We take technology for granted every day – even when it’s delivering us the latest news in an instant, making our cappuccino, or connecting us with loved ones halfway across the country (or even the world).
So, to remind ourselves of just how much technology has changed society, we've taken a look at the eight most important ways that tech has impacted our lives in recent years.
Ways Technology Impacts Our Lives:
Improved Communication
AI Changing The Way We Work
Decreased Privacy
Accessible Shopping
Better Information Access
Virtual Social Lives
Flexible Working
Smarter Health Tracking
1. Improved Communication
“Come here, Watson, I need to see you.” These were the first words that Alexander Graham Bell uttered over his revolutionary invention back in 1876, and it's fair to say that the trusty telephone has had a good run. Bell originally dreamed that there would be ‘one in every town’. He was right, of course — in fact, these days, there’s one in every person’s pocket. However, technology has seen the traditional audio call being edged out in favor of messaging and social media as a way of touching base.
Another medium that has seen a boom in the last few years is video calling. It’s nothing particularly new – the concept has been around for about as long as Bell’s telephone – but the revolution of high-speed broadband at affordable prices means that it’s now easy to send and receive the amounts of data needed for a video call. While video calling has spent the last decade slowly creeping into daily life, it’s the ongoing pandemic that has pushed it over the edge and secured its future as an everyday way to stay in touch.
Thanks to lockdowns and social distancing, families and friends are meeting up and socializing via video call more than ever before.
If you hadn’t heard of Zoom before 2020, you will have certainly become aware of it by now, and while there are plenty of other video conferencing apps out there, it’s Zoom that has emerged as the poster child for video chat in the public consciousness. In 2023, some estimates suggest Zoom still has well over 800 million unique global visitors a month.
In the post-pandemic world, more of us are working from home than ever. Many in-person meetings have been replaced with video conferencing, as office staff swapping the boardroom for the bedroom (or wherever else they can find space to work at home) in droves. Now, based on data from mid-2022, McKinsey estimates 35% of Americans can work from home full time.
While Zoom is a great tool for catching up with buddies, can it do the job of supporting your business through the pandemic? We’ve evaluated several high-profile video conferencing systems and can help you find the right one for your company in minutes.
2. AI Changing The Way We Work
If someone had told you just a few years ago that very soon, you'd have access to a free AI tool that could help you with all of your tasks, you might not have believed them. But in 2023, millions of people are now using ChatGPT, Bard, and other generative AI tools for all sorts of tasks in their personal and work lives.
Although it was only launched back in November 2022, ChatGPT has already had a transformative impact on the lives of students and businesspeople alike, making their lives easier by quickly and accurately answering questions relating to their work.
The AI revolution really is here. ChatGPT has been helping people with jobs like writing recipes, creating job resumes, crafting essays and poems, summarizing historical events, composing emails, creating spreadsheets, and even filing their tax returns. Others have used it to get free legal advice or plan their holiday. The ChatGPT website is currently generating around 1.8 billion visits a month, and a recent Tech.co survey found that almost half (47%) of business leaders are considering using AI instead of hiring new members of staff. Some experts even say that soon, large companies will have “50 different AI tools” in operation.
Be mindful that although ChatGPT is useful and has already had a significant impact on the lives of millions of people, you can't – and shouldn't – use it for every single essay, report, or task in your day-to-day life.
Although using ChatGPT isn't technically plagiarism – after all, you're not copying someone else's work – many universities and schools now consider it to be cheating. Some teachers have said their students can use it, while others have banned it completely. It's also not perfect, and it's certainly not a genius – AI tools often get things wrong, and you should always double-check the responses you receive from them.
3. Decreased Privacy
We’re spending more of our lives online than ever before. According to one report, the “typical” global internet user spent seven hours a day online in 2022.
Shopping? It’s done on Amazon. Catching up with friends? It’s FaceTime, Snapchat, or email. Want to be entertained? Netflix, or online gaming. Research? Hit up Google. Almost every facet of our daily routines can be catered for online today, so it seems inevitable that our time spent online will only increase. In fact, 37% of consumers said in a 2022 survey that they'd switched companies in an attempt to protect their own privacy.
While access to everything online gives us an unparalleled level of convenience, it has also made us vulnerable. Every move we make online is recorded, and we leave digital footprints wherever we visit. Hackers and scammers know this, and work hard to exploit it for financial gain.
Of course, as with everything else, technology has also given us the tools to protect ourselves and ensure that we are safe as our lives migrate online. In 2023, this is even more key – many of us are not only browsing for personal reasons, but accessing shared work networks from our own homes, and we can’t rely on the closed off security of the physical office.
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