Facebook’s annual F8 Developer Conference for 2017 drew to a close yesterday with one of the biggest bombs to drop onto the tech world.
Also Read ➤ Facebook F8 2017: Day one biggest announcements
Facebook has been known to be a pioneer in the technology field, and has funded and created several technological advances of the decade. From Virtual Reality headsets (the Oculus Rift and Gear VR created alongside Samsung), self-driving cars to connecting the entire world to the internet, Facebook’s CEO and founder has always been very ambitious. But with this year’s F8’s biggest reveal, could he be reaching higher than ever before?
Your brain can Type?
On the last day of their F8 Developer Conference of 2017, Facebook released its biggest move yet; Brain typing. Regina Dugan, Facebook’s vice president of engineering and head of its secretive Building 8, went on stage to announce the reveal of something even Sci-fi movies have never thought about.
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According to Dugan, Facebook has 60 scientists and developers working on creating the world’s first ever computer interface controlled by the human mind. In simple terms, the need for a mouse and keyboard for your computer will disappear because we will all be using our minds to telepathically type and use our computers.
The implications and effect of this technology could be countless and incredible. Imagine the ability to simply look at your screen to pause a movie, or to create illustrations and digital art by simply thinking of how it would like.
So far, the main purpose of the technology is focused on created the system to be capable of typing 100 words per minute. This would make it 5 times faster than people are able to type on their smartphones. Writing reports, creative briefs and books will never be the same again.
Many have already started to claim that this could mean the end of privacy as we know it, and it could potential let advertisers market within a user’s brain. “Brain activity contains more information than what a word sounds like or how it is spelled,” said Dugan during the keynote. “After all word is just a compressed thought.” She states that this would simply be a new way to communicate our thoughts, and as for the possible concerns some people may have, she has stated that “”We are not talking about decoding random thoughts,” and “It’s not something any of us should have a right to know.”
Dugan has stated the technology is 3 years away, a short time to create such a world bending and possibly terrifying technology.
More Highlights from Facebook’s F8 Day 2
Facebook announced Tether-tenna, a way to provide more internet connectivity to the world by using a small helicopter to provide emergency connectivity. This could be used during disasters such as tsunamis and earthquakes, where loved ones and friends desperately try to reach other.
The company has been playing around with Artificial Intelligence (AI) for a while now, believing that it could be used to elevate and create new experiences for users.
They announced that they will be adding AI within Facebook, Instagram and Messenger; this should enable the device and app to understand your surroundings and location, recognize people and things. The AI would be a powerful tool for Facebook’s push forward with the proposed Augmented Reality platform on smartphone cameras that they announced just the day before.
