evan mcdougall's wearable patch could digitally recreate lives in the future

industrial design student evan mcdougall envisions the future of humankind with AEON, a wearable system allowing users to live past their physical existence in a digital form. ‘in this future utopia, humankind has superseded the problems and limitations of today. through science and technology, disease, famine, climate change and war have become things of the past. artificial intelligence surpassed the physical limitations of the human condition and many of the things considered necessities have become optional…even death…’.

AEON is imagined as a wearable patch that digitally recreates a user’s consciousness

evan mcdougall proposes AEON as a patch that creates a digital model of the wearer’s brain and monitors its activity. in other words, the item would gather data about the user’s likes, dislikes, personality and interactions. when the individual physically passes away, aeon recreates their consciousness in the vessel and tailors a reality specifically for them. this could generate identical representations of things they liked, their loved ones and perhaps things that wouldn’t be possible in the physical world — a digital heaven of sorts. 

AEON in its active state, simulating the wearer’s life

as AEON is set nearly 150 years in the future, it could be made from materials not yet conceived by humans. the main body would be made from a smart glass-like material that is able to refract light and create the hologram seen in the middle of the object. the molecular configuration of the material allows it to be repelled by other objects, meaning it could not be broken and appears to levitate in place. the wearable’s magnetic base would attract the vessel so as not to float away.

hologram projection set in the centre of the capsule

the wearable would, by no means, be a mandatory option for citizens of the future. it would offer the opportunity to live a physical existence to the fullest, while not fearing death in the traditional sense. the vessel that would eventually hold the user’s digital consciousness could be displayed in their home if they wished to be reminded of their mortality. this aspect of the device may be considered morbid in today’s society, but when death is no longer feared, the device could serve as a healthy reminder to live life to the fullest. when one chooses to leave their physical existence, their digital consciousness is immediately transferred to the vessel — which light up as an abstract interpretation of the user’s digital existence.

the capsule glowing and warming up to comfort grieving loved ones 

although the user lives on in a digital state, there would still be an inevitable grieving process for their loved ones left behind in the physical realm. at this point, the vessel becomes a digital urn: when someone picks it up, it reacts by warming up and gently glowing to comfort the person holding the vessel and remind them that the user still lives on. finally, aeon could be kept by family members in their homes or in structures whose function would serve as a modern cemetery for a long-lasting memory of the user. 

wearable patch shown glowing on the user’s neck

conceptual development – by evan McDougall

timeline of events leading up to the creation of AEON

franz kafka quote on immortality and life

designboom has received this project from our ‘DIY submissions‘ feature, where we welcome our readers to submit their own work for publication. see more project submissions from our readers here.

edited by: lea zeitoun | designboom