The Smart Home.

If you saw the movie, Her, you know what I’m referencing—having an operating system with which we interact and grow attached is likely not as far away as one might think. Consider the growth in digitally connected homes and technology’s pervasive encroachment into our daily lives, which is mainly purposeful and helpful, but also a little creepy. Given how connected we already are to our devices, don’t be surprised if Siri becomes your new best friend.

• Nest, the maker of the wireless, connected home thermostat and fire alarm, was purchased by Google earlier this year. With a desire to control all information, it seems appropriate that Google would snap up the company, whose products turn your home into a smart home through wired technology.
• Natalie Kitroeff in The New York Times reported on Tom Coates of San Francisco who has wired his home to provide ongoing communication and monitoring, just a sample of what we can expect to experience from wired homes in the near future. 

Consumer Forecast: Help me maximize my assets.

Sources: 

Kitroeff, Natalie. “Home Tweet Home,” The New York Times, March 9, 2014.

Garling, Caleb. “Google buys Nest to feather its data trackers,” San Francisco Chronicle, January 20, 2014.