RCS is AI's No-UI?
It all started when my car company removed many of the controls for the heating and air conditioning system. It was only an up or down button. No recirculate, no defrost, no defog. No high, low, or medium vent settings. Just up or down. The idea was that the car should be able to figure out what you need and get it done for you. It was a radical design, and people were really upset. They wanted their controls back. How could a computer know what they intended and desired? It turns out it works really well, and we all became used to it. Now when I drive a rental car without this feature it becomes dangerous. While I'm driving the window may fog up and I can't figure out how to adjust the settings without finding and pressing multiple buttons. That's a real hazard when you're driving in a new environment in a car you aren't familiar with.
The No-UI concept
This is the No-UI concept. Many people are trying to figure out how to make interfaces more appealing and efficient. Fewer clicks. Fewer options. How about just getting rid of everything?
That's really a trend. It's in line with 4 of the 5 core engineering philosophies of Elon Musk: question every requirement, delete any part or process you can, simplify and optimize, and automate.
It turns out that it works.
The problem I got stuck on
In my organization, another software company was introducing a new AI chatbot — the kind with advertisements featuring sports stars and celebrities. It integrates most of their user experience, and I'll admit, it's helpful. I've implemented something similar myself.
However, I made a vow to my organization that we would build something with a better user experience that had an equal amount of integrations. I've been working on the integration portion, and it's going well. Where I've been stuck is the user experience — more specifically, the user interface.
A friend who runs a company from his phone
Before I continue I need to talk about one of my longtime childhood friends. He manages well over a hundred thousand employees at his company, and he does most of it over his phone, via text message. We all have those group chats that have lasted a decade or two. There's a lot going on in text messaging.
Apple has always had their own fancy iMessage that worked well with other Apple phones but no one else. Other companies had a competing technology called RCS that delivered this same feature-rich text messaging — but Apple wouldn't incorporate it, until recently.
What if the interface is just a text message?
What if I could build a user experience inside this format — one that's supported on most mobile devices — and have it replace chatbots, web forms, and emails? What if a manager could run a marketing campaign, access databases, publish web changes, and manage inventory and schedules with only their cell phone and rich text messages? What if customers could text with us like they were talking with their best friend, with access to all their information, without needing to install an app, visit a web page, or engage with a chatbot?
My bet
This might work. My bet is that RCS will be the No-UI solution to websites, emails, and chatbots. The best interface might be the one you already use every day — and never think about at all.