According to a recent report by Mckinsey & Company, the COVID-19 pandemic pushed the companies over the tipping point of technology and transformed business forever.
Hence, considering the above, list of top 10 Technology trends for the next ten years that would play a crucial role in supporting companies and economies to thrive and, at the same time, push the envelope of tech trends.
The volume of data generated globally reached beyond 79 zettabytes in 2021 and is projected to reach 181 zettabytes over the next five years. Data, the new, is a critical enabler that fuels most tech trends, even though some believe it is taking humanity in a direction where billions are earned through billions of wasted man-hours. Making sense of this enormous amount of data and determining its value through analytics and big data techniques had come to be known as the Internet of Behaviors (IoB) since 2012 – when Gote Nyman coined this term.
The human-generated data, along with the machine-generated data (through the Internet of Things and other similar sources), can be used by organizations to provide services and products to serve their customers better.
From datafication, moving on to the buzz words at the top of the list for businesses today, Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Machine Learning (ML). For organizations, the importance of this tech trend is set to grow at an unprecedented pace.
The combined global market size of AI and ML, which stands at approximately USD 408.62 billion, is expected to grow to about USD 1.604 trillion by 2029.
Concepts such as Real-world AI, Generative AI, and Edge Computing are among the top forecasted trends in the coming years.
Technologies like ChatGPT is in line with these trends.
The processing power of microchips and the use of the industrial internet is on the rise, whereas their size is shrinking by the day. It has opened new horizons for computing at the edge and hybrid-cloud or multi-cloud infrastructure as a part of distributed computing. There are several advantages of decentralized computing, from data security and privacy to lower power and bandwidth requirements to enabling near real-time processing and decision making. In the coming times of hyper-automation and connected everything, Edge Computing would provide an effective means to reduce the amount of data being transmitted, however with efficient results.
For organizations, the significant advantages of adopting Edge computing over the cloud would mean increased privacy control and reliability, on the one hand, whereas lower bandwidth, latency, and security concerns on the other. All of which contribute to more savings and increased profits. Organizations adopting such a paradigm, as compared to the cloud, would also be better equipped to serve remote consumers and employees, due to whom sectors of hybrid workplaces and virtual services are expanding.
We are well and truly in the direction of low-code or no-code programming. It would work in two different ways. First, the neural networks and ML would write the code to develop new software or second graphical interfaces for programming. Creating complex applications (even artificial intelligence apps) with simple modal windows and drag-and-drop actions would be possible. It will reduce complexity, and coding skills wouldn’t limit any individual!
For organizations, it would mean rapid scaling, more deployment of data enriched AI-based applications, lower development costs, and acceleration of large-scale digital transformation. An essential aspect for any organization to adapt to this shift in programming paradigm would be to work on a cultural change towards agility and cross-functional collaboration. For Software 2.0 to succeed for any company, the business and IT aspects must come closer and mingle well. Hence ensuring that desired business and technology outcomes.
The main benefit of blockchain technology is that data can only be added to the existing data. No one can change or delete it, a property that gives the term chain to it. Hence it is very secure and transparent. Blockchain includes public and private chains, smart contracts, information realization, an end-to-end chain of trust, distributed ledgers, and non-fungible tokens (NFTs).
Organizations can benefit from custom solutions such as Decentralized Applications (dApps), Software & hardware wallets, Enterprise infrastructure deployment, and Blockchain integration in existing operations. Some of the major sectors where blockchain has enormous potential: Logistics, Internet of things, Manufacturing, FinTech, InsurTech, and RegTech.
According to multiple market researchers, futurists, and technocrats, the next generation of computing would unlock the answers to queries that have bewildered scientists and society for ages. Computing is predicted to be the next giant leap in this area, with capability far beyond what we have seen so far and the ability to complete tasks that have been deemed impossible for traditional computed.
Unprecedented opportunities lie ahead for businesses with quantum computers, especially in the first-wave sectors such as transportation and logistics, renewables, new materials, advanced manufacturing, and financial services. Quantum computing also has a vital role in quantum cryptography and cybersecurity. Quantum AI, hyper-automation, and ubiquitous computing will also grow with advances in computing in the coming years.
Our future as humans seems more and more related to digital tech. Concepts such as the Digital Twin of a person are no longer from a sci-fi movie but are becoming a reality. The advances in technologies such as augmented reality (AR), virtual reality (VR), extended reality (XR), and digital multiple experiences (DMX) are coming together to form a parallel virtual verse where avatars could exist as a digital twin of any individual. The recent launch of Metaverse – 3D virtual spaces, has opened the flood gates for advances in digital capabilities.
Even today, the social media presence and use of internet technologies contribute to the digital profiles of individuals being created by big tech. As the policies and understanding of these new technologies catch up, the users would increasingly have more access to their digital human identity and use it to transact in the digital spaces or the virtual verse. The COVID-19 pandemic accelerated the process of digitalized social and professional interactions, which has fueled this concept of digital humans further. Organizations need to be prepared for “digital humans” as their customers compared to the current conventional ones.
You might wonder why would Talent engagement and retention make it to the list of tech trends for the coming years. Well, there are some very haptic arguments for it. The availability of tech talent with the required skills is a massive challenge for tech-driven organizations. Research shows that Talent management is one of the key aspects for technology companies in the times to come.
Organizations need to think about other factors, especially going beyond compensation as the driving force behind talent acquisition or retention. Emerging technologies such as big data analytics, AI, and machine learning would play an essential role in employer branding and shaping organizational cultures. Organizations would have to dig deep to create an appropriate balance for people with flexibility in working hours and format, diversity, inclusion, and equity.
An often overlooked barrier to talent management in technology industries is that the technology career paths don’t seem as clear as career tracks in corporate functions. To retain and attract desirable talent, organizations need to provide upskilling and growth platforms to current and future employees.
More and more technologies are invested in business processes, and more automation is introduced. Hyperautomation is a systematic and business-centric approach for identifying, vetting and automating everything in a company that can be automated. According to recent market research, for businesses, hyperautomation is no more just an option that can be overlooked; instead, it has become a key to survival.
Technologies such as AIOps and MLOps are aiding in moving beyond conventional automation that aims at just automating repetitive tasks. Hyperautomation facilitates scalability, consistency, accuracy, speed, remote operations, cost reduction, and description of traditional business models.
DeepTech refers to technology that evolves based on tangible scientific advances and discoveries or engineering innovations. The European DeepTech companies are already valued at over USD 740 Billion USD and are experiencing accelerated growth.
DeepTech can be considered an umbrella of all the technologies listed in the top 10 tech trends above but aims to solve significant issues such as climate change, food shortage, clean energy, and chronic diseases. In short, it addresses all the sustainable development goals.
The world economic forum has put out four vital points for DeepTech industry startups that would come in handy. (i) Unbiased technology evaluation is vital, (ii) Innovation architecture design should take into consideration particular risks, (iii) Efforts to counter the shortcomings of the corporate top-down venturing approach should be given emphasis, and (iv) Concentrate on use cases rather than technology.
