Privacy Erosion
Optimistic Era

A Brief History of 'Smart' Things

The inevitable march from convenience to surveillance

2007
📱
"Smartphone"
"Seemed reasonable at the time"
  • Revolutionized communication
  • First device with location tracking
  • Camera always in your pocket
  • The gateway drug to surveillance capitalism
Click to learn more
2011
📺
"Smart TV"
"It's just easier to have a microphone in the living room"
  • Voice commands for channel surfing
  • Always listening, just in case
  • Tracks everything you watch
  • Ads personalized based on conversations
Click to learn more
2014
"Smart Watch"
"Your wrist needed monitoring"
  • Tracks your heart rate 24/7
  • Knows when you sleep, wake, exercise
  • Shares health data with insurance companies
  • Never take it off, or you'll miss your goals!
Click to learn more
2016
🔊
"Smart Speaker"
"Always listening, for convenience"
  • Play music with your voice!
  • Records every conversation "accidentally"
  • Knows your shopping habits intimately
  • Definitely not sending audio to servers
Click to learn more
2018
🚪
"Smart Doorbell"
"Surveillance, but make it neighborly"
  • Facial recognition on every visitor
  • Shares footage with police automatically
  • Monitors your entire neighborhood
  • Creates a private surveillance network
Click to learn more
2020
🥗
"Smart Fridge"
"Your eating habits: monetized"
  • Tracks every food item you consume
  • Suggests recipes based on shopping data
  • Shares dietary info with health insurers
  • Camera inside monitors food "freshness"
Click to learn more
2022
🚽
"Smart Toilet"
"Yes, really"
  • Analyzes your waste for health markers
  • AI detects potential health issues
  • Data sold to pharmaceutical companies
  • The one place you thought was private
Click to learn more
2024
🛏️
"Smart Mattress"
"Sleep data is valuable"
  • Monitors sleep patterns, heart rate, breathing
  • Tracks bedroom activities (all of them)
  • Adjusts firmness based on your dreams
  • Knows when you're having nightmares about surveillance
Click to learn more
2026
🧱
"Smart Brick"
"Your children's play: optimized"
  • Behavioral tracking during playtime
  • Creativity metrics analyzed and scored
  • Social development algorithms
  • Predictive modeling for future compliance
  • Shares data with educational institutions
Click to learn more
2028
❓👁️
"Smart ???"
"There is nothing left"
  • Direct neural interface
  • Thoughts monitored and monetized
  • Privacy is a distant memory
  • Resistance is futile (and tracked)
  • You consented to all of this, remember?
Click to learn more
← Scroll to witness the erosion →