wearing an outfit you want and will automatically search the web to find the designer and the nearest shops that carry that outfit.

4. IT WILL BE EASIER TO BE GREEN: "Smart energy" technologies will make it easier for you to manage your personal "carbon footprint". As data begins to run through our electrical wires, dishwashers, air conditioners, house lights, and more will be connected directly to a "smart" electric grid, making it possible to turn them on and off using your cell phone or any Web browser.

5. DOCTORS WILL GET SUPERPOWERED: Your doctor will be able to see, hear and understand your medical records in entirely new ways. In effect, doctor’s will gain superpowers – technologies will allow them to gain x-ray like vision to view medical images; super sensitive hearing to find tiniest audio clue in your heart beat; and ways to organize information in the same way they treat a patient.