predictions

To take the guesswork out of efficient driving, Ford may employ Google's Prediction API to do the energy-saving calculations for commuters.

Google's Predictive API is already used by Web sites to recommend products to users and by mail programs to decide which missives are spam. But Ford is also exploring ways the pattern-matching program could be used to program vehicles to run more efficiently based on driving patterns and styles, according to an article in PC World.

At the Google I/O conference yesterday, Ford presented a use case for the predictive engine that analyzed previous trips to … Read more

It's the annual Buzz Out Loud predictions show, where the team puts their collective analyst heads together and predict the future--well, the next 12 months of the future or so. On this year's show, we've got everything from life on Mars to true holograms (at least in demo form), Apple releasing its own TV, a new social media phenomenon around food, and the impending awesomeness of the WebOS tablet. Oh, and the Singularity arriving. No, seriously. --Molly

Software and services aren't the main attraction at CES 2011, but that doesn't mean there won't be plenty of innovation at the show for the coming year. Of course, we won't know exactly what that innovation will be until we get there, but you can bet we have some ideas about it. Most notably, we'll be seeing even more of a shift from the computer to mobile devices, with companies aiming to keep you connected and entertained on the go.

The cloud expands

Mobile devices are great for both business and pleasure. There's just … Read more

When my boss asks me what tablets I expect to see at CES, I have to laugh a little. It's a nervous laugh. Maybe I'm overreacting, but with the iPad's breakout success this year, I'm expecting a tidal wave of tablets at CES 2011.

There are the obvious elephants in the room. RIM will surely be making a fuss about its PlayBook. HP should have a WebOS tablet to show off (or risk humiliation, at this point). And as for Microsoft, if we don't see a branded tablet we should at least see a convincing … Read more

Instead of building fast with lots of servers, lots of customers, and hopes of revenue, many new start-ups--mindful of the recovering economy--are taking a downright old-fashioned approach: make money first, grow later.

Whether that will play out at the Demo conference, which begins in earnest Tuesday in Santa Clara, Calif., is debatable. But in recent months, the buzz-worthy start-ups have had a decidedly more traditional view than Web 2.0 heavyweights like Facebook and Twitter, founded just a few years ago with the principle that you build your audience, then you make your money.

There is, in fact, a shift … Read more

This is a flashback to our 2010 predictions. Being that we are now more than half way through the year, let's see just how awesomely (or not) we are doing with our predictions!

We count down our top ten (or so) predictions in the world of technology for 2010. Enjoy!

Tom's Predictions for 2010: Apple Tablet will come out in the summer and be $899 3DTV will be the big marketing push Project Natal will launch but be overshadowed Machine-to-machine … Read more

Despite what is often considered to be a conservative approach to business, IBM has no shortage of big thinkers who use their skills both internally and externally to influence the way the company thinks about technology and how it applies to business processes.

This week I met with Jeff Jonas, chief scientist, IBM Entity Analytics, to talk about how predictive analytics is moving into new realms of big data and how companies are using software to deal with the deluge of information.

Jonas joined IBM in 2005 when Big Blue acquired SRD, a company he founded to develop so-called extraordinary systems with specific data analysis tasks, such as facial recognition and analysis systems casinos use to catch cheating gamblers.

The main thrust of Jonas' research right now is trying to figure out ways to better take advantage of as much data as possible as fast as the transaction is happening--with an eye toward real-time predictive analytics. This is basically pattern detection in real-time, based on patterns that may or may not exist already.

Jonas explained that you may not know of a pattern, but you want to find one, and that many might be interesting but they don't always matter. In the casino example, bad guys are looking to perform channel separation by mixing and matching, people, places, and things, but the casino needs to do channel consolidation to aggregate information and determine an immediate course of action.… Read more

Each year E3 becomes the ultimate venue for game companies to flex their collective muscles in an effort to win over critics and gamers alike. Sometimes the news is groundbreaking, other times it can fall flat.

Let's take a look back exactly one year ago at E3 2009 and see how the show's biggest announcements have fared. From Project Natal to Wii MotionPlus, the PSP Go to the Vitality Sensor, the show certainly had its ups and downs. Click through our slideshow for a trip down memory lane.

In a recent conversation about predictive analytics, I learned how Wal-Mart Stores uses statistical modeling to better understand the habits and tendencies of its customers--and how businesses can use this data to drive competitive pricing to dominate a market.

Imagine that same type of customer intelligence, delivered almost instantaneously, into the hands of store managers on-site or corporate executives on their iPhone or iPad.

That's what Medallia, a provider of customer feedback and performance data software, aims to provide with a new offering this week on the heels of the new iPhone 4 announcement. Medallia gets its information from … Read more