The term “hyper-connected world” refers to the growing interconnectedness of individuals and organisations through technology. A hyperconnected world was previously only a distant fantasy, but that is no longer the case. Following the inception of a variety of diverse technologies, including mobile phones, the internet, social media, and many others, our global ecosystem is becoming increasingly interconnected today.
This connectivity empowers us to share information, collaborate on projects, and innovate in ways like never before. Therefore, our current hyper-connected world has not only transformed our lives and the way we approach abut also brought us closer to each other.
We’ll examine the five pillars of a hyperconnected world in this post. In addition, we’ll look at a few instances of technology that have enabled this hyper-connectivity. So continue reading!
The Five Pillars of a Hyper-Connected World
According to the Institute for the Future, a non-profit research establishment based in the United States of America studying technological advancements, five pillars characterise a hyper-connected world.
The transformation and advancements we witness in the modern day are the result of these pillars. Below is a detailed exploration of the five pillars:
- Ubiquitous Computing: Computing devices have become part of our everyday lives now. This has given people uninterrupted access to services and obtain information from anywhere, anytime. The Internet of Things (IoT) and mobile phones are two driving forces behind this trend. Hence, computing is becoming increasingly ubiquitous, further enhancing the interconnectedness of individuals.
- Open Systems: One of the main features of a hyper-connected world is the easy availability of knowledge and information. This has been achieved through increasing collaborations and making resources more open and accessible. Some examples of this trend are open data, open-source software, and even open innovations. A brilliant example of an open system is Kaggle, which uses a global network of experts to crowdsource solutions to tricky and complex dataset problems.
- Artificial Intelligence (AI): The first artificial intelligence program ran in the year 1951. We have come a long way since then. In today’s time, experts have been able to create artificial intelligence and machine learning that can learn from complex data and keep improving continuously. This has helped in innovating the field of personalised medicine, robotics, and so on.
- Cloud Computing: Cloud computing refers to the on-demand access to computing resources and data storage via the internet. With cloud computing, there is no need for storage on local devices. This has bestowed greater flexibility on users.
Furthermore, nowadays, AI has also become a part of cloud computing. This has helped businesses automatically analyse their stored data and make accurate predictions.
- Social Networks: Last but not least, perhaps the most prominent pillar of a hyper-connected world is the global social media market, standing at a valuation of $231.1 billion. Social networks such as Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, and so on have helped people connect, interact, and collaborate. Additionally, social media networks have also enabled easy accessibility to information, various goods, and services.
Technologies and their Implementation in a Hyper-Connected World
Now that you know about the five pillars of a hyper-connected world let us look at some of the innovative technologies enabling a revolution in how we interact with the rest of the world.
IoT
The Internet of Things or IOT refers to the network of objects that are connected to each other and also to the Internet. This network is responsible for transmitting or processing data, with or without human intervention. IoT is considered to be one of the pillars of the Fourth Industrial Revolution.
Overall, IoT is made up of sensors, networks, machines, data, and devices. Combined, all these components are responsible for processing data and making decisions. In a hyper-connected world, IoT is responsible for devices and people to the internet and generating a positive user experience.
Immersive User Experience
Increasing hyper-connectivity means users are not just limited to desktop computers now. In fact, there are several different kinds of computing devices used by people to access the internet. Naturally, user experience has become much more targetted and device-specific these days. To add to that, UX is now often designed in conjecture with AI, machine learning, augmented reality, IoT, chatbots, and so on, further increasing its seamlessness.
Robots
The advancement in robotics has greatly fuelled our hyper-connected world. Out of the several impressive tasks robotics can accomplish, robot-assisted surgeries are worthy of mention. Such surgeries allow higher precision, lesser complications, and quicker recoveries. Recently, there have been reports of a robot performing laparoscopic surgeries on pig tissues without human help. This further highlights the potential that lies within machine learning, advanced imaging devices, AI, and so on.
Autonomous Drones
As the name suggests, autonomous drones are unmanned electronic machines capable of self-flying using AI and computer vision. Apart from the military and surveillance, such drones are also found useful in search and rescue machines. Additionally, such machines are now finding a role in e-commerce, with the e-commerce giant Amazon launching an autonomous drone delivery system. Interestingly, the commercial autonomous drone industry is projected to grow by about 25.82% from 2023 to 2030.
Conclusion
In conclusion, our hyper-connected world has resulted in massive changes and innovations in the 21st century. Needless to say, all these advancements are solely due to the increasing capabilities of the technology around us. One such essential component of hyper-connectivity is the Internet of Things (IoT).
Therefore, if you are interested in learning more about the network and interconnectedness of our world, we suggest you enrol in the course “IoT E-degree- The Novice to Expert Program in IoT” by Eduonix.
This course includes over 120 high-quality lectures, more than 5 projects for hands-on experience, quizzes and exams to continually measure your progress, and so on. By the end of this course, you will learn how to create IoT ecosystems, a skill that will come in handy in today’s hyper-connected world.
