What the future of digital content will look like

I believe it's safe to say that envisioning new technologies and the possibilities they may bring has never been easier, especially with the AI tools available today. However, our true challenge lies in creating the "right" technology that promotes values such as inclusivity, equality, diversity, and ecology in society. 

Philosopher Peter-Paul Verbeek's technological mediation theory states that our relationship with the world is shaped and mediated by the technology we create, and it's our responsibility to ensure that our creations embody ethical and moral values.

When Storyblok approached us with the idea of organizing a design challenge to envision the future of websites and digital content, I knew this would be an opportunity to understand those topics more fully. Together with Storyblok, we embarked on a journey to explore what the future holds for us. 

Designing the future of digital content

We started by having the students delve into their personal experiences and create speculative headlines that depicted a world filled with progress or crisis. We then conducted background research to understand the signals and drivers that could lead to that future. 

As we visualized future scenarios through mood boards and vignettes, we were filled with a sense of purpose – a desire to create a better world for ourselves and future generations.

The passion and critical thinking skills of the students who participated in this challenge struck me deeply. They infused critical thinking and intriguing narrative mechanisms, including personas, settings, motivations, challenges, and resolutions, to create multiple storyboards that depicted plausible futures to explore. 

These included a society built on trust and communication through neural interfaces, a new paradigm of the web built on decentralized building blocks, brain-computer interfaces that empower both disabled and able-bodied users to take better control of their lives, a reimagined social platform/device that aids in creative community building and defines digital identity, and social robots that cultivate collaboration and community support during times of crisis.

Results of the design challenge

Five teams discussed their ideas during a final presentation event. Here are more details about the concepts (along with links to view the presentations) and the awards that were given to them by the judges:

• Web Decentralization (Community Choice and Best Technical Concept) – A decentralized system of content blocks inspired by Minecraft that anyone can use to collaborate on projects. Instead of billions of products designed by thousands of people, billions of people can work together to design thousands of products.
• Thought-to-Thought (Best Inclusive Focus) – A neural interface that enables people to communicate thoughts and ideas without having to explain them verbally. Thoughts could be stored and retrieved for special cases, such as dementia.
• Finding Heart in Woven Cities (Best Social Impact) – Community robots that roam around cities and offer personalized content while improving community engagement and personal connections between people
• Interspace (Most Actionable) – A wristband that displays a personalized holographic space that can be shared with others (concept video)
• Brain Computer Interfaces (Best Blue Sky) – A system that uses brain signals to create content and interact with digital experiences

As designers, engineers, and entrepreneurs, we have a responsibility to be extra mindful of the impact that new technologies have on society and the world at large. We must nurture our skills and passion for creating a world where we care for each other and the environment we live in, and create technologies that promote inclusivity, equality, diversity, and ecology. 

It was a great experience for both our students and me to work with Storyblok on this question around the future of digital content, and we are interested in engaging as others explore these concepts for inspiration in their own work