My bet is in the exact opposite direction. I think that the internet will be increasingly ambient, driven by virtual assistants like Alexa and Google Now. Most

My bet is in the exact opposite direction. I think that the internet will be increasingly ambient, driven by virtual assistants like Alexa and Google Now. Most interactions will be short, personalised and push-oriented. Rich VR experiences will exist, but they'll represent a very small proportion of internet use. Consider the development of phone technology. In the 70s and 80s, most futurists thought that video calling would replace voice. They thought that richer, higher-bandwidth experiences would dominate the market. In fact, the opposite happened - voice was surpassed by SMS and IM. Users overwhelmingly prefer to communicate in a medium that is less rich, but more convenient. Asynchronous messaging came to dominate because it's "snackable" and doesn't demand your full attention. I think that the future is an Amazon drone dropping off a box of goodies that you didn't order, but is exactly what you wanted. It's Google Now booking you an Uber to a restaurant that turns out to be your new favourite place. It's Spotify using heart rate, galvanic skin response, pupillary dilation and a thousand other data points to compose the soundtrack to your life.