We
have witnessed great leaps in technology in the last few years. With cryptocurrencies
taking the world by storm to Apple launching wireless charging with iPhone X to
3D printed organ and Siri, Alexa, and what not. World is changing with each
passing second and lines between artificial and natural are blurring by the
day. Cloud computing, big data, artificial intelligence, blockchain, among
others are transforming the way we live and defining new efficient ways to
simplify work. Here’s the compiled list of few technologies that are disrupting
and are the real game changers for the future.
- Artificial
intelligence (AI)
From
Alexa, Siri to chatbots, artificial intelligence or AI has moved out of
research labs and become a house-hold technology. The non-biological
intelligence has been the dream of humans for a very long time. But, now artificial
intelligence has penetrated almost every industry. Global artificial intelligence market was valued over USD 2288 million
in 2018 and is poised to grow at CAGR of over 64% until 2022.
The
combination of natural language processing and machine learning, which are two
branches of artificial intelligence can be used to interact with human users
and enhance the capability of the devices so that they can learn and improve
from the experiences without programming.
One
of the major applications of such technology is chatbots, programs widely
incorporated by companies to understand needs of customers and provide
solutions based on their requests. E-commerce giants like amazon are leveraging
the power of AI to deliver semantic results based on search history of the user.
As the proliferation of devices based on AI increases, need for managing and
supporting the functionality of these devices will increase, resulting in
creation of more job opportunities in the next five to ten years.
According to World Economic Forum, Artificial
Intelligence is anticipated to create 58 million jobs by 2022 and machine
automation is expected to account for 52% share in 2025, up from 29% in 2018.
Physical
devices present around us are part of a large network called IoT, collecting
and sharing data. These connected devices or things gather information in real
time to streamline operations or improve functionality.
The existing network of connected devices in 2018 was
over 23 Billion, which is already triple the current global population, and the
number is anticipated to cross mark of 30 Billion by 2020.
Several
industries are utilizing IoT so as to understand consumer needs and serve them
in a better way. Some of the major applications of internet of things include:
Smart Homes:
After
IoT, smart home is one of the most googled topics on the internet. Convenience
and need to save energy and time are at the core of smart homes. Lighting
control, access control, energy efficiency, entertainment controls, among
others are few instances of tasks that can be done with smart home. Smart
phones allows easy monitoring and control of wide range of appliances,
attributing to the popularity of the smart homes.
According
to TechSci Research report “Global Smart Homes Market By Application (Energy
Management Systems, Security & Access Control Systems, etc.), By Technology
(Wireless Communication Technology, etc.), By Region, Competition Forecast and
Opportunities, 2011 – 2021” the global smart homes
market is projected to cross $ 60 billion by 2021 backed by increasing
proliferation of machine-to-machine communication, technological advancements
and increasing awareness pertaining to saving energy. Smart
homes also use key cards or fingerprint identification in place of conventional
locks, making it harder for someone to break-in. Increasing awareness of energy
saving among customers, surging demand for real time home security coupled with
growing technological advancements are anticipated to boost the global smart
homes market during the forecast period.
Smart Wearables:
From
reading text messages to tracking your heart beat and monitoring activities,
fitness trackers or smart wearables do everything. These devices come with
embedded sensors and software to gather information about the users. At a later
stage, collected data is used to derive useful insights. On account of growing
popularity of smart wearables, several technology giants such as Samsung and
Google are investing in building such devices.
Autonomous Vehicle:
Concepts
of connected car and autonomous vehicles also use IoT for updating their
algorithms based on user data. Connectivity of multiple devices through
internet provide information related to real-time traffic and navigation around
any obstacle.
According
to another TechSci Research report “Global Semi & Fully Autonomous
Vehicle Market
By Automation Level (Level 0, Level 1 & Others), By Component (Embedded
Systems, Cameras & Others), By Vehicle Type, By Region, Competition
Forecast & Opportunities, 2016–2030” global
semi & fully autonomous vehicle market is projected to exhibit a CAGR of
over 21% to reach $ 64 billion by 2030. Growing focus of automotive OEMs on
enhancing safety features and increasing government support for developing
driverless vehicles are the major factors anticipated to aid the growth of
global semi & fully autonomous vehicle market during the forecast period.
Moreover, foray of technology giants such as Google and Intel, among others, in
autonomous vehicle market is further encouraging adoption of autonomous
vehicles, thereby positively influencing the global semi & fully autonomous
vehicle market.
