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Currently, local utilities in the U.S. generate 12 percent more energy than they anticipate needing. Otherwise, if they experience a brownout or blackout, utility companies face heavy penalties from the government. “Most of that extra energy is going to waste,” WNCG Prof. Brian Evans states. “If utility companies had access to better information, they could predict user demand and how it evolves over the day. They could reduce energy waste by around four-to-six percent.”

Recent years have radically changed the way people socialize; in parts of the developed world that have good broadband and cellular penetration, the average person now spends more time on online social networks than on physical meetings with acquaintances outside their immediate family. “We were socializing before social networks,” Prof. Sujay Sanghavi states. “But now we can automatically capture fine details of social interaction, such as when someone views a photo and how they share and interact with the image.” The problem now is the issue of information overload.