Aparna Chennapragada, head of Google Now, talks about the future of Google’s personal assistant.
Sourced through Scoop.it from: recode.net
At what point does the fact that large American corporates know more about ourselves than we do. I wonder if Google has a project called Grok. I share a lot of information about myself with apps and online because I want apps to tell me if I have friends nearby, or there is a deal that meats my interests. However I live in a country that is pretty democratic and benevolent, certainly in relation to most countries around the world.
It was interesting to read that Google now has indexed some 50 Billion links between apps in order to be able to develop Google Now, which so many of my friends love, which is effectively a personal assistant that knows what you want, and is learning to know what that is before you know it based on your activities, GPS location, behavior, the apps you are using and so on.
When I tell my apps that it is OK to use my location for the purpose of the app, I am aware that this information may be shared with 3rd parties, which under warrant could of course include NSA or other authorities. Being in a democratic, safe country, I don’t have a problem being relatively open, but at what point does it become too much and is it already so far too late that other than going off the grid, which is impossible if you want to enjoy today’s lifestyle, that we now have to face the facts that anyone with sufficient money can find out anything they want about you.
We kind of knew that, but when organizations like Google share that understanding with you at the same time that Hacking Team gets hacked http://motherboard.vice.com/read/spy-tech-company-hacking-team-gets-hacked and we discover that they sell hacking software to Governments in less democratic regimes, where your thoughts, values or beliefs could be illegal.
Privacy is pretty much dead, which we knew would happen and I am still keen for my local DIY to anticipate my needs and offer me a deal when I am in the neighborhood http://thefuturediaries.com/2012/04/12/mitre10gavemealeafblower/ and my grocer to tell me that I am missing a couple of ingredients out of the pantry for the recipe I am making http://thefuturediaries.com/2012/09/10/my-grocer-is-getting-social-with-me/.
I just wish I knew that when I was giving consent to use my data, that I understood what I was giving consent to and how they are protecting that data for me.
See on Scoop.it – Location Is Everywhere
