What’s the most exciting technology development you’ve seen happen in 2013 so far and why? The following answers are provided by the Young Entrepreneur Council (YEC), an invite-only organization comprised of the world’s most promising young entrepreneurs. In partnership with Citi, the YEC recently launched #StartupLab, a free virtual mentorship program that helps millions of entrepreneurs start and grow businesses via live video chats, an expert content library, and email lessons. 1. Fitbit I recently got a Fitbit, and it’s already had a positive effect on my life and my work. As an entrepreneur, it’s so easy to forget to actually move. The Fitbit, which I wear every day, tracks my steps, how many stairs I climb and more, which encourages me to get up and meet the daily goals that I set. – Lauren Friese, TalentEgg 2. Google Glass It’s been really exciting to watch the launch of the Explorer program from Google to provide early adopters with access to Glass. It’s an incredible piece of hardware, complete with HD video and software that has voice control and third-party applications. It will be fascinating to see how the technology continues to develop over the coming years. – Doreen Bloch, Poshly Inc. 3. Auto Safety The technological developments in the auto manufacturing world are very exciting because of how much safer vehicles are to drive now. Everything from lane departure warning systems to rear-facing cameras and blind-spot indicators will surely cut down on the number of automobile accidents and deaths. – Andrew Schrage, Money Crashers Personal Finance 4. Visual Discovery It’s exciting to see the amazing progress being made in the augmented reality industry this year — or, as we call it, “visual discovery.” Google Glass is becoming mainstream news. The industry and this game-changing new behavior can effectively unlock the physical world around us simply by looking at it through our device. It is finally getting the attention it deserves! – Jessica Butcher, Blippar 5. Car Tech Car tech excites me, but it still has a long way to go. Ford’s developer platform is potentially exciting, but it’s still kind of like putting lipstick on a pig. Also, why can’t I dock my iPad in my dash in any car and use that to control everything and play my music? That should have happened years ago. Car tech is woefully behind. Tesla is the only exception that I’m aware of. – Danny Boice, Speek 6. Personal 3D 3D printing on the enterprise level has been around for a long time, but now they have shrunk it down so that I can do it myself. We are still a long way away from being able to print high-quality items bought online, but it is advancing quickly. – Trace Cohen, Launch.it 7. Smart Big Data Data and big data approaches are making systems smarter, easier to use and more relevant to us. Already, Google Now will automatically tell you when to leave for your next meeting. Foursquare now has an opinion about where you should grab lunch, and Nest knows where to set your thermostat. This data intelligence will show up in more and more consumer and business applications. – Michael Mayernick, Spinnakr 8. Oculus Rift The Oculus Rift is a new virtual reality headset that has the ability to seamlessly transport the wearer into a virtual world so immersive that his brain actually believes it’s real. Not only could this lead to a massive upheaval of the gaming industry, but it could also have far-reaching impacts on business, communication, training, science and medicine. – James Simpson, GoldFire Studios
