Marketing 0

Reimagining Business with the Next Tech
Humans are unique beings, blessed with unparalleled cognitive
ability. We are capable of making tough decisions and solving
complex problems. But most importantly, we can learn from
experience. The way our brain develops cognitive skills is through
contextual learning: acquiring knowledge, finding relevance based
on our own life experience, and developing our holistic views.
The way humans learn is also extraordinarily complex. Humans
receive stimuli from all five senses. We use verbal language and
visual cues to teach and learn. Our perceptions of the world are
enhanced by touch, smell, and taste. We also receive psychomotor
training, for example, to be able to write, walk, and perform other
motor skills. This entire learning is a lifetime process. As a result,

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humans can communicate, sense, and move based on environmental
stimuli.
For many years, scientists and technologists have been obsessed with
replicating human capabilities with machines. Machine learning in
AI attempts to mimic the contextual learning approach. AI engines
are not designed to learn on their own. Like humans, they must be
trained on what to learn using algorithms. They find relevance from
big data that serve as contextual examples. Finally, they can
“comprehend” the algorithms and make complete sense of the data.
Sensors play a role in helping the learning by mimicking human
senses. For example, facial and image recognition can help machines
distinguish objects based on the visual learning model that humans
use. Furthermore, the cognitive skill of computers allows them to
mimic social communications—with NLP—and make physical
movements—with robotics. Although machines are yet to possess
human-level consciousness and finesse, they have better endurance
and reliability, making it possible to learn a massive volume of
knowledge in a short period.
Human uniqueness, however, does not stop there. Humans can
comprehend abstract concepts, such as ethics, cultures, and love,
that have no physical forms. This imagination capability beyond
reasoning makes humans more creative. And it sometimes drives
humans to deviate from what is considered rational and reasonable.
Moreover, humans are highly social. We intuitively like to gather in
groups and build relationships with others.
Machines are also being trained with these other aspects of human
capabilities. For example, AR and VR try to mimic human
imagination by overlaying two different realities—online and offline
—on top of each other. We also try to conceptualize how machines
should “socialize” with one another by developing IoT and
blockchain.

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FIGURE 6.2
Bionics: Six Ways Technology Mimics Humans
We call these advanced technologies the next tech: artificial
intelligence, NLP, sensor tech, robotics, mixed reality, IoT, and
blockchain. By replicating human capabilities, they will empower the
next-generation marketing (see 
Figure 6.2
).