By Brittany Cotton
Wireless customers probably use their phones more now than at any other point in history, and there’s a good chance that they’re normally using them for something other than placing calls through a publicly switched network. Consumers use apps to do banking and share information as well as entertain themselves. Some commentators feel that the last category is the one that’s changed society the most, considering that some netizens spend a good part of their day streaming social video content recommended to them by a digital algorithm.
With more than seven million apps in the Google and Apple ecosystems, there’s a good possibility that someone has produced an app for nearly every possible daily activity a person might think to engage in. Users are turning to apps for recipes and forgoing legacy cookbooks. Others might use one to get advice or directions while they’re planning a trip.
Psychologists have gone so far as to warn that people might be forgetting many of the things they used to know because this ready access to information at their fingertips robs them of the challenge of remembering fine details. On the other hand, the proliferation of chatbots powered by artificial intelligence subroutines could have a positive impact on these same consumers, since they provide a ready source of therapy from an electronic advisor that never seems to tire. At the same time, the spread of AI-powered apps could prove extremely confusing since most large language models tend to make up material if they don’t know the answer to a particular question.
Despite what some technologists have claimed, teams of software designers and developers aren’t going away. Many of them will find that their roles are changing, however, as they’re faced with increased noise in the form of large numbers of automatically generated mobile apps that customers will have to wade through when looking for something to download next. While it’s easy to imagine that some cellular customers will get extremely frustrated and put down their phones for good, it’s equally as possible that a technical solution to these problems is right around the corner.
Developers of the near future potentially come up with a package that leverages the power of app store reviews to filter out anything that isn’t what a person is looking for. Though similar solutions have been used to suggest apps since the advent of the modern mobile ecosystem, they’ve been hampered by the lack of a good centralized database to draw information from. By using a decentralized system based on a mobile phone user’s own behaviors, users may end up with much more relevant suggestions. Unfortunately, these kinds of tools can contribute to the growth of social media echo chambers where users are never exposed to viewpoints different from their own.
Contactless payment apps and the widespread nature of quick-response codes are quickly leading to a point where cash seems to be unnecessary. How much these changes impact society depends on whether or not wireless customers push back against them.
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Brittany Cotton is a writer who focuses on health, wellness, and a variety of other topics. In her free time, you can find her reading, trying new recipes, or playing with her dog.