Inferring user risk profile from travel patterns

1. A method comprising:

receiving, via a wireless network, in a first server from a personal digital assistant (PDA), data indicative of a travel pattern of a user of the PDA, feed data, and sensor information, the first server including a memory to maintain a user database including information received from a plurality of PDAs including the PDA;

inferring a risk profile of the user of the PDA from the travel pattern, wherein inferring the risk profile comprises assessing a state-of-mind of the user based at least in part on the travel pattern, the feed data and the sensor information; and

outputting the risk profile to an external system coupled to the first server via a second network, the external system including a second memory to store a second user database including a plurality of risk profiles of users of at least some of the plurality of PDAs, so as to enable the external system to provide to the user a commercial offer, via the wireless network, to a user interface of the PDA comprising a display, and at a particular time based on the state-of-mind, the commercial offer based on a risk level which is indicated by the risk profile.

2. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the travel pattern comprises a mode of transportation the user of the PDA employs, and wherein inferring the risk profile comprises determining the risk profile based on the mode of transportation.

3. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the travel pattern comprises driving hours of the user of the PDA, and wherein inferring the risk profile comprises determining the risk profile based on the driving hours.

4. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the travel pattern comprises a driving speed of the user of the PDA while driving a route, and wherein inferring the risk profile comprises comparing the driving speed of the user to a reference speed of the route.

5. The method according to claim 4 , further comprising determining the reference speed by performing a comparison between the travel pattern of the user and travel patterns of other users.

6. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the commercial offer comprises a promotion for one of an investment or an adventure sport.

7. The method according to claim 6 , wherein the promotion is to be selected based at least in part on correlation of a driving pattern of the user with purchasing patterns of a plurality of users.

8. The method according to claim 1 , further comprising outputting the risk profile to the external system so as to enable the external system to select the commercial offer based at least in part on the state-of-mind.

9. The method according to claim 8 , wherein the commercial offer comprises a promotion including an electronic coupon for a good or service.

10. The method according to claim 1 , further comprising updating, using the PDA, a data structure representing a state of the user, the data structure comprising a vector having a plurality of fields, wherein information of only a portion of the plurality of fields are to be sent from the PDA to the first server.

11. An apparatus, comprising:

a user interface comprising a display;

one or more sensors;

a memory to store a vector of values that represent a state of a user of the apparatus;

a communication interface to communicate wirelessly; and

at least one processor, which is configured to collect from the one or more sensors data which is indicative of a travel pattern of the user of the apparatus, and to collect feed data and compute the vector of values, to infer a risk profile of the user of the apparatus, including assessment of a state-of-mind of the user based at least in part on the travel pattern and the feed data, and to output the risk profile to an external system via the communication interface, so as to enable the external system to provide to the user a commercial offer, via the user interface, and at a particular time based on the state-of-mind, the commercial offer based on a risk level which is indicated by the risk profile.

12. The apparatus according to claim 11 , wherein the at least one processor is configured to infer the risk profile in part by identification of a mode of transportation the user of the apparatus employs.

13. The apparatus according to claim 11 , wherein the at least one processor is configured to infer the risk profile in part by identification of driving hours of the user of the apparatus.

14. The apparatus according to claim 11 , wherein the at least one processor is configured to infer the risk profile in part by identification of a driving speed of the user of the apparatus while driving a route, and comparison of the driving speed of the user to a reference speed of the route.

15. The apparatus according to claim 14 , wherein the at least one processor is configured to determine the reference speed by performance of a comparison between the travel pattern of the user and travel patterns of other users.

16. The apparatus according to claim 11 , wherein the at least one processor is configured to infer the risk profile in part by detection of a deviation from the travel pattern.

17. The apparatus according to claim 11 , wherein the external system is to select the commercial offer based at least in part on the state-of-mind.

18. The apparatus according to claim 11 , wherein the commercial offer comprises a promotion including an electronic coupon for a good or service.

19. The apparatus according to claim 18 , wherein the promotion is to be selected based at least in part on correlation of a driving pattern of the user with purchasing patterns of a plurality of users.

20. The apparatus according to claim 11 , wherein the at least one processor is to update a data structure representing the state of the user, the data structure comprising the vector of values having a plurality of fields, wherein information of only a portion of the plurality of fields are to be sent from the apparatus to the external system.

21. A computer software product, comprising a non-transitory computer-readable medium in which program instructions are stored, which instructions, when read by at least one processor, cause the at least one processor to:

collect, in the at least one processor, from one or more sensors data which is indicative of a travel pattern of a user of a PDA which comprises the at least one processor, a memory to store a vector of values that represent a state of a user of the PDA, a communication interface to communicate wirelessly, and a user interface comprising a display;

collect feed data and compute the vector of values, to infer based on the travel pattern a risk profile of the user of the PDA, including assessment of a state-of-mind of the user based at least in part on the travel pattern and the feed data; and

output the risk profile via the communication interface to an external system so as to enable the external system to provide to the user via the communication interface a commercial offer, via the user interface of the PDA, and at a particular time based on the state-of-mind, the commercial offer based on a risk level which is indicated by the risk profile.