Tom Edwards is a professional futurist and keynote marketing technology speaker covering data, digital, artificial intelligence, marketing technology and emerging media trends
Author: TheBlackFin
Chief Digital Officer, Agency at Epsilon & Principal at Blackfin360, LLC.
I had the opportunity to provide a keynote on tech innovation for the 2019 Path to Purchase Expo in Chicago yesterday. It was a great crowd, high energy, and with a 30-minute timeslot, we had to cover a lot of ground!
The focus of the talk was discussing the coming waves of technology and how that will impact consumer behavior along the path to purchase. This is the latest version of the InnovationToReality talk series covering all facets of consumer behavior and emerging technology.
We discussed how Star Wars, Fortnite, Pixar Movies, & The Matrix highlight how emerging technology and consumer behavior will shift in the near future. We also discussed:
the role of esports
the camera as a bridge to intelligence
the role of virtual assistants and commerce
the rise of the proxy web
the 5 levels of autonomy
how the new 4P’s will enhance future strategy
the role and importance of 5G in the transition towards ubiquitous simulation.
I recently had the opportunity to partner with Nokia to cover Mobile World Congress 2019. From highlighting key elements of their brand messaging around 5G, amplifying content from analyst meetings to on-camera work on the show floor. I really enjoyed partnering with Nokia.
Today, my full #MWC19 recap was posted on Futurithmic.com the recap views trends from MWC through the Innovation to Reality™ lens of Empower, Exponential, and Enhanced. The article covers all facets of experience and 5G. From Devices, AI, Gaming, Live Entertainment, and so much more. You can read the full article here.
Tom Edwards Mobile World Congress 2019 Recap
I was also engaged as a technology influencer to create cross channel social content, highlight Nokia & their 5G efforts during a recent keynote, as well as on-camera work during #MWC19. When it’s all said and done the content should drive north of 100,000 highly targeted views that will have boosted Nokia’s message during a very crowded MWC19.
DFWIMA 2019
Thanks again to Marianne and the entire @Nokia team.
I recently had the opportunity to provide the opening keynote for the Dallas Fort Worth Interactive Marketing Association discussing trends tied to evolving consumer experiences. This is the latest version of the InnovationToReality talk series covering all facets of consumer behavior and emerging technology.
It was a fun and highly interactive keynote session! We discussed how Star Wars, Fortnite, Pixar Movies, & The Matrix highlight how emerging technology and consumer behavior will shift in the near future. We talked about how the 5 levels of autonomy and the new 4P’s will impact industry 4.0. Finally, the role and importance of 5G in the transition towards ubiquitous simulation.
I recently had the opportunity to provide the opening keynote for the University of Alabama EMBA Alumni Network Summit discussing trends tied to Industry 4.0. This is the latest version of the InnovationToReality talk series covering all facets of consumer behavior and emerging technology.
It was a fun and highly interactive keynote session! We discussed how Star Wars, Fortnite, Pixar Movies, & The Matrix highlight how emerging technology and consumer behavior will shift in the near future. We talked about how the 5 levels of autonomy and the new 4P’s will impact industry 4.0. Finally the role and importance of 5G in the transition towards ubiquitous simulation.
I recently had the privilege of joining the BIGHR 2019 conference to discuss all facets of AI, digital transformation, intelligence augmentation, tips for integrating AI, and preparing the HR function for the coming culture shift.
Last night my wife and I attended the 2019 Tech Titans Awards Gala. I was a finalist for the Technology Advocate award. This award recognizes a technology advocate/champion for their outstanding leadership in assisting, advancing or accelerating the performance of technology companies and/or the technology community.
It was a really fun night. The Tech Titans awards are like the Oscars for the Dallas technology community. After settling into a delicious dinner and some fun commentary from the Gala committee it was time for the awards presentations to start.
When my category was up for the next presentation the head of North American Customer Marketing & Communications for Nokia, Marianne Strobel did a great job setting up the category and announcing the winner…
After the initial shock of the win, it was time for photos, a great conversation with Marianne of Nokia about their 5G work and more innovations on the way, networking with sponsors and attendees and fun times with my wife Cherlyn from chomping M&M’s pre-event to celebrating post-event Texas-style with Whataburger.
Tech Titans 2019
2019 Tech Titans Technology Advocate Award
Tech Titans 2019
Tech Titans 2019
Post Event
Thank you to the Tech Titans organization, sponsors, judges, thank you to Marianne Strobel for the warm welcome from Nokia, the Dallas Business Journal for their coverage and support of the event and finally to the other deserving finalists.
I recently provided commentary to Advertising Age discussing the recent shift in naming convention for Google’s operating system from dessert-themed names to a more traditional numbering system as well as commentary on the new Google Android branding.
Tom Edwards, chief innovation officer at agency Epsilon, says that “although the dessert names and the subsequent tie-ins to different snack brands was charming, it was difficult for consumers to track changes from one version to the next.” He adds: “Moving to a number-based system gives visual cues on the current version while also building urgency to upgrade.”
I was recently interviewed by the Dallas Business Journal for the upcoming 2019 Tech Titans awards show. I am a finalist in the technology advocate category and looking forward to the event! Here is a link to the full interview.
Tom Edwards of BlackFin360 is a finalist in the Technology Advocate Award category for the 2019 Tech Titan Awards. Category winners will be announced at an awards event on Friday, Aug. 23. For more information about the awards event, click here.
As founder of BlackFin360, which covers marketing and emerging tech trends, Tom Edwards has been recognized as a marketing technology trailblazer as well as a leading futurist and speaker.
“I focus on helping organizations understand how consumer behavior is shaping emerging technology and vice versa as technology is culture and culture is technology,” Edwards said.
What started as a technology blog back in 2007 BlackFin360 now serves as a “a repository of emerging technology” thought leadership. As a keynote speaker and technology advocate, Edwards says he helps organizations understand the connection between consumer behavior and emerging technology — from the integration of artificial intelligence, spatial computing and the rise of multi-modal interfaces.
Edwards was also Chief Digital/Innovation Officer for Epsilon where he said he “became fully immersed in all facets of data, AI and technology integration.”
We asked Edwards additional questions about technology. The questions have been edited for length, grammar and clarity.
What is the biggest challenge facing your organization in 2019?
TOM – The biggest challenge is less about my organization and what I see across the Fortune 1000 organizations that I have the opportunity to speak to. There are three primary areas that I consistently see. They are: data puddles, ignoring AI, lack of innovation focus.
