Based on a review of 139 of the most commonly used RIAs we find that each 10% increase in RIA usage has added on average US$ 5.6 trillion in GDP (0.33% of GDP), exceeding the economic benefits of basic telecommunications services across a panel of 164 countries in the period 2000 to 2015. Increasing (mobile) broadband connections in combination with decreasing cost of devices and the continuous evolution of RIAs are likely to drive new functionality and uses. Speech interfaces may be just the first step in a new wave of innovation. Hence, it can be expected that the positive socioeconomic impact of RIAs will continue to grow if in a conducive policy environment.
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