Perfect Hair: The Nanomite That Changed the World

The other day, when I was in the park with my children, I struck up a conversation with an elderly gentleman sitting on the bench next to me. I couldn't help but notice his long hair. At first I thought he was a biker, or maybe one of those die-hard heavy metal fans.

But, I was dead wrong.

Laughing, he told me that he used to teach psychology at the university before he retired last year. He went on to tell me that long hair is a common problem at the university. Professors run around all day preparing their classes, teaching, doing administrative work and rarely find time to get a haircut. In short, they either don't have the time or they forget.

That got me thinking, wouldn't it be great if your hair looked perfect all the time? And if I'm right, you might never have to go to the hairdresser or barber again...

So let's find out how it might work!

The Barber of Tomorrow

You could visit a wacky start-up called Nanoshave. Its founder would be one of those hoodie-wearing gurus who stresses the importance of believing in yourself and making the world a better place. While we're at it... will hoodies replace suits and ties?

Anyway, Nanoshave takes your head and puts it in a big glass tube where a swarm of mites buzz around and land on your hair. After a few neon circles and hexagons light up, your synchronisation is complete and you can use the AI-powered nanomites without ever having to worry about them again.

These nanomites will now clean your hair, trim your hair and style your hair. And while they're there, they'll take samples of your sweat and hair to study the effects of your diet and maybe even find ways to stimulate new hair growth. Or tell you how to lose weight.

Augmented Styling

Because each mite is AI-powered, you wouldn't have to control them yourself, and even if you could, it might be a bit much to handle. They would take their instructions from a central personal AI. It could be installed on a smart device like your smartwatch.

Whenever you needed the mites to do something, you would talk to the central AI, just like you do with Siri or Alexa today.

This could also be integrated with some augmented reality contact lenses you wear, to create a virtual mirror where you can see how you would look with the new hairstyle. Your personal AI assistant could even recommend hairstyles that would complement you, so you always look your best.

Once you have chosen a style, the nanomites will start trimming and combing your hair. In a matter of moments, your hair will match the style you have chosen.

Impact On Social Life

Now that you have your perfect style, and can wear that dazzling look with confidence, it's time to go about your day.

It's early morning, and you're on your way to work. After receiving countless compliments from envious co-workers, you decide to focus and get some work done. You are interrupted minutes later by your boss, who feels you had such a fantastic contribution to the company, and that you were recommended for a promotion. The rest of the day continues with way more coffee invitations than any human heart should ever have to endure, until you head home.

Later that day, you are supposed to meet your future mother-in-law, who happens to be one of those conservative types. You load up your Augmented Reality Mirror and swap the style out for something super-conservative.

After the meeting with your in-laws you are invited to a party by your friends. It's a crazy rave party, so you pop up the AR Mirror again and pick something fun and crazy from the menu.

Your fiancee proposes in the heat of the moment and tomorrow, after you heard the "I'm not ready for this kind of commitment" story over almost half a decade.

Later in the evening, before going to bed, the AI collects the mites back in a little storage box, where they are charged to get ready for the next day, when everything begins anew, but even better.

Implications on Society

As you might expect, this solution would put barbers and hairdressers out of business. It would put shampoo manufacturers out of business, which in turn would affect the revenue share of their chemical suppliers.

The ripple effect would be felt in the retail sector, such as drug stores and supermarkets. It would also affect the advertising sector, as many have shampoo brands as clients. It would then affect plastic manufacturers and waste collection in general, as well as the related recycling industry.

The dermatology sector of the healthcare industry would see a significant reduction in scalp problems, which in turn would affect pharmaceutical companies and their chemical suppliers.

With fewer chemicals and plastics needed for daily personal care, water quality should improve, which in turn should have a positive impact on the flora and fauna. And as water quality improves, sales of water filters should fall, and also the need for bottled water. I suppose Nestlé will not be happy about that.

As balding men now have more hair, and women feel better about themselves, we can expect a rise in hook-up culture. This should boost sales of dating services, bars, restaurants and other places where men take women to impress them. It also means that flower shops would see an increase in sales. And a boom in the mid-wife market, for no particular reason.

With people dating more, self-esteem would rise, which would have a positive effect on mental health, reducing demand in psychotherapy and mental health drugs. So another drop in sales for the pharmaceutical companies. But again, an improvement for the environment.

Conclusion

Now, as you may see, this silly sounding technology would have far reaching impact on the general economy. So if you don't see this technology being developed, it's because there's a conspiracy behind the scenes, that doesn't want you to have perfect hair and an amazing dating life.

I guess that's as disruptive as it gets...

And, I believe that covers most of the low-hanging fruits of such a technology, if you can think of any others, subscribe and let me know in the comments below!

What do you think about the idea of nanobot barbers? Are you excited by the possibilities, or do you have concerns? Join the conversation and share your thoughts!