Japanese robots

Robots will play a critical role in the future, of that there is no doubt. But certain countries will be more reliant upon robots than others. One country that will rely very heavily upon robots is Japan. In recent decades, the birth rate in Japan has steadily decreased. For many different socioeconomic reasons, increasing numbers of young Japanese couples have chosen not to have children. This alarming trend does not bode well for the future of the Japanese economy. As Japan's population ages, there will be fewer and fewer grandchildren to support their grandparents. This will be of particular concern in the healthcare profession. Elderly people need young, able-bodied nurses to assist them through the day. With fewer and fewer young people  in Japan, the number of nurses and care assistants in Japan will decrease significantly. Added to this, Japan has one of the tightest immigration policies in the world, so it's extremely unlikely that Japan will benefit from an influx of young people from other parts of the world. This, coupled with the declining birth rate means that the future Japanese economy will urgently require some means of supporting its elderly population or the country will run into severe problems. Thankfully, there is some reason for cautious optimism.

For many years, Japan has been a world leader within the field of robotics. Japanese scientists and developers have been at the forefront of robotics research, particularly robots aimed at consumers. It is entirely conceivable that Japan will be able to mass-produce reliable robotic nurses and carers to support it's ageing population. Robots at your service are likely to become a key feature of Japanese society in the future. This short video below provides some insight into the kinds of developments currently underway within Japanese robotics. This is an exciting area to keep on eye on for the coming years. What is happening in Japan is likely to spread throughout the rest of the world. 

Edtech

Education has become a hot topic these days. The web has irrevocably changed education by providing unfettered access to voluminous mountains of information to millions of people worldwide. Millions of people now take online courses every day to earn degrees or upgrade their skillsets in order to make a career change. Classrooms of the future will be very different to what they are today. Classrooms will be much more engaging and interactive and there will be AI programs that function as teachers/lecturers. Edtech is attracting enormous interest globally and is likely to do so for the immediate future. Nobody knows what exactly the future of education will look like. But what we can say for sure is that traditional schools and universities are about to undergo a radical rehaul. The video below features an interview with the CEO of Bibblio. It gives some idea of what to expect within Edtech. 

Biometrics, the future of passwords?

The field of biometrics is growing exponentially. One very practical application of biometrics is in regard to password security. As this article on Finextra makes clear, this could have significant effects within payment technology. Nobody wants to type in a password whenever they need to authorise a payment, so biometrics could help facilitate smoother payments. 'Paying by selfie' could become the new norm, with eCommerce giants like Alibaba and Amazon expressing interest in it. Huge advances are also being made in relation to sensory technology i.e. voice, heartbeat and vein recognition technology. But as biometrics advances, so too will security concerns. Hackers will become more adept at creating duplicates for biometrics. Therefore, biometrics will need to stay one step ahead of hackers in regard to keeping consumers safe. The video below provides some interesting information on the future of behavioural biometrics.