In this week's Abundance Insider: Spiderweb-inspired implants, Nissan's brain-computer interface, and a new WhatsApp messaging record.
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What it is: Nissan just released details on its Brain-to-Vehicle (B2V) technology, which reads a driver's brain activity and shares it with the car's onboard systems to improve safety, comfort and performance. Nissan says its technology helps driver-assist systems initiate 0.2 to 0.5 seconds before a human driver, enabling a more seamless experience.
Why it's important: This technology is meant to ease the transition from human-driven cars to autonomous vehicles. Will consumers be willing to wear a sensor-studded helmet to unlock better, safer and more predictable communication between car and driver? Share on Facebook
Spotted by Marissa Brassfield / Written by Marissa Brassfield
What it is: WhatsApp users recently set a new single-day messaging record, sharing 75 billion messages on New Year's Eve despite an hour-long service outage in various parts of the world. The service now has 1.3 billion monthly active users.
Why it's important: This crushes the former record of 63 billion sent messages on New Year's Eve in 2016, and provides further evidence of our increasingly mobile world. Share on Facebook
Spotted by Marissa Brassfield / Written by Marissa Brassfield
What it is: Research by the European Commission reveals that in Sweden, 80 percent of residents have a positive outlook on artificial intelligence and robotics. "The jobs disappear, and then we train people for new jobs," said Ylva Johansson, the Swedish minister for employment to the New York Times. "We won't protect jobs. But we will protect workers."
Why it's important: Sweden is an early example of how government policy and state-sponsored programs can help today's workers prepare for increasing automation in the future. How will other regions respond? Share on Facebook
Spotted by Marissa Brassfield / Written by Marissa Brassfield
What it is: Some 1 million Americans live with Type 1 diabetes, and have had to resort to daily insulin injections. Although insulin-producing islets have been possible to create via stem cells, they have been limited by the long-term immunosuppressant drug administration necessary to prevent their rejection. Now, Minglin Ma and team from Cornell University have derived inspiration from spider silk to address these challenges. Just as spider silk is able to hold water on its exterior, Ma and team have attached an islet cell containing capsules encased in a biocompatible hydrogel to a calcium-releasing helical polymer thread. This allows the cells to sense glucose, protect them from immune system rejection, and facilitates removing the thread when the cells eventually fail or die. So far, implantation via laparoscopy, blood sugar regulation, and removal in mice and canines have been successful.
Why it's important: We've seen progress in 3D-printed organs, but this is one of the first examples introducing stem-cell-derived, organlike treatments that are implantable and replaceable. Look for more bio-inspired designs like this to take shape, solving near-term personal pains and long-term life extension possibilities. Share on Facebook
Spotted by Marissa Brassfield / Written by Jason Goodwin
What it is: Didi Chuxing, China's largest ride-sharing company, bought a controlling interest in 99, the largest ride-sharing app in Brazil. After investing $100 million USD a little over a year ago, this deal values 99 at $1 billion. With globalization becoming a strategic priority for Didi, the company also announced plans to expand into Mexico, and is investing in a number of rivals to Uber, such as Lyft, India's Ola, Singapore's Grab, Estonia's Taxify and Careem in the Middle East.
Why it's important: Not only is this a sign of Chinese and other global companies competing aggressively with U.S. rivals like Uber, but it is an important reminder that global markets are as big (or bigger) of a testbed for the digitization and democratization of exponential technologies. Don't forget to think globally when watching trends and for inspiration of what is rapidly becoming possible. Share on Facebook
Spotted by Marissa Brassfield / Written by Jason Goodwin
What it is: Rep. Patrick McHenry (R-NC) and Sen. Cory Booker (D-NJ) just introduced a bill that would mandate the IRS to create an API to allow lenders and other financial institutions to pull borrower data such as tax returns at a much faster rate. While tax returns have historically been used in credit decisions, most often these records are provided in paper or PDF format, which is time consuming, error prone, and often results in misplacing of credit. While the IRS has had this ability and desire for years, for various reasons the agency hasn't been able to make this a priority. If passed, this should speed the effort.
Why it's important: From the UK's Open Banking Measure to the EU's Payment Services Directive, government agencies are stepping in to hasten the transformation of financial services. With increased transparency and speed of access to data, look for innovation and competition to increase across the globe. Share on Facebook
Spotted by Marissa Brassfield / Written by Jason Goodwin
What is Abundance Insider?
This email is a briefing of the week's most compelling, abundance-enabling tech developments, curated by Marissa Brassfield in preparation for Abundance 360. Read more about A360 below.
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