GPS as a conduit to unlimited potential

We become what we behold. We shape our tools, and thereafter our tools shape us. — Marshall McLuhan

I was recently asked by a neighbor what kind of work we do at Hapn, and I beamed with pride when I told them all the problems we solve with GPS technology.

Unfortunately, that enthusiasm didn’t extend to my neighbor, who gave a glib nod of approval and promptly changed the subject.

With tools like ChatGPT revolutionizing how we work and communicate, and digital assistants like Siri and Alexa putting the world’s knowledge within ear shot, it’s easy to see why GPS technology — introduced in the 1970’s — can seem downright stodgy today.

Bleeding edge companies implemented GPS trackers in their physical operations throughout the 1980’s, and since that boom, nearly every company with physical equipment has followed suit. Heck, it’s almost impossible (and in many cases, illegal) to find a trucking or shipping company that doesn’t utilize GPS technology.

What was once a novel concept became a tool wholly necessary to do the job. Over time, though, this concept grew in a few ways for GPS users:

• Knowing where assets are located gave way to “can you notify me when the tracker gets to a specific address?”
• Knowing when the tracker gets to an address evolved to “can you make it give directions to the next location?”
• Once we gave directions, the next question was “can the tracker tell me information about the vehicle?”

The things we could get GPS trackers to do continued to evolve, and in turn, its high-adoption rate continued. We’re now at a point where GPS is so omni-present that we take it for granted.

GPS has become the can-opener in your kitchen drawer — the need is so obvious and critical, and since you’ve been using one for as long as you can remember, it loses its status as “cool, new tech.”

And that’s exactly the reason GPS is so exciting.

GPS’ evolution is not a story of the core technology changing — it’s the story of integrating new tools and resources to make a word-defining technology even better.

By itself, GPS isn’t capable of sending you a text message when a tracker gets to a specific address — but the technology surrounding it (cell towers, SMS, smartphones) can.

When you order UberEats and salivate as your meal gets closer, or you tap on your Amazon order and feel excitement swell as you watch the truck get closer to your home, you’re seeing what GPS is capable of when coupled with newer technology.

This is why I love talking about the work we’re doing at Hapn — it’s not about just GPS, it’s about the mind-blowing technology that we’re pairing it with. It’s the conversations with our customers who ask us to connect their location data with new and custom tools — and watching our team change industries in the process.

Seeing where technology is going, the possibilities of how our team will continue to marry GPS with emerging technologies are limitless, and I can only imagine what will Hapn next.

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Hapn Website → gethapn.com

Twitter → @get_hapn