Data puddles refers to a comment I heard at one of the world’s largest consumer beverage companies. Most organizations strive for data lakes and data is key to unlocking personalization and connecting with consumers. The reality is most organizations don’t have a consolidated approach to leveraging various forms of data, be it consumer centric data of culture, data of identity and data of intent. Having a strategy for how to consolidate and action data vs. simply collecting is key.
The second challenge is the lack of preparation and consideration of the impact of artificial intelligence on the workplace. This goes beyond system integration, and has to do with impact on culture and how to build a culture around the idea of intelligence augmentation vs. disruption.
The third is a lack of aligning innovation initiatives with core goals of the organization. It’s incredibly important to not just focus on short term revenue, but also generating ideas and empowering the organization to bring innovative ideas forward.
What is something people aren’t thinking about that will change technology in the next few years?
TOM – To me the biggest shift, especially for marketers is that we will be moving from consumer-centric marketing technology to system and algorithm-based solutions. We will see virtual assistants continue to move to the center of the operating system and we will see the rise of multi-modal computing at scale. This includes voice, vision and touch, where our environment adapts to us versus us adapting to it.
Can you recall the moment you decided what you wanted to do professionally?
TOM – My first memory is of the original Star Wars movie. All of my friends wanted to be Han Solo and Luke Skywalker. I liked those characters, but I was enamored with the droids R2-D2 and C3PO and how they and the rest of the sentient tech characters seemed to enable the main cast every step of the way. The technology seamlessly folded into their everyday journeys and that stuck with me all throughout childhood and into early adulthood. When the technology revolution hit with the rise of personal computers, mobile phones and software, I knew that is where I wanted to take my career.
Who is your technology hero?
TOM – My technology hero is Hal Brierley. Hal is the CEO of the Brierley Group. He has served as President and CEO of Epsilon, was the founder of e-Rewards, Inc, and the Executive Chairman of Brierley & Partners and he currently serves on the board of an AI start-up (Oculus360) that has been an outstanding strategic partner. I admire that work and career of Hal, his impact to Dallas via job creation and his approach to business is something to be admired.
What should we be teaching children about technology in school right now that we aren’t?
TOM – The future is going to be about augmented intelligence and preparing children, not just how to code, but also how to use various aspects of machine learning to solve problems. Instead of teaching simple math, it’s important to understand specific computing models and concepts for how systems learn. Now, these are reserved for Computer Science courses on the college level, but the sooner we can prepare children for the coming shift of intelligent systems the better.
Here is my full commentary RE: Mixer & Ninja’s Move.
ADAGE –WHAT DOES MIXER DO BETTER THAN TWITCH?
TOM: I have personally been streaming via Mixer (TheBlackFin) much longer than Twitch. I actually preferred Mixer over Twitch as I was primarily an Xbox console gamer and the close integration with the Xbox interface was a great way to quickly and easily stream. You also get USB camera support with Mixer vs Twitch on Xbox.
One of my personal favorite features that Twitch actually just recently rolled out only to Twitch partners is co-streaming. This allows up to four players to stream to a single location. So if you are running a full squad in a first-person shooter you can let your viewers see each player’s POV.
The other feature that I really like is Mixer focuses on time and interactivity vs. just currency to support streamers. Interactivity between streamer and audience is key, allowing your viewers to help direct key decisions.
Mixer’s recent platform update introduced a number of key elements to support time on platform that converts to support for streamers vs. using direct cash so the motivation to naturally engage longer on the platform is a key point of difference. Basically, the cost to the user is less about spending dollars but dedicating your time to show support.
With Mixer, they allow streamers to offer special controls to their viewers, like use X weapon against the boss and allow them to vote. This has been one of Mixer’s biggest points of difference from day one.
RE: Money, Twitch has badges, emotes, and you can have ad-free streams by subscribing to a streamer as well as subscriber-only mode but all of this is directly tied to cash. You are essentially buying accessibility. With Mixer its more about time. The platform rewards viewers for spending time on the platform. Viewers earn all types of virtual rewards just for watching including the key currency Sparks, which allows you to have interactivity with streams.
Mixer does now have a premium currency similar to Twitch that allows users to support streamers called Embers, but it’s not required for interactivity whereas with Twitch its pay to play.
ADAGE –HOW IS MIXER POSITIONING ITSELF WITH BRANDS?
TOM: Mixer brings in around 20 million visitors every month and these are key demographics that brands want to connect with but the ability for a brand to partner directly with Mixer to drive a connection, create a co-branded experience and advertise directly through Mixer is not a viable option at the moment. It looks like Mixer is taking steps to drive more active engagement through the platform and as the audience continues to grow and engage it will eventually open up more direct opportunities for brands directly.
Without
an advertising model across Mixer it’s more about the individual relationships
with streamers and brands directly, similar to Ninja’s Red Bull sponsorship and
product placement in his streams.
Mixer is not directly positioning with brands yet. They are solely focused on growing the community and providing authentic invaluable content for consumers. Ad revenue and the structure around it is future state.
ADAGE –WHAT IS THE AD BUYING PROCESS LIKE?
TOM: No ad buying process on Mixer, brands have to take an “influencer” style approach to reaching audiences on Mixer, that’s through the individual streamers vs. through the platform.
ADAGE – EARLY DAYS, WHAT ARE YOU SEEING/HEARING IN TERMS OF PRICE VS. PERFORMANCE WHEN BUYING ON MIXER?
TOM: No price vs. performance as of yet, but moving forward I would keep a close eye on how Mixer evolves the platform as the shifts and changes they are making are setting up for engagement as a core KPI. Also, all of the positioning and having Mixer in the center of how gaming will evolve with cloud-based services, xCloud, Scarlett (Next Box) and cloud services, Mixer might be an upstart compared to Twitch and YouTube, but they are sitting in a great position on the coming horizon and bringing Ninja over is a good commitment to kick-starting their move towards taking share.
ADAGE: WHY IS MIXER INVESTING IN NINJA?
TOM: Ninja made a lot of sense, not because he is the “best” gamer today as he is not at the top of current players, but his name recognition, ESPN cover athlete and recognition is key to drive buzz around the exclusivity and impact of the deal. Ninja has primarily been a PC player, so for Ninja this makes sense as it pulls in a different audience segment as Mixer has primarily been a Microsoft/Xbox streaming service so it drives more direct connection with console gamers.
Also, Microsoft is focused on blurring the lines of gaming moving forwards between PC and Console players. With xCloud, Xbox Game Pass that opens up cloud-based libraries of games for both PC & Console, it makes a lot of sense to begin to build towards positioning with exclusivity with Ninja.
ADAGE – IS THERE ANYTHING ELSE YOU WOULD LIKE TO SHARE?
