IBM HAS COME up with its annual ‘The Next 5 in 5′ which predicts the ways in which “over the next five years technology innovations will change the way we work, live and play”.

These are their tips for what should be realised by 2016:

Energy: You will be able to power your home with the energy you create yourself.

Advances in renewable energy technology will allow individuals and scientists to collect this created energy and use it to help power our homes, workplaces and cities.

Security: You will never need a password again.

Your biological makeup is the key to your individual identity, and soon, it will become the key to safeguarding it.

Mind Reading: It’s no longer science fiction.

IBM scientists are researching how to link your brain to your devices, such as a computer or a smartphone, so you just need to think about calling someone and it happens.

Mobile: The digital divide will cease to exist.

In our global society, growth and wealth of economies are decided by the level of access to information. And in five years, the gap between information haves and have-nots will cease to exist due to the advent of mobile technology.

Analytics: Junk mail will become priority mail.

In five years, unsolicited advertisements may feel so personalised and relevant it may seem spam is dead.

Wondering if they get these things right? See previous 5 in 5s that IBM have produced on IBM’s Smarter Planet blog.