tmurray
SAWHORSE
A lot of what we experience isn't electronics listening to us (although some do), it is actually the advertising algorithms. Target was one of the leaders in this field. By tracking purchases and comparing them to what other people typically purchased later on, Target would send coupons for the items people tended to purchase later in the mail.We've been posting about boats and an ice bath so the algorithm is working. I click on the ads now and then but then new ads tailored to that click show up on all of my devices. I am convinced that the phones, laptops and iPads are listening to my conversations. I'm not sure about the TV, but I wouldn't be surprised... maybe even the refrigerator. Do I sound crazy?
In one instance the administrator of the program received an angry call from a father when they sent his daughter some coupons for baby formula and diapers. The father was naturally upset given that his daughter was still in high school. A few weeks later the father called back to apologize as his daughter was actually pregnant.
This was before the advent of mobile device technology and the Internet-of-Things, so it shows just how accurate these algorithms can be. It also leads us to question how much freewill we actually have if our decisions can be predicted to this degree.