TOM: All of the positioning and having Mixer in the center of how gaming will evolve with cloud-based services, xCloud, Scarlett (Next XBox) and cloud services, Mixer might be an upstart compared to Twitch and YouTube, but they are sitting in a great position on the coming horizon and bringing Ninja over is a good commitment to kick-starting their move towards taking share.
A standout moment in my speaking career occurred in 2018 when I delivered a TEDx talk. Since then, the talk has steadily gained views and is now showcased on TED.com. I am both thrilled and humbled to see my work recognized in this way.
Recently, I was on-site at one of the worlds largest manufacturers discussing the convergence of experiences and delivering 2 sets of my Innovation to Reality talk. This session sparked a number of questions from privacy, data and how advertising will look in the 2020s and that is the basis of the commentary below.
My personal position is that over the next decade consumers will “own” their data, essentially through some type of blockchain-powered open ledger technology where ultimately the consumer becomes the trading desk.
This will be managed by their AI proxies via their virtual assistant of choice. The proxy will become the management hub of personal data and consumers via their proxy will approve who/what/when/where the data to be shared. This is why affinity data in the near future will be so incredibly important.
By understanding a passion area, take Star Wars, for example, a retailer can still customize a digital augmented/enhanced overlay experience for you without needing your PII (Personally Identifiable Information) to serve experiences to you. I talk a lot about the concept of the proxy digital twin hypothesis here.
Your personal algorithms will seek out other “affinity links” through the “Proxy web” to make the connection to the appropriate simulation experience. Advertising in the near future will be algorithmically curated through a consumer AI proxy to align the most relevant products and “situational advertising” will become the new normal.
Your proxy will manage situational products & services through your calendar and past purchase history. Here is an example, you and the family are going to the beach, the proxy will curate a list of items from your previous purchases and point out possible “situational” items that make the most sense based on your trip.
It will be less about random products that are loosely based on regression models and past behavior. It will be predictive by nature and built more inside out from the consumer, where the AI proxy becomes the predictive “situational” preference center with the goal of ease, convenience for the end-user.
I recently had the opportunity to deliver the opening keynote at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce in Washington, DC during the Innova-con conference.
Innova-con 2019
Innova-con 2019
Innova-con 2019
I provided a tour of tomorrow and highlighted the coming waves of technology based on consumer behavior. The talk discussed disruption and adaptation with concepts, implications, and success strategies based on my Innovation to Reality content series.
I am incredibly honored to be recognized as a 2019 Tech Titans Technology Advocacy Award nominee. Tech Titans is a great organization and I am very appreciative of the recognition for thought leadership & tech advocacy work.
Congratulations to the other three finalists and looking forward to the event.
I recently had the opportunity to headline the 2019 Print Innovation Exchange in Minneapolis, MN. It was a fun and highly interactive keynote session! We discussed how Star Wars, Fortnite, Pixar Movies & The Matrix highlight how emerging technology & and behavior will shift in the near future and how the 5 levels of autonomy and the new 4P’s will impact the print industry.
Print Innovation Exchange 2019
Print Innovation Exchange 2019
Print Innovation Exchange 2019
Print Innovation Exchange 2019
Print Innovation Exchange 2019
The full Evolution of Experience Keynote is available below.
Thank you and please follow @BlackFin360 across social platforms for various updates and a little bit of fun.
I recently had the opportunity to join the NextGen Ninja Show. Host Kory Farooquie and I discuss a number of topics from data, humans over hype, humans vs. AI, dealing with disruption, GenZ, the future and more.
From Star Wars, Fortnite, Pixar Movies & The Matrix, Tom Edwards illustrates how pop-culture shows a path for how technology evolves through the filters of Empower, Exponential & Enhanced.
Empower (Timestamp – 5:05) is about the expectation of control and this journey explores Star Wars, Fortnite, Gen Z, the lens as life, how the future is private and the camera is a bridge to intelligence.
Exponential (Timestamp – 15:30) is about intelligent systems that deliver ease & convenience. This journey focuses on the Pixar theory, AI, virtual assistants, the 5 levels of autonomy and the proxy web.
Enhanced (Timestamp – 28:18) is about digital & physical reality and the path to simulation. Here we review all facets of perception, presence, computer vision, digital twins and ultimately synthetic reality while celebrating the 20 year anniversary of the Matrix.
All of this leads to a reimagining of the 4 P’s of product, price, place, promotion to the new 4P’s of Plan, Predictive, Proxy & Pervasive. Finally, we will discuss the actual date when we will see multi-modal interfaces at scale. Follow Tom @BlackFin360 on Twitter & Instagram and subscribe via YouTube.
I was recently asked by Advertising Age why/if Fortnite is a social network for Gen Z. The behaviors tied to gaming cannot be ignored and the brands that can seamlessly capitalize on creating value, providing exclusive content and enhance creativity will reap the rewards.
Here is my full commentary:
AdAge : Are you buying or selling the notion that Fortnite is a social platform?
Tom: Fortnite and gaming, in general, is DEFINITELY a social platform, especially for GENZ. It’s not just about the core gameplay. I see groups getting together to create within the game, to conduct private matches with friends and of course for squad play but it also extends to watching streamers via Twitch & YouTube and sharing content.
There is a seamless flow between in-game and associating with game content on the go. Plus with cross-platform play, it doesn’t matter whether you are on Mobile, Nintendo Switch, PC or Xbox you are always able to connect. I see it in my own home as Fortnite has become the starting point for my youngest (11) and his friends to gather, compare in-game skins and then figure out whether they want to create, set up a private match or just play battle royale.
AdAge: Why or why not? Some brands have gotten into Fortnite (Samsung, Nike, NFL, John Wick, Avengers).
TOM: That said, what should brands be thinking about if entering this universe? Brands should definitely consider how they are aligning with titles like Fortnite as well as eSports (competitive gaming). It’s incredibly important to understand the game properly, the fan base and focus on adding value. It’s less about a passive sponsorship and more about creating value or desire through either free downloadable content or virtual items like Skins in Fortnite.
AdAge: Is there anything else you would like to add?
TOM: Gen Z spends 2.5 hours a day with on-demand content and 1.5 hours a day gaming. It’s less about content marketing and more about empowering their creativity. Gaming is a social currency for GenZ. Things like virtual skins are the new Jordans (Although virtual Jordan’s were recently introduced via Fortnite). Gaming culture is now mainstream and how advertisers should think about gaming and the power of integrating with various properties should be at the top of the list for brands that covet cultural relevance.
