Your dog's digital twin has got me worried
- Hi, we don't have an appointment, but her barkpad requested a doctor's visit and tests.
The receptionist's interface scans the data transmitted from Luna's collar.
- Luna, right? I see the request in the system. Please have a seat. The doctor will be with you shortly.
Luna resists, planting her paws firmly on the tiled floor. His mind races with worry as he guides her to the chair where he sits. A subtle citrus aroma mingles with the scent of an antiseptic. The reception area is humming with patients being weighed, measured, and groomed in automated stations. Despite other anxious pet owners' bustle, soft green walls reinforce the serious but reassuring atmosphere.
- Luna?
A woman in the doorway asks, a subtle glow emanating from scrubs' built-in diagnostic tools. He stands up quickly and gently tugs the leash.
- That's us. Come on, let's see what's up.
They follow the vet through a corridor with white doors on both sides.
- Do you have any special classes in veterinary medicine on how not to laugh at patients’ names? We waited just a few minutes, but some of the names were crazy.
- We do what we can, but some names are hilarious.
When she closes the door, a small examination room's soft green walls transform into a calming blue hue, responding to Luna's elevated stress levels. She stands on the side of a stainless steel inspection table.
- Thank you for coming with Luna this quickly. We need to take blood for testing.
- Is everything okay? The barkpad just said to bring her into any uplinked clinic as soon as possible.
He lifts Luna onto the scissor inspection table and glances at the dog, who seems blissfully unaware of his worries.
- Time is an important factor, but this is a very early match. If not for the barkpad, it would take a few more weeks for us to realise that something is happening, as the symptoms would get more visible.
She examines the dog as the patient's digital representation appears on the wall screen. Rows of data, vitals and treatment history details flicker on the polished parts of the worn-out inspection table.
- Did you notice anything suspicious in her behaviour?
- Not really. She's as uncooperative and moody as always. Which paw?
- Front one. Left or right.
He handles the visibly unhappy dog, who burrs a little.
- It's ok, it's ok.
She takes the blood while he stokes the dog's back.
- We will run the tests to be sure. Has she been scratching herself recently?
- It's hard to tell. The diet is the same. It's the same few parks and similar walk routes.
She wraps the dog's leg with a band-aid tape with a black heart pattern.
- You can take it off in 15 minutes.
She inserts the ends of the tubes into the machine, which seals them with a hiss and labels them with barcodes.
- Ok, the hard part is over. You can put her down on the floor. Why are you looking at me like that?
- She wants her treats.
- Two vials, two treats? Please don't give me this look. You know how to negotiate.
She gives her treats, and they sit at her desk.
- Your dog's digital twin has got me worried. The standard reference range for her age and breed is here.
She waves at the wall screen, where a semi-transparent dog materialises, surrounded by a cloud of vitals and charts, drawing Luna's attention. The dog barks. The vet gestures. Luna's digital twin appears next to the reference dog with the same cloud of vitals and charts. Multiple metrics are flashing in red.
- And these are our patient's deviations from the norm. These anomalies suggest a possible problem.
- OK. But why a blood test? We could simulate the whole organism. Cell by cell.
- But this won't be the reality your dog experiences. We need to update the model with real data from time to time. After all, we live in reality, not in a simulation.
- Or so they say.
She smiles, noticing his puzzled expression.
- Think of the digital twin as a virtual version of Luna. A digital twin is a model made to understand your dog better. By constantly updating Luna's vitals and behaviour data, we can match it with reference ranges, behaviour patterns, etc. Anytime something unusual pops up when your dog's data matches a reference range for a potential condition or disease, the system alerts us to take a closer look and update the model with more detailed information, like drawing blood to get data we can't monitor in real-time.
- So what's wrong with her?
- An infected mosquito might have bitten her. These mosquitoes can carry a mutated parasitic worm that causes all kinds of problems.
He nods, looking at his dog, trying to mask anxiety with humour.
- Zombie mosquito. Who would have thought?
- In the past, conditions like this were only uncovered during random blood tests or when symptoms became severe. Digital twins catch emerging patterns by cross-referencing continuous screening against a massive global database.
- I heard reinforcement learning from human feedback is booming, especially for expert annotators.
- Most fields include classes in this field, but big bucks wait only for those with considerable real-world experience. Creating models that medical practitioners can trust requires thousands of real doctors training massive datasets.
- Is it interesting?
- I still prefer hands-on care and can't get enough of my patients. However, becoming a data annotator can be more rewarding for many doctors if they want to work with rare conditions or collaborate on global standards. For most doctors, this is also the only widespread option for working remotely.
- The data became our doctors.
