FUTURISTIC MOBILE HOMES

This is a picture of GMC's new concept truck—combination vehicle and residence—for Los Angeles called the "PAD." It is basically envisioned by General Motors’ designers as "an urban loft with mobility". While cars.com gives this an official "zero chance of production", the Institute for the Future (IFTF) sees it as a lot more realistic vision of the future than it may at first appear.

While some may perceive PAD as a culmination of America’s fascination with SUVs, IFTF’s Technology Horizons program which is focusing its research this year on the theme of "lightweight infrastructure, considers this as a viable lightweight alternative to the traditional home or apartment. Moreover, if the concept embodied by PAD really caught on, IFTF predicts the emergence of temporary cities; ushering in a whole new form of urbanism based on nomadism and reconfigurable cities.

These new infrastructure designs, according to IFTF, will emphasize smaller, smarter, more independent components that can be organized in ways that are more efficient, more flexible, and more secure than the capital-intensive networks of the 20th century. Lightweight infrastructure will allow urban planners to rapidly prototype new forms of settlement as needs and constraints shift from day to day.

Talk about trailer parks the size of a city!

The Institute for the Future is a non-profit research organization located in Palo Alto, California. Founded in 1968, the Institute conducts basic research on the futures of emerging technologies, health, and global business trends. It also works with clients on targeted research projects.

*