Here is a quick reaction & recap video with highlights from today’s Google I/O 2019 event. Google continues to build towards an ambient future. The most exciting announcements were tied to the consolidation of augmented reality, computer vision and 3D experiences directly into search results, the next iteration of Google Duplex for the web that is a direct push towards proxy assistants for all, the evolution of Google Assistant moving towards the center of the operating system and how to prepare content for multimodal discovery and so much more.
I recently attended Facebook’s F8 developer conference. One of the more compelling sessions discussed Facebook Messenger’s role in lead generation, consideration, and re-engagement.
This video is my assessment and analysis of the content presented and additional perspective for marketers looking to capitalize on Facebook Messenger’s shift towards the center of the Facebook product suite. These changes will result in the ability to reach potentially 2 Billion users across platforms and the globe.
I was recently asked my opinion by Advertising Age about Spotify’s recently announced voice-enabled audio ad experience. The user could receive a voice-enabled audio ad promoting a playlist or podcast while listening on the mobile app. The ad encourages new content that can be accessed by saying “Play Now” Here is the recently published article.
Here is my full commentary below.
(Advertising Age) In a sentence or two, what is your initial reaction to the news?
(TOM) I was excited when I heard the news. I am a big believer in designing multi-modal experiences and further extending the mobile experience via voice is a smart move, especially for an audio focused experience like Spotify.
What sort of hurdles, if any, do you see with technology such as this?
(TOM) The hurdles are less about the technology
and more about ensuring that the user is setup to have a seamless and successful
launch of the experience. With the user microphone permission being an additional
step it may cause some to skip or miss the experience.
Do you believe this is something consumers want? Why or why not?
(TOM) Consumers want ease, convenience and while listening to Spotify to be entertained. If the voice ads are relevant and based on the affinity of the listener then this could be seen as a value ad, but some education or step by step instructions may be required for some users, especially if they have to adjust settings on their device. For most, it will not be an issue, but preparing for all user scenarios and a frictionless path for consumers will be critical to driving engagement.
Is there anything else you would like to add?
(TOM) There is an opportunity for a voice-based advertising experience. Smart Speaker experiences have been very deliberate not to integrate voice as the focus has been on user adoption. There is a precedent for the Spotify “play now” experience with Siri Shortcuts and how they extend native applications via voice. Consumers can set their own intents via Siri to activate a specific action within an app. The Spotify experience adds a monetization angle to the experience.
I was recently asked by Ad Exchanger to provide my thoughts tied to announcements made at Facebook’s 2019 F8 developer conference. Here is a link to the published Ad Exchanger article.
My full commentary is outlined below:
(Ad Exchanger) Does this “privacy vision” feel sincere or is Facebook cleverly positioning its shift?
(TOM) I feel the shift from Facebook to “the Future
is Private” was necessary as the shift reflects how consumers have been
interacting since 2016 when social messaging surpassed open social in terms of
usage behavior.
The company went through
a similar shift in 2014 with the myopic focus on becoming “Mobile First” with
100% focus and resource allocation supporting the vision. I see the same focus
here with privacy. It makes sense that this was the macro theme for F8 and a
rallying cry to adjust the product suites. The focus on interoperability and
encryption as well as shifting messenger to be the new connection point for
friends and families is a smart move.
Separately, how much of an impact will the
privacy vision have on how Facebook will be able to monetize?
How this impacts
advertising will be interesting. While the focus on reduced permanence and the
statements around privacy and encryption are good tent pole statements, item #6
in the privacy manifesto was Secure Data Storage. There will also be the
consolation around Messenger, Instagram and WhatsApp to create a new
advertising network connected to 2 billion people. How data will be used to
support the targeting is TBD but the infrastructure to create new avenues of
reach and the new consumer acquisition ad units that drive to Messenger will be
a key part of their strategy putting the onus on the consumer to share data, as
outlined by the new consumer acquisition ad types for Messenger.
And lastly, how will marketers need to change
their Facebook strategy as engagement moves invariably away from the feed and
more into Stories, messaging, etc.
(TOM) As marketers it’s important to understand the
shift away from content marketing and focus on enabling creativity, utility and
entertainment through Messenger and Instagram. Leaning into the ability to
co-view video, utility through integration of various API’s, understanding the
new payment and commerce capabilities and supporting the creation of AR
experiences. Also understanding how to navigate the shift with FB5 towards
groups and the role that marketers can play to create new types of
connections.
There is a lot to unpack and as Facebook continues to shift towards fast, reliable and private experiences, it will be interesting to see how the platforms actually evolve and where new opportunities to drive monetization will come from.
A quick reaction & recap video with highlights from today’s Facebook F8 event. The macro theme was the future is private and it was all about Facebook’s approach to privacy and it’s product suite.
Messenger is going to play a starring role, advances with Instagram and commerce, further maturing of Facebook’s AR toolset, new and exciting VR announcements, a preview of how CRM will evolve via Messenger and what was missing from today’s show. This and more in today’s video.
Full recap & analysis of Facebook’s F8 Developer Conference
I was recently in LA and sat down with Chris Erb, founder of TripleClix, an amazing boutique video game marketing agency. I have known Chris for almost a decade and we have collaborated on a lot of fun programs over the years.
When Chris asked me to be guest #1 on his new podcast I jumped at the chance. We talk about the gaming industry and what it means for marketers, the future of gaming and consumer experience and a healthy debate about the Seattle Supersonics leaving for Oklahoma City. That and so much more. Enjoy!
Yesterday was an absolute blast. Everything moves so quickly in the world of marketing & technology. It’s fun to sometimes take a step back and have a little fun while catching those who maybe moving just a bit too quickly.
Here is a fun “trend” recap video that highlights Pet VR, Smart Meats & Outsourced Relaxation.
I was recently asked for my thoughts about a number of the recent Apple Event announcements. From Apple’s original content strategy, monetization, advertising and more. Here is the published article.
Here was my full commentary on the topic:
(Ad Exchanger) Is what Apple planning a Netflix killer?
(TOM) Apple wants to be the Sherpa and curator of content. Their new recommendation engine is more about aggregation across subscriptions vs. being a content killer. I found it interesting that they are still maintaining partnerships with big cable providers while still differentiating through per channel subscriptions. This isn’t a Netflix killer, but Apple understands that moving forward individuals want control over their experiences and multiple subscriptions will exist. They want to be the “Google Search” of entertainment. This keeps their hardware and services sticky throughout.
With Apple TV+ original content, Apple is focusing on creating programming that will create affinity within their services as well. I would not call this a Netflix killer, but it’s a first step to not only control the navigation of content, but also become a destination as well.
What makes sense in your view for Apple from a monetization
standpoint for its original content and its foray into TV?
