An MIT Senior’s Take on Tech
What is tech going to look like in 2020?
As graduation approaches, I’ve desired to think back on my years at MIT and reflect on how my outlook on tech has changed.
We’re in an exciting time right now. Apps have reached a stage of maturity. We can look at trends like the web revolution starting 16 years ago, and the app revolution starting 8 years ago. Today, chat based systems are building a lot of momentum. Chris Messina wrote a brilliant article about why 2016 is the year of conversational commerce.
Conversational commerce means that we no longer need to download an app to order Domino’s pizza. Instead, we can simply message Domino’s in our favorite platform.
Why hasn’t this chat revolution happened sooner? It seems so natural. There are three major patterns that explain why tech trends are quickly shifting.
1. We are tired of apps
- Another download just for this feature? Nah, I’ll pass.
- Another signup process? Maybe next time.
- Another app that I won’t use after the first time? Screw it.
2. There’s too much clutter
The average person uses more than 5 social networks actively. On each network, there is a barrage of content. This isn’t surprising, because nobody wants you to run out of material to look at. Simplistic design patterns like material and flat are attempts to reduce clutter, but these solutions evade the real problem. The real issue is the platform itself.
3. Apps aren’t personal
Does it really makes sense to go through 10 screens to order my pizza every single time? This is a process that can be automated, but for most vendors it doesn’t make sense to put the time in to support this. Other apps try to solve this problem, but they do not realize that they are just adding to clutter.
Conversational platforms address these issues
By simplifying the interface, more resources can be devoted to issues that annoy users. Chat platforms can remember the last action you took easier than apps or websites. Conversation allows for personalization, and better context-aware (app-to-app) communication. At the same time, the interaction is natural and intuitive.
WeChat leads the world marketplace as the biggest chat app, and is the highest grossing app in China. It’s clear that consumers demand a simple and smart platform, which the current array of apps is unable to provide. To a lot of people who have invested millions into their apps, this sounds like scary thought.
Apps won’t disappear. We just want more.
Similar to how websites are still critical in everyday life, apps will continue to serve a very broad purpose. Tech consumers aren’t moving on; rather, they are demanding more. As the frontier of tech advances, consumer greed and need grows exponentially as well. For example, nobody thought they needed 100GB of storage space until it was readily available. Similar to how this is now a bare-minimum, consumers will demand a bare-minimum level of personalization.
So What’s Next?
The first step in 2020 and beyond is for apps to adopt the qualities of conversational commerce that make it so desirable.
- Apps will become hyper-personal with interfaces that change to match your preferences.
- Inter-app communication will see dramatic improvements. Your Netflix app will be able to tell your Spotify app what music to recommend.
- The flow of screens will not be a fixed storyboard. Instead, it will be fluid to match the preferences of its user.
And what’s cool is that this is just the tip of the iceberg. By looking at other patterns in consumer desires and other frontiers of tech, we can start to look under the surface.
Until apps can catch up to the standards that consumers demand, I am excited to see how conversational commerce revolutionizes the way that we think about interacting with technology.
Sam is a student at MIT studying Aerospace Engineering. He’s a co-founder of Fireflies and he’s excited about the future of AI in applications like messaging platforms and unmanned aerial vehicles.
