Trend: What reality do I exist in?

A trend indicates a direction of change in values and needs which is driven by forces and manifests itself already in various ways within certain groups in society.

Digital Twins, part of the larger virtual reality phenomenon, are virtual replicas of real objects, systems, or processes that are kept synchronized with the physical entity by means of a set of data streams and data-driven Artificial Intelligence (AI) models. The idea of using a Digital Twin first started in the manufacturing sector, and is now being adopted by all sectors of society, and used to generate intelligence and make society ‘smart’. Virtual versions of real cities and local Digital Twins can be used to design and test local development strategies and help make cities and local areas greener, more sustainable and fairer. Domotics (home or building automation) makes virtual versions of household appliances and connects all the technical facilities in a house to a ‘building management system’, aiming to make life more efficient and pleasant.

Humans can have a Digital Twin of themselves in the virtual world (i.e. a personal digital twin). This virtual version of themselves is based on different sources of information, including digital footprints left behind when they operate in and interact with the digital world entities (social media, browsing online). ‘Digital me’, is an editable version of a digital twin where a person can take control and govern their personal digital twin. There are vast amount of private personal data out there. All of the possibilities call for rules on the regularisation of data markets.

This Trend is part of the Megatrend Accelerating technological change and hyperconnectivity

Manifestations

Developments happening in certain groups in society that indicate examples of change related to the trend.

Personal digital twins: virtual me, modifiable digital me

A so-called ‘ personal digital twin’ is made up of a collection of an individual’s digital tracks online on their various devices, which are regularly collected. Social media data (such as Twitter) can also be used. While access to some data sources can be limited due to the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), several social media are outside of the EU’s GDPR’s reach. Nevertheless, huge amounts of data can be collected to model an individual person. This allows data manipulators to learn how to an individual, and influence them - knowing their social, political and economic patterns.

The opportunity and challenge for society is for everyone to get control of their own ‘digital twin’.  For example, personal digital twins have applications in healthcare, which present a particular challenge: should all personal digital tracks be accessible, or should access be granted only on a selected track chosen by the individual concerned?

Signals of change: Challenge, ESRI, CNN Business, Microsoft, Gartner, Springer, Medium

Domotics

Domotics, or home automation, refers to the use of IoT devices and systems in a domestic environment in order to create a so-called‘smart home, or smart house’. This means that home devices can all be controlled remotely via the internet, using a phone or other networked remote control.  It is assumed that increasing automation will lead to ambient computing. Through the convergence of different digital technologies such as IoT, IoB, AR and 5G, ambient intelligence creates an environment that is ‘sensitive and responsive to the presence of people’.  The idea can be applied to health care appliances used in the home too, which makes it an opportunity for remote areas and/or ageing populations.

Signals of change: The Guardian, ThoughtCo.

Regulation of personal and digital twin data markets

The regulation of data markets and close handling of personal data has an impact on security and privacy. There are differences between the data regulation needs of living and non-living entities. For living people, collected and analysed health data can provide possibilities for very personalised health care. Regulation is needed to develop the validation of the data – to assure its quality and proper use. This presents several layers of tasks: the health care data available from wearable devices for example might need regulations not only on the data, but also on the devices to ensure that the data is standardized. After this, regulations are needed to put rules on the use of the data. The Data Act and the upcoming AI Act specify some of these aspects more in depth. There are many interlinkages between this trend and the 'Digitize me’ trend in the Health Megatrend - which looks at the health applications regulation needs. But there are many other personal and digital data markets too.

Signals of change: Phenomenal World, SocArXiv

Interesting questions

What might this trend imply, what should we be aware of, what could we study in more depth? Some ideas:

• What if AI deserves to have rights?
• What if a digital clone of me could take my job?
• What if Algorithms and chat-bots paid income taxes?
• What if we could live forever in the metaverse, and people would prefer it to the real world?
• What if the metaverse becomes a safe haven for criminals?
• If digital me /personal digital twins are created and the real person dies, who owns the digital version? And can a person still exist digitally? Microsoft has patented a chatbot to communicate with dead people. When I die who will own my digital me?
• Digital twin and digital me: how can you control your own data?
• For regulated markets, the EU’s GDPR has put rules and regulations in place, but on social media like Twitter this is not applicable/always the case. What happens if rules and regulations are not the same for all actors?