(TOM) What came through loud and clear from today’s event is Apple’s
focus on allowing the consumer to ultimately control their entertainment
options. By providing bite-sized subscription services across their ecosystem
they gain a consistent stream of revenue that is scalable and minimizes risk of
hardware cycles.
It’s
yet to be determined how much revenue Apple TV+ will drive in terms of new
subscriptions, but with the amount of talent that was showcased, including
Oprah, Steven Spielberg, Jennifer Aniston and so many more providers, it just
takes a few shows to catch on to drive monetization of original content.
What are your thoughts about how Apple will deal with advertisers/advertising, what a rev share might be if ads are one of the monetization options?
(TOM) I have not heard anything yet about how Apple will deal with advertisers/advertising. One recurring theme was re-emphasizing on device data processing and less information being available to 3rd parties. Apple may be less inclined to leverage an advertising-based model as they dive into recurring revenue with subscriptions.
This doesn’t mean the end of advertisers with Apple. As with any program, driving awareness will need to occur outside of the Apple TV+ ecosystem. This is through content, traditional & performance-based advertising. Advertisers will need to focus on other affinity-based channels to connect audiences with programming.
Today’s event was all about Apple’s focus on new services. Normally these events discuss Hardware & Software, but today was all about new forms of subscriptions that allow consumers more control while showcasing Apple’s strategy to not only provide access /navigation/curation of entertainment but also serve as an end destination with new original content for gaming & entertainment.
Apple also provided a shock to the financial services system with the launch of Apple Card. With an interface and features yet to be seen by traditional banks, Apple is making a bold move towards controlling multiple facets of the consumer journey, all without advertising and an emphasis on privacy.
Below is a full recap of key trends from SXSW Interactive 2019. From the ever-expanding spatial computing landscape, electric scooters, activations, robots & AI, the not so silent voice wars and so much more. It’s all here.
Recently, my wife had a fun idea to get a custom Funko Pop to take with me on my travels and use that to chronicle events, speaking engagements, and trade shows. These adventures will be logged here on the blog via the #Tompop page as well as Instagram be sure to follow/subscribe to see all the fun.
I recently had the opportunity to be a guest on the Tonya Hall show. Tonya is a contributor to CBS Interactive properties such as ZDNet and Tech Republic.
Our discussion touches upon a number of currently trending topics such as artificial intelligence, spatial computing, voice assistants, proxy marketing, digital twin, 8K and much more.
Recently, I was awarded the 2019 OnCon Icon Marketing Trailblazer & Marketing Contributor awards. Post-event, I was interviewed by the OnCon team and we discussed a number of topics such as what it meant to win the awards, what put the nominations over the top and recommendations for 2020.
What does it mean to you to be voted on as the winner by such an esteemed jury of your peers?
It was an honor just to be nominated. To know that such an esteemed jury of my peers gravitated towards me as a candidate is incredibly humbling. I have an immense amount of respect for the members of the jury and the other nominees across categories. I am grateful that the jury felt my contributions to the industry were worthy of recognition. Thanks again to the jury!
You had some very tough competition in each of the categories. How does it feel to be recognized over such an amazing group of your peers for the two wins?
With a field of 9 incredibly talented nominees, the trailblazer category was highly competitive! Each nominee represented great credentials and accomplishments and each individual brought a unique perspective and examples for how they are driving innovation and creativity. To hear my name called was surprising, exhilarating, and satisfying at the same time.
What do you feel put your nomination over the top?
I would assume that my passion for creating content and speaking regularly as a marketing technology futurist for the industry over the past 11 years at Blackfin360.com combined with a near obsession for the intersection of consumer behavior and emerging technology were factors in the marketing contributor award.
For marketing trailblazer, having a natural predisposition towards aligning trends, use cases and emerging technology into solutions that drive clients business were key contributors. From publishing yearly trends, covering key events, mapping trends for clients, developing products and solutions, speaking regularly at industry events and applying the latest technology in new and compelling ways was hopefully impactful for the jury.
Would you recommend your peers to apply for nomination, and why?
I would highly recommend that anyone in the marketing space recommend their peers for an OnCon Icon honor. Many awards today are tied to organizations and marketing campaigns. The OnCon Icon Awards provides the opportunity to recognize organizations and individuals for their contributions to the industry and have their peers recognize individual contributions in addition to company recognition. It’s a great mix and I was incredibly excited for both my organization and for the opportunity to pick up individual awards as well. Apply for, or be reminded to apply for the 2020 Awards here.
How would you describe the awards evening?
The event was held at the Gaylord Palms in Orlando, Florida. The venue in and of itself was impressive and a great location for an awards event. From the pre-event mixer to the red carpet with my wife, the energy continued to build as we prepared to settle in for the awards presentations.
I was immediately impressed by the brands represented and how senior the individuals were. This added to the friendly competitive atmosphere as there was a mutual respect but also a strong desire to win.
When it came time for the awards the pace of the evening was well kept and when my name was called it was a quick jaunt to the stage with a live band playing intro music. Having an opportunity to thank my wife, the jury, the other nominees and my team made the win more meaningful. I appreciated the opportunity to thank those who have made such an impact on my career over the years and are incredibly supportive.
It’s been a few days since the event, any final thoughts?
I am very grateful to have been a part of the 2019 Oncon Icon awards and would highly recommend nominating your peers for potential recognition in 2020. I am also very thankful for the support of my wife of 20 years, my agency creative tech & innovation teams (Ian, Steve, Wes, Jeremy), and the rest of the organization. Thanks again to the jury and to Sean Tomarelli for putting on such a great and memorable show. See you in 2020!
I recently had the opportunity to deliver the opening keynote at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce in Washington, DC during the Innova-con conference.
I provided a tour of tomorrow and highlighted the coming waves of technology based on consumer behavior. The talk discussed disruption and adaptation with concepts, implications, and success strategies based on my Innovation to Reality content series.
What a great week! From the OnCon Icon Awards to delivering a keynote during the 2019 Carnegie Dartlet Conference, it was a great week in Orlando!
What was great about #CarnegieConf, besides the fact that it was hosted at Walt Disney World, was the amazing audience of higher education professionals. They were highly engaged both during the talk and via social.
Carnegie Dartlet
Carnegie Dartlet
Carnegie Dartlet
Carnegie Dartlet
Carnegie Dartlet
Carnegie Dartlet
Carnegie Dartlet
The talk centered around how technology will adapt to us vs. us adapting to it. From the role the camera will play as a bridge to intelligence, why the Pixar Theory explains AI adoption, and how spatial computing combined with virtual assistant proxies will change our view of reality.
