Facial recognition has taken the tech world by storm. With some praise as much as some criticism, the newest iteration if artificial intelligence could be groundbreaking for a lot of industries, especially when it comes to how our identities play a role in security, customer appreciation, or even convenience. Taking these core aspects, entrepreneurs are creating an array of new uses every day, which is why we’ve compiled a few of our favorites to keep an eye on. Check them out below:
Tourism
While not always at the top of the facial recognition conversation, tourism is actually a pretty substantial use case for the technology. According to Forbes, 72 percent of hotel operators expect to be using real-time face recognition by 2020 for front desks. Facial recognition is a realistic expectation for many in the tourism field, which begs the question: beyond security in the check-in process, how else is facial recognition playing a role?
For the tourism industry, there are two primary roles that facial recognition is playing with security as well as customer recognition. The former is very much about identification and onboarding to ensure guest safety, while the latter is only in its early adoption; however, could be an interesting approach. For example, with facial recognition, cruise lines could identify which patrons are most likely to sign up for travel reward cards based on their behavior during their trip. As a feature designed to enhance the guest experience, tourism is definitely an industry to keep watch in regards to how it’s impacted by facial recognition.
Social Media
Another underrated sector impacted by facial recognition, social media could actually be seeing a massive shift soon. Facial recognition was partly grandfathered in via social media (automatic photo-tagging or recommendations), but it’s how we aggregate the data on a greater scale where things become interesting. In fact, an average of 95 million photos are uploaded to Instagram on a daily basis; when you consider how many Instagram followers people have, the possibility for facial recognition technology elevates.
Where facial recognition and social media might play a significant role soon is how they behave with recognition of those in the background. After all, what your face says when you’re not paying attention can be marketing gold, and a lot of entrepreneurs are making strides to make it happen–but not without some controversy. While most social networks have some use of facial recognition within their API, many third parties aren’t able to pull data like this automatically as it’s considered a little too invasive for privacy. Although most would agree we don’t want our facial expressions in the background used for marketing purposes anytime soon, the usage of meta-data (that is, general information not specific to you) might be interesting down the road.
Law Enforcement
An initial stronghold in the facial recognition industry, law enforcement has become a mammoth in the field. As noted by The Guardian, more than 50 percent of US adults are currently in a facial recognition database held by law enforcement, showcasing just how massive their presence actually is. A big contribution to this has been the willingness to enable law enforcement officers with facial recognition technology. Quite simply, everyone has been okay with the police being able to identify people for safety concerns; however, that’s not without its controversy.
Perhaps the biggest topic of debate surrounding law enforcement use of facial recognition is surrounding accuracy versus reliability as evidence. Especially when considering how much this is somewhat unchartered territory, the accuracy of facial recognition software is still being improved upon, which means it might be some time before it’s considered toward the top of evidence hierarchy in a courtroom. Despite these limitations, the software has already started to make a lot of communities much safer by deterring crime, which will only increase through time.
Customer Loyalty
Finally, one program that’s on the rise in facial technology has been customer loyalty, where the technology serves as an identifier for benefits and rewards. As noted by Business Insider, the chain CaliBurger is implementing a customer loyalty program in 40 locations where facial recognition picks up on loyal customers and pops-up their order on a self-serving kiosk, saving them time and money. Eventually, this technology will offer the other services of customer loyalty as well, including suggested purchases, discount codes, and even rewards. But the most fascinating part is how facial recognition will play into what we’re being offered.
Similar to our discussion above behind the data for social media, these customer loyalty programs could eventually become responsive to our mood. For example, it could sense that someone is feeling a little groggy and offer them a coupon for a cup of coffee to perk them up, highlighting the use of facial recognition that works harmoniously with our needs. While it’s true that there will be a lot of trial and error between using facial recognition and customer service, the overall benefit could provide a much more intimate buying experience for the long-haul.
What are some use cases for facial recognition that you’ve found appealing? Comment with your insights below!
