Absolutely agree! Also while this could very easily have been built as a phone app, scanning barcodes, voicing out groceries would first require the user to start up the app a first step. Its almost like Google Ware as dedicated hardware for Google Now!
"Nobody is driven to game development, it's an individual choice" > Acknowledge this
"there are more pressing problems is an illusion" > disagree. As some on another comment pointed out that around the world enough and more people do not have access to food, shelter, healthcare, education, energy etc. You could also refer to Maslow's priority of needs (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maslow's_hierarchy_of_needs). Entertainement can't fit anywhere other than right at the top of the pyramid.
And yes, everyone has individual needs and those are the most pressing for them. I was talking more from a society perspective.
The new bunch of travel websites has not attempted to create a human process flow to help travelers plan holidays. The approach so far has been mostly transactional e.g., offer information on individual questions vs. tackle the whole trip (mentioned in the article as well).Those who did not start off doing so have sadly shifted to aforementioned model going to the extreme of posting hotel options on the first city page. Revenue pressure, I understand, but no one is really looking for hotels before they decide where they would like to go.
Want to tell you about WanderShip. Something we've been working on for some time now. We've designed it to be the most human flow for planning a trip. And yes it tackles the whole trip, and not only answer individual questions.
As for personalization, no one, not even a travel agent, will recommend restaurants or hotels as well as a friend who knows you for a long time. So WanderShip is not completely human, but probably does as well as a travel agent.
Expanding on: "Meritocracies are like democracy: "the worst form of government except all the others that have been tried.""
Assuming the goal of any system of government (e.g., democracy) or marketplace (e.g., meritocracy for society, opportunity etc.) is the advancement/ progress, a meritocracy fails where the value it attaches to certain events/ attributes is flawed. It rewards something more than it contributes to progress, and insufficiently rewards something that brings greater value.
Bringing it back to the original post, I have often shared the opinion that currently providing entertainment, is rewarded more than it deserves in the current state of our meritocracy. One could contribute more to the advancement of society e.g., by improving energy efficiency but the person would not really be rewarded as disproportionately for doing so.
I find it sad therefore that so many smart people are driven to game development and not solve other more pressing problems. Or probably that society currently attributes so much value to entertainment.