I was recently nominated for multiple awards by OnCon for their 2019 OnCon Icon awards. Marketing Trailblazer, Contributor, and Icon.
As the event unfolded last night I was incredibly grateful to have my wife Cherlyn by my side. As the awards were being announced I was honored to be included with the many other nominees who have made such impactful contributions.
At the end of the night, I was awarded 2 awards and couldn’t be happier or more thankful for my team who helped me achieve this recognition. I love sharing information about the intersection of emerging technology and consumer behavior. Seeing people use this information to grow their businesses is very fulfilling.
Marketing Trailblazer (9 nominees) exhibits innovation, pioneering, and successful creativity.
Marketing Contributor (3 nominees) value to the industry for sharing thought leadership.
Here is a post-ceremony interview with the OnCon team.
Thanks again to OnCon and of course my wife of almost 20 years, Cherlyn for all of the support.
I have been a fan of Dan Ferguson & the Groove Jones team for years. They are definitely my go-to partner for immersive experiences. Groove Jones worked with the Ford Motor Company on a gamified VR experience that showcases their new Co-Pilot360™ safety technology as well as Sleep Number activation at CES 2019.
Dan Ferguson & I at SXSW 2017
The experience was a 6 minute driving experience that takes the user on a journey from their home and onto a highway drive and then into the city, all along putting them into a variety of scenarios where they face various obstacles and hazards to demonstrate the safety technology.
Users attempt to react to the hazards and obstacles with a game controller and see if they can beat or keep up with the Co-Pilot360 technology. The application tracks where the user is looking as well. So by tracking if they are able to see an obstacle or hazard visually or by using the controller they are given a score. It is a fully interactive experience running on the Oculus Go.
As you can see below, I scored an 83% out of a possible 100%. A leaderboard system on-site displayed the daily leaders. Data was collected on every user that played tying into Ford’s CRM goals. Players received an email confirming their score along with a 360º panoramic image that they could then share on their social channels.
They also worked with their client Sleep Number again on a Quarterback Challenge VR experience that demonstrates how a good nights sleep versus a poor nights sleep impacts your physical performance. In this multiplayer experience, users are competing to see who can hit the most targets in a Quarterback Challenge game.
The four players are transported onto the 50 yard line of a massive football stadium. The first part of the game simulates how you would feel with a good nights sleep. The second part of the game simulates what it feels and looks like when you have had a poor nights sleep of 6 hours or less. Special guest stars stopped by the booth for their chance to play, including Katie Couric, who beat everyone she was playing against. Groove Jones is doing some amazing work and they are definitely my go to for immersive experiences.
As technology seamlessly integrates into our lives we will continue to move towards a time when our technology adapts to us vs. us inputting into the technology.
2019 will accelerate the convergence of experiences. The shift from desktop and mobile to voice, vision and touch fueled by intelligent systems will be a key focus for the coming year.
We will see the role of voice-based assistants evolve towards predictive proxies, advancing hardware will unlock spatial computing (AR/VR/Mixed/Hyper Reality) and rapidly evolving iterations of artificial intelligence will transform the camera and how we interact with the world around us.
We hope you enjoy our 2019 trend predictions. We filter the coming convergence through the framework of Empower, Exponential, and Enhanced
Time Stamped Show Notes [01:08] – Behind Tom’s talk called “The Evolution of Experience”.
[02:29] – Empower, Exponential and Enhanced.
[07:26] – Some of the things that Tom and his team is doing to help major corporations.
[09:28] – Tom explained different types of Artificial Intelligence.
[11:27] – The Blitz Round with Tom Edwards.
[16:10] – Tom Edwards’ final word of advice.
Additional Detail On My Preparation for my TEDx talk.
Facebook Live Recording of the Evolution of Experience BeTheTalk Podcast.
BeTheTalk is a 7 day a week podcast where Nathan Eckel chats with talkers from TEDx & branded events. Tips tools and techniques that can help you give the talk to change the world at BeTheTalk.com !
One of the bigger trends in 2019 will be tied to Digital Twins… but why? Here is a full video breakdown.
WHAT ARE DIGITAL TWINS
A digital twin refers to a digital replica or model of a physical asset (physical twin), processes, people, places, systems and devices that can be used for various purposes such as simulation of performance.
So It’s Primarily For FACTORIES COOL? WHY SHOULD I CARE?
The primary use cases are tied to Industrial IOT scenarios.The Digital Twin serves as a bridge between physical and digital. The physical asset has IOT sensors that constantly collect various forms of data and feed the information to the digital twin to analyze and run predictive simulations. The findings from the virtual models can then be applied to the physical asset.
MY HYPOTHESIS – APPLICATION TO CONSUMERS
There is a possible connection to consumer experience use cases tied to physical sensor data and virtual assistant proxy simulations.
What’s going to enable the use of consumer experience digital twin experiences at scale will be 5G connectivity. 5G will fuel connection of IOT frameworks as well as edge computing to reduce potential latency and the ability to process information as close to the source as possible.
This will allow connectivity and enhanced data transfer capabilities of the 20 billion IOT devices that exist today.
ROLE OF THE PROXY WEB
2019 will also see the accelerated adoption and dependence on virtual assistants. There are now over 1 billion devices that provide voice assistant access today.
90 Million use voice assistants on smartphones and 45 million use them on smart speakers per month.
Digital assistants are an on ramp to further usage of AI and robotics. As virtual assistants move towards the center of the operating experience we will continue to move towards what I call, the Proxy Web.
PROXY WEB
This is where our virtual assistants begin managing certain aspects of our lives behind the scenes.
Our proxy will be able to communicate with other proxies and align preferences to map where to eat for dinner with a friend, it knows our food preferences and schedule.
This preference ownership and ability to communicate with other proxies and nodes in systems could be the key to unlocking spatial computing simulation at scale.
DYNAMIC SPATIAL COMPUTING EXPERIENCES
One of the key areas of focus in 2019 will be the further melding of physical and digital experiences. We have seen the rapid democratization of various forms of spatial computing.
Spatial Computing is using the physical space around us as a medium to interact with technology.
This includes AR, VR, Mixed Reality, Hyper Reality and more. The goal with my digital twin hypothesis is to not only deliver a one size fits all experience but creating personalization at scale through spatial computing.
Digital Twin type simulations may be the key to connect custom reality overlays based on preferences driven by our virtual assistants.
IDEA in Action…
I am a Star Wars fan…. the retailer Target normally goes big with Star Wars in-store promotions when there is a major film release. With the digital twin simulation concept, based on my personal preferences, my virtual assistant knows that I have a strong affinity for Star Wars based on my behavior, this includes voice queries, watching Star Wars Theory videos via YouTube, my past purchases of Funko Pops,etc…
Instead of plastering the store with physical Star Wars promotional material, Target could have pre-mapped various spatial computing “experiences” that are triggered based preferences discoverable via my virtual assistant.
