As we slide toward a future nearing ‘Zero UI’ (a more invisible way of interfacing instead of graphical UI’s), I am a little concerned we will take the easy route with a plethora of annoying audio interruptions to my power-walking music playlist with…

“BLING – Your shoes are now…13.2 months old. let’s order you some new ones…Nykbok Skyhorse in Pale Blue and Orange highlights are a 79% user match! Say ‘yo’ to order now for quick drone deployment”

and

“BLING BOOP – you are passing your colleague ‘Tod the Douchebag’ would you like to mention his new promotion for 23 social points?”

all day long… this mixed with weird arm flailing sign language interfacing will be hilarious! “No bro I wasn’t hassling your old lady, I was skipping a track!”

Now imagine with me if you have the time, the embarrassing faux pas that the home audio system will make, blaring in front of your party of friends:

“BLIP BLOOP – Your incontinent pant refills will arrive today, I have also messaged Duane the Prick and made an excuse for him not to come to the party as per your calendar entry.” Duane will look at you from across the kitchen like only a Duane can… awkward…

With this way of interfacing with the web, business, commerce and extended family we will see a decline of regular advertising such as posters, billboards and print ads (these will be banned after the augment reality craze becomes swamped in consumer overlays until we cannot walk straight down a road without walking into poles – that are warning us to look where we are going – after the smart phone craze).

Obviously we will need to settle on a happy medium of auditory, UI overlay, graphical, tactile and maybe even olfactory interactions (phone emits ‘Roses and Mothball’ smell to notify it’s Mum’s Birthday). We as designers, UI and UX ninjas will need to ramp up our skills to include: data analyst, robotic geek, biology nerd, science dweeb, aroma therapist, physical therapist and psychology neophyte. Hopefully the robot overlords pay well for this human up-skilling. Design will split more in two, one prong becoming more of an aesthetic human art expression in fashion and products, while the other path becomes more AI, more ‘interfacing with the machine’ driven.

After the Zero UI thing we can all enjoy the era of being teched up, implanted, cyborgs. I will leave this to your imagination – our only tool/asset that competes with computers and AI.