A few years ago I had to call an ambulance for someone (in the UK) and began giving coordinates, only to hear 'oh do you have what3words it's easier that way' which I found very surprising! I don't love the idea of a proprietary coordinate system either, companies come and go but normal coordinates are universally understood.
Or we could agree that that's ridiculous and not allow companies to own such things.
Free speech is a right. Interopability should be a right. Any infringement of those rights better gave a damned good reason. It's profitable isn't a good reason.
I think it’s also a good example of increasing computer dependency by ‘human centric’ design: I can quickly and manually sort through a bunch of packages with coordinates or pluscodes written on them with some sense of locality. What3Words is designed to give a sense of familiarity but require an API lookup for every single address.
Letters and numbers also translate directly in most languages, words don’t (take bow as an example. Is it when someone leans over, an archer’s weapon of choice, or a cutesy headpiece?), so the familiarity aspect is limited to people with a good grasp of English.
Its main feature is that it can be commercialized, unlike regular coordinate systems.
