Transformation for Our Screens, Cities, and Reality

Michael Ngan, country general manager of Lenovo Philippines, shares his insight into what technologies will become mainstream in 2023 and beyond.

Smarter, more integrated technology has transformed our daily lives. We are seeing tremendous change as the use of artificial intelligence and edge computing expands rapidly, bringing power and efficiency to countless industries and activities. In this new year, what surprises are in store for us in our ever-changing relationship with technology?

Below, we look at some of the technologies that are emerging. These innovations are set to change our world even more in the near future.

In our new hybrid workplace, technology will step up to create meetings where ‘holographic’ attendees feel almost as real as those present in person. Technologies that can bring teams together, even if they are working across multiple continents, will become increasingly important in the future’s hybrid, remote, and increasingly global workplaces.

Augmented and mixed reality will provide a new way for organizations to make an impact during presentations, product launches, or meetings with other organizations, with life-size ‘holograms’ that can interact with virtual objects (for example, to show off a new prototype or to explore a ‘digital twin’ of a real-world object).

Lenovo’s concept Cyber Space technology demonstrates how this ‘phygital’ (physical and digital) approach might work, with a specially coated glass that is semi-transparent and semi-reflective, allowing people behind it to interact physically with life-sized objects.

In an age of multitasking and devices designed to shoot and edit videos, stream content, play games, and do everything else, screen size remains valuable. In the future, phones in our pockets may be much smaller — reversing a long-seen trend in smartphones — but ‘extend’ or ‘unfold’ to become larger when we need to use them. With the press of a button, an unassuming, familiar device can be transformed into a productivity machine.

And for those who need portability, privacy, and extended screen space, don’t be surprised if you see more people “wearing” their screens

The metaverse will edge closer to reality – but it won’t be about cartoon avatars and games. Instead, metaverse technology will be driven by the world of work, not just play.

Solutions like Lenovo’s ThinkReality VRX headset are hitting the market to allow workers to collaborate in virtual reality while enabling rapid, cost-effective training programs.

Lenovo believes that the future of the metaverse is collaborative and truly open, with easy sharing of ideas and technology, rather than being restricted inside ‘walled gardens’ controlled by a single company.

Artificial intelligence will increasingly shape the world around us – and accelerate daily activities such as shopping.

In the near future, AI servers may analyze multiple video feeds from cameras in store aisles to detect large quantities of items being removed simultaneously, as well as monitor deliveries to the store to ensure that inventory remains high. This will allow stores to keep track of goods more efficiently, adjust to supply and demand more quickly, improve profit margins, and ensure customers get what they pay for.

When customers ‘click and buy,’ AI cameras will keep a close eye on them to ensure they get what they ordered, removing an inconvenient aspect of the modern, selfcheckout shopping experience.

In the future, intelligent cameras will manage traffic in smart cities, reducing pollution, congestion, and road accidents. At the same time, edge computing servers will enable everything from holographic teaching to augmented reality shopping.

Why edge computing? Using multi-access edge computing (MEC), requests are processed within the smart city itself rather than having to travel to a distant data center, allowing queries to be answered in milliseconds. Edge computing could even assist cities in meeting pollution targets by controlling traffic lights so that cars drive more efficiently in the future.

This shift is already underway, according to a Lenovo survey of 500 CTOs, with 43% saying their company’s technology architecture has been ‘improved,’ and elements like smart devices (76%) and smart internetof-things (70%) gaining importance in the last year.

Businesses will shift to a more fluid model where a third party will provide the entire office experience and related solutions and services. Lenovo now provides a managed employee experience where businesses can rent a workplace solution rather than just hardware or software, such as IT infrastructure and support, performance analytics, and cloud and data infrastructure services.

Our relationship with technology has forever changed — how we live, work, play, and learn has been turned upside down. That said, Lenovo is committed to enabling this transformation through our human-centric solutions, leading to smarter work and better results.