An in-store sensor network could feed previous trip information of me and other guests with a similar affinity and allow for the Star Wars focused simulation to be adjusted in real-time to get me to a specific area of the store or special offers on say retail specific Funko Pops.
The Digital Twin becomes the intelligence engine to enhance the base physical store experience and create a personalized experience based on predictive digital simulation.
The ultimate goal being to have the environment and experience personalized to me based on multiple simulations and a connection to my preferences.
I recently had the privilege to deliver a keynote to the Discover card Pulse network advisory team covering the topic of converting AI into ROI.
For this event, I tailored the Evolution of Experience, E^3 talk tied to Empower, Exponential and Enhanced with a detailed look at multiple facets of artificial intelligence including how the Pixar Theory, all movies are on the same timeline, foreshadows the path for how consumers will adopt AI fueled technology.
Next, we reviewed AI’s potential impact on business results and consumer behavior. The talk also covered the rapid convergence of multimodal technology experiences and the role AI will play in shifting behavior towards the intelligent camera via computer vision and virtual assistants.
The talk ended with a deep dive into the new AI driven 4 P’s of AI marketing and key points to consider to start to prepare for integration of AI into all facets of business.
Pulse Network
Pulse Network
Pulse Network
For more on this topic I recently joined the AI Today Podcast and discussed a number of these topics and more.
AI TODAY PODCAST – Episode 50 – Enhancing Experiences with AI Interview
0:48 – Introduction
1:33 – Recap of Keynote topic at Amazon Alexa Voice Summit
2:53 – Discuss why we are in the “golden age of AI”
4:20 – Discuss The Pixar Theory and Artificial Intelligence
7:00 – Why predictive experiences are key for mass adoption of AI
9:00 – Discuss Gen Z & expectations of experiences
9:37 – How Epsilon Agency is using artificial intelligence
13:25 – What is the future of artificial intelligence?
I recently had the pleasure of sitting down with Jeffrey Hayzlett of C-Suite TV to kick off season 7 of Executive Perspectives. We discussed digital disruption, conversational experiences, artificial intelligence and best practices for leveraging data to connect with consumers.
Now, I have heard from multiple sources that the interview is available On-demand on domestic and international United Airlines flights.
I recently had the privilege to deliver the Evolution of Experience keynote during the Path To Purchase Expo.
For this event, I tailored the Evolution of Experience, E^3 talk tied to Empower, Exponential and Enhanced to focus on the camera as a platform, artificial intelligence, multi-modal, and the New 4 P’s of AI marketing and how the convergence of all of these will impact the path to purchase.
I first heard of the VOID three years ago and I was hooked when I watched the following YouTube video. Since then I have wanted to become fully immersed in the VOID and thought many times about making the trip to Utah where the first VOID facility was constructed.
Today, I didn’t have to travel to Utah. The VOID is now right here in Texas. I immediately bought tickets for a big crew and we descended south to Plano, Texas where the VOID is now embedded in a Cinemark theater, next to Cinemark HQ.
The Void is virtual reality overlaid onto physical environments. I have to say it is the most immersive simulated experience I have been a part of to date. This experience also happened to be Star Wars themed, so it combined two of my favorite things, emerging tech + Star Wars.
With location based elements, virtual reality, physical haptic equipment and environmental elements (feeling heat) combined it was an amazing mix of tactical and visual elements that created a truly immersive experience.
I have tried many forms of VR over the years at CES, SXSW, Facebook F8, Mobile World Congress and more. From headsets, motion simulators and more and nothing has compared to the VOID experience.
The VOID
The VOID
The VOID
The VOID
The VOID
The VOID
The VOID
As you enter the experience there is a backpack full of a haptics and rumble packs as well as an onboard computer. The headset is a mix of Oculus Rift combined with a Leap Motion module. For this experience we were also able to pick up rifles partway through and then were inside a first person shooter. This included haptic feedback and a lot of friendly fire!
The best part was the social aspect of the experience. My fireteam was right there with me with visual and full audio. I had the opportunity to go through with my boys and I have to say that the real time augmented overlay and motion sensors to 1/10th of a degree and this was the best part of the experience.
When I looked at my boys they looked like Stormtroopers, except my 10 year old was a very short Stormtrooper. If you have an opportunity to visit the VOID experience I would highly recommend it.
One final element I enjoyed was the post event follow up. The message stayed with the theme of the event and also included stats such as accuracy and the number of Stormtroopers taken down.
Overall, the combination of real world physical elements plus incredibly immersive VR set a new bar for immersive digital experiences via the VOID.
I recently had the opportunity to speak with AdExchanger about the recent Apple hardware event as well as the possibility of Apple bringing back it’s advertising business.
AI and cognitive technologies are enhancing many different industries and providing significant ROI for early adopters. However, AI is also providing benefit in improving our various experiences in life. In this podcast, Cognilytica analysts Kathleen Walch and Ronald Schmelzer interview Tom Edwards, Chief Digital & Innovation Officer at Epsilon Agency, who shares insights into how AI is impacting marketing, customer experience, and more. He also shares how the “Pixar Theory” fits into the general vision of technology adoption and how, as a culture, we’ve come to accept AI in our daily lives.
Topics Discussed:
0:48 – Introduction
1:33 – Recap of Keynote topic at Amazon Alexa Voice Summit
2:53 – Discuss why we are in the “golden age of AI”
4:20 – Discuss The Pixar Theory and Artificial Intelligence
7:00 – Why predictive experiences are key for mass adoption of AI
9:00 – Discuss Gen Z & expectations of experiences
9:37 – How Epsilon Agency is using artificial intelligence
13:25 – What is the future of artificial intelligence?
I recently had the privilege to deliver the Evolution of Experience keynote during the 2018 Amazon Alexa Voice Summit in Newark, NJ.
For this event, I tailored the Evolution of Experience, E^3 talk tied to Empower, Exponential and Enhanced to focus on the voice ecosystem, the camera as a platform, multi-modal, and how artificial intelligence and the Pixar Theory is the key to understanding the proxy web.
Alexa Voice Summit
Alexa Voice Summit
Alexa Voice Summit
During the event, I also had the opportunity to sit down with the Amazon Alexa Community Evangelist team during their live Twitch stream. We discussed the ever-evolving role of voice-based experiences, war stories, thoughts on finding voice talent, the importance of data, strategy & analytics to enhance longer-term skill engagement and much more.
