Lee ShuppManaging Director, Insights and StrategySpeck Design

The Personal

Area Network

What is the current wearables environment?

~10%Penetration

The early adopters

What is the current wearables environment?Global wearable data traffic from 2014 to 2019 (petabytes per month)

As adoption grows so too will the data these devices produce.Growth is exponential.

Wearables are destined to become integral in the coming Internet of Things. These connected products

will give rise to the Personal Area Network, an ecosystem of integrated devices that extend our

senses and knowledge.

Business-oriented

Integrated

User-oriented

Individual

Wild West Data Fiefdoms

Homegrown Data Zen Data

What could the Personal Area Network look like?

There’s an app for that! And that, and that, and that. How many apps can we have before we get overwhelmed?

Wild West

What’s the edge between individual apps that absolutely nail a specific user need, and an integrated experience that serves multiple needs?

Wild West

Strengths

Weaknesses Threats

Opportunities

Time

Success

Huge selection of productsSpecialized products meet specific needsData stored locallyUser customization

Saturated marketUser confusion and burnoutDisconnected servicesLittle integration

Low barrier to entryAdd functionality of adjacent apps

Join together disconnected services

Be biggest of many little fish

Little brand loyaltyUsers preferences change fast

Consumers protective about data

Wild West

Case Study | Fitness Trackers

How many ways can you track your heart rate and daily steps? Fitness wearables have exploded and now we have more options than we know what to do with.Are fitness trackers able to give us new insights about ourselves? How can we leverage the advantages of each when they don’t talk to each other?

SCENARIO 2

Big corporations build data ecosystems and force you to choose sides. Whose world do you want to live in: Facebook, Apple, Google, Amazon, or one of many upstarts?

Data Fiefdoms

Companies keep info proprietary and don’t play well with others. What’s the right mix between competition and open standards?

Data Fiefdoms

Time

Success

Strengths

Weaknesses Threats

Opportunities

Time

User experience is seamlessUbiquitous data access in the fiefdomCompanies ‘know’ their users better

User data belongs to corporations Large companies control IPSiloed experiences for users

Exciting experience driven brandBuild bridges between fiefdoms

Products that address fiefdom gaps

Fierce brand loyaltyTech lock in

Large companies continue to control IP

Resistance to cross platform development

Data Fiefdoms

Case Study | Google (or Apple)

Google’s Android platform is slowly invading anywhere that can install an OS. Cars, watches, TV and soon your home. Users in the ecosystem will get an increasingly unified experience with predictive analytics.Other tech giants are building similar experiences, with each one having advantages and disadvantages. Who do you choose?

Think Quantified Self on steroids. Big Wearables aim for mass market, and thus have little individual relevance, so users continue to cobble together personalized solutions.

Homegrown Data

What’s the right mix between just right for me and just good enough for everyone?

Homegrown Data

Time

Success

Strengths

Weaknesses Threats

Opportunities

Time

User data is privateUser customization and alterationCommunity orientedGrassroots innovation

Little out of box value to usersDifficult to connect and maintain servicesFunction restricted by knowledge wall

Unify servicesTools to help users maximize

functionConnect wearables to new

experiences

Privacy concerns about dataCross platform integration expected

Service transparency

Homegrown Data

Case Study | IF This Then That

If you want something done right, do it yourself. Tools like IFTTT, which help users connect one service to another, will lead to custom personal area networks.Will the potential audience want to take these steps to connect their world? Will they learn the tools and make it their own?

Our wearables and software integrate seamlessly into the personal area network, extending our senses and making us smarter and healthier.

Zen Data

Where is the edge for who is in control? What decisions do we want to make, and what do we want to delegate?

Zen Data

Time

Success

Strengths

Weaknesses Threats

Opportunities

Time

Seamless product experience‘Invisible’ technologyBrand loyalty dependent on integration

Data is open and does not belong to userLocation tracking ubiquitousUsers effectively ‘ID’d

Innovative cross platform development

Enhanced security solutions‘Singularity’ type technologies

accepted

Public wary of automationSecurity breaches shatter brand

trustGovernment take over of data

Zen Data

Case Study | Evernote

Data everywhere, but all in one place. Evernote takes advantage of all the platforms they can to give the end user the most holistic experience possible.By treating all possible points where notes happen as part of their service, Evernote effectively commodifies using your own notebook.

Lee Shupp

Lee Shupp focuses on deeply understanding human experience and emotion to ensure that Speck designs compelling experiences for users interacting with our client’s products, services, and brands. Lee comes to Speck Design from The Futures Company and Silicon’s Valley’s seminal design consultancy Cheskin.

He has done post-graduate work in Future Studies at the University of Houston, where he became a trained futurist. He has a Master’s in Communication from San Francisco State and a Bachelor’s in Communication from the University of Texas. Lee is a singer/songwriter who collects vintage guitars to feed his GarageBand addiction.

Managing Director, Insights and Strategy at Speck Design