I arrive at London's Heathrow Airport and walk through immigration unchecked; thanks to a wristwatch computer that presents my ID and visa for validation. I walk directly to the rental car curbside where a vehicle unlocks itself as I approach and starts when tell it to take me to my hotel. The car guides me to a reserved parking bay at the Intercontinental in Hyde Park. I walk directly to my room which has adapted to my preferences by adjusting the temperature, lighting and choice of TV and music channels. My luggage is delivered a few minutes after I arrive while I talk to my daughter whose live image is being displayed on the room?s video wall. Local references have already been automatically inserted into my presentation for the following morning using the hotel's special software and my personal digital assistant is gently encouraging me to take a twenty-minute nap in an effort to assist me in coping with jet-lag?
Would you sacrifice your privacy for such expediency? What if it was mostly voluntary--you could opt out of these conveniences and watch others around you skip the lines and avoid the hassles as you held fast to your privacy?
Emerging technologies have a subtle seduction. When they present compelling benefits, most people find their resistance melting away. This phenomenon occurs when we are convinced that the new technology can improve our health, simplify some process or enhance our capabilities.
I am making conscious and unconscious decisions about these matters every day and concluding in the process that privacy is not as important to me as I once thought it to be. I continue to play an active role in protecting my anonymity and holding the control to decide where and when I set privacy aside, but I am growing more resigned to the fact that my privacy is quickly eroding.
To learn more about the choices you will be making about these matters in the next five years, read The Sentient Office is Coming at the Economist?s Technology Quarterly.