- Only if it's accessible and reliable at the same time.
- When will we know for sure?
The test results will be ready later today. If they confirm the diagnosis, I'll contact you. If everything is okay, we'll continue to monitor her and repeat the bloodwork in a week.
- And if she's infected?
- If she is infected, we'll send you a medication packet to put into your feeder. I have already updated the diet-related scripts on your barkpad. Once the results are in, new data will be integrated into Luna's bio-sim. The treatment is automatically added to her food and water. After a week, once her vitals improve, we'll adjust the medication or rerun the bloodwork, which is unnecessary in 90% of cases. For today, that's all. Do you have any questions?
- No, it's clear to me. Thank you, and have a nice day.
As they walk through the clinic, he feels even happier that he decided to do this first thing in the morning. The waiting area is packed with patients of all shapes and sizes meowing, squeaking and sniffing each other. Stepping outside, he taps the main contact sequence on the right temple of his glasses. The call connects, and his partner's live feed appears before his eyes.
- Hey, I just left the vet. Luna is okay for now, but there's a possibility a zombie mosquito bit her.
- A zombie mosquito? You can't be serious?
He sighs.
- I know it sounds wild, but it still sounds better than a mosquito carrying a parasite mutated by climate change.
- Ok, now I get it.
- She will get an adjusted diet and more meds once the results are in.
- I hope she'll be nicer to be around than when you were dieting.
- You are so mean.
- I know, and you love it. Kiss Luna from me.
- I'll see what I can do.
Hello Practical Futurists,
Welcome back from the future, where all beings we care about have digital twins and favourite contacts mutated into tap sequences.
If you enjoyed this story, hit the heart-shaped “Like” button at the top or bottom of this page. It’s great feedback and helps others find it.Good leaders don't just wait for the future.
They help to create it.
Let's dive into our weekly workout, where we use futures thinking and product sci-fi to build a future-proof mindset. Start with this quote for extra inspiration:
"The future is not a destination, it's a direction.”
Ed Catmull
As always, we begin by connecting the story to your personal life, making it more relatable.
Personal life reflection prompts
Would you use a bark or meow pad to care for your pets better?
In what 3 ways does your doctor-patient relationship change once all health data becomes portable and accessible to any medical professional you grant access to?
How has technology already changed how you manage your or your dependents' health? Name 3 specific examples.
On a scale of 1 to 10, how comfortable would you be with AI systems making health-related decisions for you or your loved ones? What could convince you of that solution?
What are the 2 ways in which technology could enhance or diminish the human-animal bond?
If anyone you love has a personal digital twin, how would you balance trusting technology with trusting your instincts regarding health decisions?
Good stuff!
We're now ready to shift our focus to the context of the industry, organization, team, service, or product you're working with.
Professional life reflection prompts
What 2 metrics can you use as an early warning system to know when something is wrong in your industry?
In what 3 ways could the concept of "expert annotators" for AI training be applied to improve knowledge management and decision-making processes in your organization?
What 2 strategies could improve data accessibility and reliability in your industry’s AI transformation?
How can leaders in your field balance using simulations and models with real-world testing and experience?
In what 2 ways could digital twin technology be applied to your products, services, or business processes to enhance your value proposition?
What operational challenges might appear while implementing continuous monitoring systems in your industry?
How might "digital twins" be applied to your organisation's scenario planning and strategic decision-making?
Name three leaders who are always ahead of the pack.
You did amazing! That’s everything we have for today.
Thank you for expanding your imagination with us. Leaders with bold ideas move our world forward.
Think bright, lead brighter, and see you soon.
Pawel Halicki
Do you want stories like this in your inbox?
Join strategic imagination workouts that inspire change-makers in market-leading organisations, including Visa, Deloitte, Barclays, UEFA, Nielsen, Morgan Stanley, and many more.
Feeling in the zone today?
To continue exploring the near future of pets and data, try:
If you’re more interested in exploring the near future of healthcare, check:
Do you know a leader who could use some more strategic imagination?
It only takes 5 seconds to share our imagination workouts.
I’ve seen some cool and not so cool (you’ll understand later) tech around animals lately.
- a forever “pawprint” for cats who pass away in a website turned memorial for the cats. The creator of that platform recently saw her cat pass away so she wanted to have some way to immortalize the pet
- GPS devices to avoid losing the cat or dog in case it goes around
I’m not a futurologist but I’ve seen first hand how some people having health gadgets hyperfixate on it.
I don’t know what the future will be, but I’m wondering if a dog’s digital twin would be making us hyperaware of some things that are not to be concerned of regarding their health.
Anyway, great read Pawel! 😊