Post by Aalto University

What did the future look like in the early 2000s? In 2003 Nokia’s designers dreamed up some “wild ideas” for phones, from facial recognition to location sharing to… who’d have thought… taking photos with your phone and sharing them with a friend! ☎️ At the time, techno-optimism framed a world of exciting possibilities. But now, with research increasingly revealing the hidden costs of new tech – whether to your privacy, your wellbeing or your professional competence – we’re all a bit more sceptical. The Nokia Design Archive is a rare, living record of the tech visions of the past and, unlike the closely kept secrets of the current tech bros, these futuristic dreams are publicly accessible to everyone. This video is one of our favourites from the archive. If you could go back in time, would you have any advice for the designers who came up with these ideas? 💡

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