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The Robot Will See You Now

Thanks to my friends at Future Scanner, this fascinating article by Roland Piquepaille at ZDNet.com about MindMentor—the first robot psychologist—was brought to my attention.

At the end of his post, Piquepaille asks an intriguing question: Would you trust a computer algorithm to counsel you about a psychological problem?

In spite of what people might tell you, my prediction is that the most common answer in the future will be “yes.”

Here’s why. First, algorithms are only going to get better. According to the article, MindMentor already solves problems for 47% of its customers’ issues in a one-hour session. As a result of exponential advances in computer processing power and evolutionary algorithms (which learn how to improve themselves on a continual basis), this number will only increase in the future. To understand how advanced such algoithms already are today, I’d encourage you to read this recent New York Times article or simply visit Jenn—Alaska Airlines sophisticated avatar. (The avatar is in the upper right hand corner).

Second, as hard as it is to imagine, some people are actually more comfortable talking with a computer than they are a real person. Technologies such as MindMentor will find a very receptive market among this population. Along these lines, I also think kids who either come from troubled families—or teenagers who simply have a hard time speaking with their parents—might also use the technology.

Finally, I am convinced that over time people will begin to think of robots as people. I recently bought the new robotic toy, Pleo, for my kids and they already treat it as though it were a pet. As robots move into hospitals, nursing homes and, eventually, our homes, I think it is only natural that we will rely on these robots to do things—such as provide us with psychological counsel—which would have once been unimagineable.

As readers of my new book, Jump the Curve, know I’m fond of using historical analogies to think about the future. So try this one on for size: In 1935, at the height of the Depression, it would have unthinkable to most people that in the year 2008 Americans would spend $40 billion a year on pets—including such things as jewerly, teeth whiteners, pet insurance and, yes, even sessions with a pet psychologist.

My point is that behavior which would have once seemed inconceivable often has a way of becoming commonplace. Therefore, I see no reason why we won’t trust our pets—and ourselves—to a robotic therapist in the future. Hell, we might even be confortable enough to send our robots to see fellow robots for therapy. (On a slightly different note, apparently the Catholic Church is already concerning itself with future sins. Perhaps, because the Church is having a difficult time finding priests, it should consider turning over the task of hearing confessionals of these “future sins” to a robot.)

Interested in some other implausible ideas about the future? Check some of these past posts:

Operate on Yourself
57 Years is Now 41 Days
Death’s Slow Death
Self-Driving Cars
Do the Impossible
Enlarge Our Minds to a Space Elevator
Pong & The Future of the President’s Brain
Could You Really Love a Robot?
Do the Impossible: A Case Study

Jack Uldrich is a writer, futurist, public speaker and host of jumpthecurve.net. He is the author of seven books, including Jump the Curve and The Next Big Thing is Really Small: How Nanotechnology Will Change the Future of Your Business. He is also a frequent speaker on future technology and future trends, nanotechnology, innovation, change management and executive leadership to a variety of businesses, industries and non-profit organizations and trade associations.

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