3D
printing has been around for quite a long time. It was in late 20th
century when the patent for the technology expired and 3D printing was made
accessible to the world. Earlier, the application of technology was limited to
prototyping; however, with the advancements in the technology, 3D printers can now
be used to print human cells or tissues.
Prototyping & Manufacturing:
On account of flexibility and versatility offered by 3D printers in the
printing process of complex designs, 3D printers are readily used for custom
manufacturing and preparation of prototypes, which can later be used for mass
production. Due to this property and less wastage of material backed by low
overall cost, 3D printing has penetrated into various domains including
medical, construction, consumer goods, jewelry, automotive parts, among others.
Medical
end-use industry is anticipated to benefit most from the 3D printing as the technology
can be used to produce custom-made prosthetics that fits its patients. Furthermore,
the technology can now be used to manufacture simple human tissues like skin or
cartilage. With the ongoing development, bioprinting is anticipated to turn out
to be possible for human organs also.
The first iteration of wireless power came in the form of wireless charging
in electric toothbrushes, that used inductive charging. However, Nokia
was the first company to announce Qi charging for Lumia 920 in 2012, and since
then Google, Apple, among others have followed the footsteps.
Transmission of electricity through grid is inefficient as close to
50% of the cost goes to the grid and transmission cable as they are expensive
to install. Wireless charging has already found its way through smartphones,
smart watches and others. In 2017,
global wireless charging market was valued close to USD 2.5 Billion, since then
technology manufacturers have been capitalizing on the idea. Now, Bosch offers cordless power drills for
construction sites and IKEA has started offering integrated lighting and
furniture for wireless homes.
- Augmented Reality (AR) and Virtual Reality (VR)
Augmented reality and virtual reality have been around for the past 30
years; however due to complexities of the AR and VR devices and high
development cost, technologies have not found their way in commercial space.
Since the acquisition
of VR headset company Oculus in 2014 by Facebook, virtual reality market has
been growing at a colossal rate thanks to increasing implementation of VR in
various sectors. Healthcare vertical is utilizing VR to train medical personnel
for patient treatment, disease awareness and medical marketing. Major automakers
including Honda, Chevrolet, Ford, Volkswagen are using technology to display
their latest car models and concepts through virtual reality showrooms. For instance, Audi and Toyota have launched
Audi VR experience and ZeroLight VR in order to offer pre-recorded virtual test
rides and virtually launch their cars, respectively.
However, launch of Pokémon Go in 2016, validated the consumer mass
acceptance of the augmented reality. Also, it was the beginning for the
implementation of augmented reality in social media platforms and gaming
market. Nowadays, social media platforms, such as Instagram and Snapchat, are
offering various selfie filters for entertainment purposes. Companies such as
Wayfair, Sephora, Ikea and Nike are already using augmenting reality to assist
customer in selecting the right product. Furthermore, with the rising
popularity of AR, several companies are investing in technology to capitalize
on the idea. Nevertheless, these are just the footsteps to mixed reality,
future of virtual reality and augmented reality, as the technology has both
real world and virtual world interactions.
Blockchain technology
emerged as the new buzzword in 2017 when the price of Bitcoin shot up to nearly
$ 20,000. The technology, which is based on cryptographic proof instead of
trust i.e. blockchain, has already taken the financial industry by storm;
however, it is just the tip of the iceberg. The true scope of the technology
lies in its implementation in others industry verticals.
According
to another TechSci Research report “Global Blockchain Market By Type (Private, Public,
& Hybrid), By Application (Financial Vs. Non-Financial), By Enterprise
(Large Vs. Small), By End User (BFSI, Corporate, Government, and Others),
Competition Forecast & Opportunities, 2012 – 2022”
global blockchain market stood at around $ 215 million in 2016, and is forecast
to grow at a robust CAGR of more than 43% to reach $ 4.2 billion by 2022, on
account of widespread implementation across numerous areas such as Internet of
Things (IoT), banking & financial institutions, healthcare, media &
entertainment, energy, retail, etc. In addition, rapid increase in FinTech
spending, predominantly on technologies used in the financial services sector,
is expected further propel market growth in the foreseeable future.
Conclusion
With
these disruptive technologies we can only predict what our future will look
like. Each one of these technologies work in sync with other to improve
customer experience. One thing of which we can be sure, however, is that integration
of these technologies will help to achieve higher efficacy and efficiency coupled
with smooth consumer experience of whatever products, services or processes would
be on offer.