Drivers continue to express an increasing interest in autonomous vehicle technology and that will have a major impact on future products.
Ford Motor Co.’s annual trends report always creates waves with its predictions and the new report is no exception, starting with the a prediction about how long people expect to hang on to their new cars and a peak at future fashions.
The report indicates that 76% American consumers purchasing a new vehicle expect to keep their next cars for at least 10 years, according to the new edition of the Ford Trends Report, which is now online.
Consumers all over the world are increasingly interested in autonomous machines that use artificial intelligence, claims Sheryl Connelly, Ford’s corporate futurist. More than 70% of the consumers in places such as China, India and Brazil are interested in the autonomous machines, such as self-driving cars.
However, in more mature markets such as the United Kingdom and the United States is somewhat less. Roughly 42% of the consumers in the U.S. have indicated they are interested in self-driving cars, according to the new report on future trends.
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The interest in substantial markets like China, which is already the largest market for new vehicles in the world, and India clearly could influence the development in of the technology in the years to come.
Meanwhile, other changing attitudes are percolating through society, such as a key interest in smaller, and less expensive, housing alternatives. A third of the Americans between ages of 18-35 indicated they would be willing to live in a small house of between of between 100 and 400 square feet, which is much smaller than the typical suburban house of 2,400-square feet.
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The report also suggests that smart phones are rapidly changing the way people interact with the world. It cites statistics indicating that Americans spend more than four hours per day on their phones, which can now play music and stream sporting events and television shows.
In addition, 49% of the Americans under the age of 35 check on work-related e-mail outside of normal working hours. At the same time, 40% of the Americans over the age of 35 also check e-mail outside of normal working hours.
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At the same time, the freelance or gig economy, which allows people to work as they choose, is continuing to expand. As far as future fashion trends, look for the coming of a jacket that comes with a built in-neck pillow and eye mask to use on long flights or perhaps long road trips.