Today Google has added yet another company to their growing roster of employees and acquisitions, only this one is pretty unique and interesting. We’ve learned Google has acquired a start-up company called Behavio, which uses smartphone sensors of all types to become a powerful prediction engine. This is just one more step in Google’s efforts to know what we want before we do.
Behavio essentially records and gathers data of all types from the wide array of sensors and info on our smartphones. Then in return analyses this data and can come up with accurate predictions of all types of things. It has been said their technology can predict riots and many other social related incidents, just to name a few.
Using things like physical location, speed, contacts, nearby devices and events, sound levels, phone activity and more all gathered and monitored, then in return predict behavior and things of that nature. Pretty scary stuff when you really think about it. It targets more than just people too, and can target and analyze entire communities of groups of people at events.
According to TechCrunch the company was acquired by Google, and we can’t wait to see how it’s used. A few updated reports and the team at Behavio themselves have stated they weren’t bought by Google, and instead will be moving in and joining forces with Google in Mountain View. So we’re unsure if this was a buyout or not.
We can see this type of technology being integrated to many aspects of Google’s day-to-day. Things like Google Now, search, and much much more. This also goes nicely with their latest Machine Learning purchase detailed below.
[via Behavio]
it’ll probably be incorporated into project glass. maybe it’ll work in sync with android smartphones
May b they can tell me my next bowl movement?
Or sync my! !!!
This story omits an important point — Behavio was the recipient of a Knight foundation grant. Prior reporting on TechCrunch explicitly says that the this development was *not* an acquisition. http://techcrunch.com/2013/04/12/knight-foundation-backed-mobile-sensor-startup-behavio-shuts-down-as-founders-join-google/
hmmm… sounds like a MOBILE version of the system on “Person of Interest”.. it predicts crimes and all things “BAD”, before they happen.. so they can be prevented!? 🙂