Empathic media and communication in the fourth industrial revolution

The Fourth Industrial Revolution represents the most advanced frontier of technological innovation that will transform the economy of the future in a disruptive way, introducing new devices such as: self-guided vehicles, 3D printing, advanced robotics, new materials, digital platforms, gene editing, etc. The expression “empathic media” means not only the platforms and devices that develop forms of “emotional artificial intelligence,” but all those innovations which have been able to enhance the emotional nature of the human being in commercial terms. In this endeavor, this book first offers an overview of how branding and consumer culture evolved. It then highlights the close link between technologies and emotions by introducing how the main metaphor (from monster, robot, to cyborg) has shifted with the development of society.