3 ways state and local governments can ensure the future of 5G mobile networks in the US

Ahead of the White House Frontiers Conference, Richard Adler, of the Institute for the Future, explained how state and local governments can help pave the way for 5G in 2020.

By Conner Forrest | October 11, 2016, 9:25 AM PST



The future of many technologies hinges on the deployment of 5G networks, but there are still a few potential roadblocks to their development Richard Adler, a distinguished fellow at the Institute for the Future, said in a press call on Tuesday.

The call came a few days before the White House Frontiers Conference kicks off in Pittsburgh. The conference will focus on advances in science and technology, and Adler hosted a call to discuss the importance of 5G networks in supporting innovation and the role they will play in some of the technologies that the conference will focus on.

Mobile data traffic has experienced a 4,000x increase in the past 10 years, Adler said, and the next-generation 5G networks will help increase communication times, and improve speed and bandwidth as traffic continues to grow. The standard for 5G won't be completed until 2020, Adler said, but actions have been taken around the US to lay the foundation for the network.


One of the biggest differences with 5G is that it uses what is known as millimeter wave band, which has a shorter range, but is key to increasing capacity. Because of that, though, providers will

Future Smart Home Trends and the Products You’ll Be Using

Bryan Wolfe September 30, 2016 5 minutes

The smart home industry in 2016 looks much different than it did only five years ago when Nest introduced its first-generation smart thermostat. No doubt, the industry will change again half a decade from now.

It’s time to jump into your time machine. You’re about to uncover what could be the biggest trends in the smart home industry in 2021 and the products you might be using.
Emerging Trends in Home Automation

The smart home of the future is expected to include more energy efficient products controlled by localized virtual assistants. Tomorrow’s homes will also be safer, which is particularly good for aging populations.
Siri Says

Every tech giant offers a digital voice assistant, from Apple’s Siri to Microsoft’s Cortana to Amazon’s Alexa. Right now, these voice assistants require an active web connection and external data to work. In the future, smartphones, tablets, and wearables will feature local voice assistants. In doing so, they will save battery life and reduce many of the privacy concerns some have about those services.7 Creative Uses for Amazon Echo and Alexa 7 Creative Uses for Amazon Echo and AlexaYou’ve seen the ads starring Alec Baldwin, but you're still not sure what Amazon Echo does or whether you need one in your home. We’re about to find out.READ MORE

Earlier this year, MIT researchers unveiled a computer chip optimized for deep-learning. Code-named “Eyeriss”, the chip could allow mobile devices to perform such tasks as natural language processing and facial recognition without going online.



As Vivienne Sze, the Emanuel E. Landsman Career Development Assistant Professor in MIT’s Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science explains:


You can imagine that if you can bring that functionality to your cell phone or embedded devices, you could still operate even if you don’t have a