The author makes a grandious claim that art is the differentiator in technology with little to no evidence. What advantage does art in technology bring to the user? What is an example of this? Isn't technology simply the means to an end? If so, why would adding art to the mix improve it? Art would bring more ambiguity and confusion to many while possibly sparking an emotional response to some. I don't understand this article at all. Art has its place. Technology does too and sometimes it helps facilitate the creation of art.
Design was never the "killer differentiator" - it mattered to a subset of people, for a subset of products.
If you look at the world through Apple-shaped glasses, you see a VERY skewed view of the world.