#Ambiance or ambience software#

Mesh networks can encompass seamless movement among a multitude of devices, a multitude of applications, a multitude of locations, and a multitude of individual networks and mesh networks, which provide continuous connectivity as computerized device users move from space to space or setting to setting.machine learning, the ability of computerized devices to build skills and improve performance of various tasks without being explicitly programmed to do so.natural language processing, which enables computers to listen to people asking questions or seeking information, understand their words, and reply.zero UI, the replacement of a computer-screen-and-keyboard combination with machines that respond to voice, touch, movement, and biometrics such as fingerprint and retina recognition.

#Ambiance or ambience software#

Facility management software vendors such as Planon (my employer) have integrated their space management functions with occupancy sensors that allow unused space to be displayed on kiosks and mobile devices so that they can be reserved and used, as well as released for rebooking when an occupant leaves.Īmbient intelligence, as an extension of artificial intelligence, is being enabled by a cluster of emerging technology developments including:.

Over time, the system learns to recognize a person in different lighting, clothing, hairstyles, and so on. Cloudastructure’s system matches a learning application for face recognition with more traditional access technologies, such as card readers, to provide a multi-layered identification system.

Cloudastructure is one of many companies offering facial recognition-based access control systems.

They don’t deliver to your desk yet, but CafeX has targeted corporate office settings in its expansion plans.

CafeX, at two San Francisco locations, has replaced human baristas with talented, ever-improving robots.

This article’s opening scenarios for building behavior are far from outlandish. More and more of us are speaking in conversational syntax with our phones and with devices in our homes to seek information, make appointments, operate appliances, order food, and purchase consumer goods.Ī smart kiosk working in tandem with occupancy sensors can highlight available workspaces for nomadic workers. We talk to our cars, telling them where we want to go, and they respond by giving us step-by-step directions. When electric power is needed, we assume that we will be able to find a source on the nearest wall when it is not available, we feel as if civilization has left us behind.Īlthough it is still in its infancy, there are reasons to suspect that artificial intelligence, particularly in its ambient forms, could develop in ways that eventually make it ubiquitous and necessary in similar ways.Ĭurrent experience is telling us that the AI revolution is taking over quietly, and it is becoming an aspect of daily experience without us really being aware of how dramatic the changes are. Electricity is so ubiquitous as to be a virtual necessity. They rely not on keyboards and screens but on our voices, our movements, and our physical features.Īndrew Ng, the former chief scientist at the Chinese company Baidu, one of the world’s largest artificial intelligence firms, has said that, “AI is the new electricity.” The analogy is compelling. Some of its most interesting manifestations can be classified as “ambient,” meaning that they exist as embedded features in our environment, operating without us having to pay particular attention to them. Developments in what we call artificial intelligence have been rapid, and they can be unnerving.Īrtificial intelligence today is a combination of the practical, the plausible, and the potential. More and more, our technologies hear us and see us, and take actions without our explicit intervention. We turn our technologies on and off, operate and guide them in their tasks, and use our senses to monitor their functioning and detect anomalies.īut over the past few years, the nature of that relationship has started to change.

Throughout history, the interaction of humans with technology has been pretty much one-sided. If your desk knew you had left for the day, it might offer itself to a colleague who is looking for a quiet workspace. If the front door recognized your face, it might unlock itself for you without requiring you to use a fob to gain access. If a robot received a signal that you had entered the building, it might bring you a fresh cup of coffee just as you reach your desk.