Forward with Ford 2011

Eating Ice Cream captured by Lyn Graft

I was invited to attend the Forward with Ford 2011 out at Ford’s headquarters in Dearborn, outside Detroit to learn about some of the top trends of 2011 that will impact the future. Here's what I learned about the trend of:

Emerging Technologies / Information Addiction.

Nano, bio and information technologies along with cognitive science have the potential to change the future of humanity. This trend is as much about the attitudes consumers have toward emerging technologies as it is about the technologies themselves. Economists predict a $1.5trillion global multi-industry market for nano tech.  The influence of IT is evidence by the 7 billion people on the planet that have some form of direct Internet access.  With smartphones expected to replace desktop and laptop PCs as the primary web access point by 2015, the convergence of the vehicle, the mobile device and the Internet is here. Smartphone-toting drivers expect their wireless web connections to continue seamlessly no matter where they are, including in the car – where, according to a national study from market research firm Arbitron, Americans spend some 3 hours each day. The winner in this space not only has to help the connected consumer maintain their productivity in the car, but provide access to their wireless world in a smarter, safer way appropriate when travelling at 70 miles per hour.