Also, I have recorded a podcast with the AI Today team that will debut in early August diving deeper into these topics and more. Stay tuned!
Here is my full commentary based on Ad Age’s original question… Ad Age: We’re seeing more agencies now offering services for AI solutions, but how do you see this shaking out? What will separate the ones who will succeed with the ones that do not?
TOM: Offering an AI service for clients is one thing, but the key is understand that data is the fuel for AI. Without a solid understanding and corpus of data as a starting point for AI driven experiences consumer facing experiences have the potential of falling flat.
The organizations and experiences that will succeed in the short term with AI will understand that the consumer facing experience should not try and solve every possible outcome for consumers.
We have conducted research on user expectations of AI and there is one fundamental truth for adoption of AI and consumer facing experience adoption across generations and that is ease & convenience. Whether it’s managing personal time, predicting financial needs, or order replenishment through AI. The key is to understand that AI solutions need to seamlessly make consumers lives easier.
What will truly separate AI solutions over time are the ones that have both structured & unstructured data at the core that is built to action against consumer needs, will design for multimodal experiences beyond mobile and desktop, and be prepared to fully guide consumer experiences via virtual assistant ecosystems as AI becomes a proxy for consumers over time.
The organizations that can market to both consumer and systems will win the day. It’s no longer just the consumer decision decision journey as system based marketing via AI is now here and will continue to take on more responsibility for consumers.
I recently had the privilege to deliver the Evolution of Experience keynote at the 2018 Evanta CMO Summit in Dallas, Texas.
For this event, I tailored the Evolution of Experience, E^3 talk tied to Empower, Exponential and Enhanced to focus on the camera as a platform, artificial intelligence, multi-modal, the New 4 P’s of AI marketing and new themes introduced by the Apple WWDC 2018 that happened earlier in the day.
Evanta CMO Summit
Evanta CMO Summit
Evanta CMO Summit
Evanta CMO Summit
Evanta CMO Summit
Empower is looking at how accessibility to mobile technology has led to consumers being empowered to create, amplify and influence across generations. Specifically looking at the behaviors of Gen Z and the evolving role of the camera.
Exponential is all about acceleration through intelligent systems. This looks at the role of data for AI as well as the rise of virtual assistants and the ability to predict consumer needs ultimately becoming a proxy for the individual that will split decision journeys between consumers and algorithms.
Enhanced is all about the bridging of physical and digital reality and how immersive computing, augmented reality, computer vision and the intelligent camera will forever redefine our version of reality.
The talk ends with an explanation of how we will evolve from a mobile-centric world to the new normal of voice, vision and touch experiences powered by artificial intelligence. This includes a date when project it will all converge as well as 4 new P’s of marketing.
It was an awesome crowd of CMO’s and I really enjoyed the hour long session + Q&A.
If you are interested in having Tom speak at your event please contact here.
I recently had the privilege to deliver the Evolution of Experience keynote at the 2018 Frito-Lay Boundless Marketing Summit in Nashville, Tennessee.
For this event, I tailored the Evolution of Experience, E^3 talk tied to Empower, Exponential and Enhanced to focus on the camera as a platform, artificial intelligence, multi-modal and the New 4 P’s of AI marketing.
Frito-Lay Summit
Frito-Lay Summit
Frito-Lay Summit
Empower is looking at how accessibility to mobile technology has led to consumers being empowered to create, amplify and influence across generations. Specifically looking at the behaviors of Gen Z and the evolving role of the camera.
Exponential is all about acceleration through intelligent systems. This looks at the role of data for AI as well as the rise of virtual assistants and the ability to predict consumer needs ultimately becoming a proxy for the individual that will split decision journeys between consumers and algorithms.
Enhanced is all about the bridging of physical and digital reality and how immersive computing, augmented reality, computer vision and the intelligent camera will forever redefine our version of reality.
The talk ends with an explanation of how we will evolve from a mobile-centric world to the new normal of voice, vision and touch experiences powered by artificial intelligence. This includes a date when project it will all converge as well as 4 new P’s of marketing.
It was an awesome crowd and I really enjoyed the 30 minute session + Q&A.
If you are interested in having Tom speak at your event please contact here.
I recently had the privilege to deliver the Evolution of Experience keynote at the 2018 Financial Brand Forum.
Financial Forum 2018
Financial Forum 2018
For this event, I tailored the Evolution of Experience, E^3 talk tied to Empower, Exponential and Enhanced to focus on Data, Artificial Intelligence, Multi-Modal and the New 4 P’s of AI marketing, and much more.
Financial Brand Forum
Financial Brand Forum
Financial Brand Forum
Financial Brand Forum
Financial Brand Forum
Empower is looking at how accessibility to mobile technology has led to consumers being empowered to create, amplify and influence across generations. Specifically looking at the behaviors of Gen Z and the evolving role of the camera.
Exponential is all about acceleration through intelligent systems. This looks at the role of data for AI as well as the rise of virtual assistants and the ability to predict consumer needs and ultimately become a proxy for the individual that will split decision journeys between consumers and algorithms.
Enhanced is all about the bridging of physical and digital and how immersive computing, AR, VR, computer vision will make the user’s camera intelligent and forever our version of reality.
The talk ends with an explanation of how we will evolve from a mobile-centric world to the new normal of voice, vision and touch experiences powered by AI including a date when it will all converge as well as 4 new P’s of marketing to consider building future state strategy around.
It was a good crowd and I really enjoyed the 45 minute session + Q&A.
If you are interested in having Tom speak at your event please contact here.
I recently had the privilege to deliver the Evolution of Experience keynote at MarTech West 2018.
For this event, I tailored the Evolution of Experience, E^3 talk tied to Empower, Exponential and Enhance to focus on Gen Z & Computer Vision, The evolution of the camera from capture to communication and much more.
Tom Edwards MarTech
MarTech
MarTech 2018
MarTech 2018
Empower is looking at how accessibility to mobile technology has led to consumers being empowered to create, amplify and influence across generations.
Exponential is all about acceleration through intelligent systems. This looks at the rise of virtual assistants and the ability to predict consumer needs and ultimately become a proxy for the individual that will split decision journeys between consumers and algorithms.
Enhanced is all about the bridging of physical and digital and how immersive computing, AR, VR, computer vision will make the user’s camera intelligent and forever our version of reality.
The talk ends with an explanation of how we will evolve from a mobile-centric world to the new normal of voice, vision and touch experiences powered by AI including a date when it will all converge.
It was a good crowd and I really enjoyed the 45 minute session + Q&A.
If you are interested in having Tom speak at your event please contact here.
