NINE TECHNOLOGY TRENDS IN
2019
2019 is almost here and
with it a flood of lists describing the trends that will define various fields
in the new year. From among these predictions, those related to new
technological standards stand out first and foremost,
given that they will end up revolutionizing every industry, in an age when digital
transformation plays a major role. After evaluating various
consulting firm reports, we conclude that these are the nine major trends that
will define technological disruption in the next 365 days.
1. 5G Networks
Spain’s National 5G
Plan for 2018-2020 stipulates that throughout 2019, pilot projects based on 5G
will be developed resulting in the release of the second digital dividend. Hence, the groundwork is being laid so that
in 2020 we will be able to browse the Internet on a smartphone at a speed that
will reach 10 gigabytes per second. Data from Statista,
a provider of market and consumer data, indicates that by 2024, 5G mobile
network technology will have reached more than 40 percent of the global
population, with close to 1.5 billion users.
This trend has
appeared in all the lineups for a few years now, but everything indicates that
this year will be the year it takes off definitively. This is the year we’ll
see its democratization, while it is even included in the political agenda. At
the beginning of December, the European
Commission released a communication on AI directing the member
states to define a national strategy addressing this topic by mid-2019.
In respect to the
previous point robots, drones, and autonomous vehicles are some of the innovations in the
category the consulting firm Gartner labels “Autonomous Things” defined as the
use of artificial intelligence to
automate functions that were previously performed by people. This trend goes
further than mere automation using rigid programming models, because AI is now
being implemented to develop advanced behavior, interacting in a more natural
way with the environment and its users.
Blockchain technology
is another topic that frequently appears on these end of year lists. It has now
broken free from an exclusive association with the world of cryptocurrencies;
its usefulness has been proven in other areas. In 2019 we will witness many
blockchain projects get off the ground as they try to address challenges that
still face the technology in different fields like banking and insurance. It will
also be a decisive year for the roll-out of decentralized organizations that
work with intelligent contracts.
This trend represents
another stride for big data, by
combining it with artificial intelligence. Using machine learning (automated
learning), it will transform the development, sharing, and consumption of data
analysis. It is anticipated that the capabilities of augmented analytics will
soon be commonly adopted not only to work with data, but also to implement
in-house business applications related to human resources, finance,
sales, marketing and customer support – all with the aim to optimize decisions
by using deep data analysis.
A digital twin is a
virtual replica of a real-world system or entity. Gartner predicts that there
will be more than 20 billion sensors connected to end points by 2020, but the
consulting firm goes on to point out that there will also be digital twins for
thousands upon thousands of these solutions, with the express purpose of monitoring their
behavior. Initially,
organizations will implement these replicas, which will continue to be
developed over time, improving their ability to compile and visualize the right
data, make improvements, and respond effectively to business objectives.
Edge computing is a
trend that relates most specifically to the Internet of Things.
It consists in placing intermediate points between connected objects. Data can
be processed at these intermediate points, thus facilitating tasks that can be
performed closer to where the data has been received, thus reducing traffic and
latency when responses are sent. With this approach, processing is kept closer
to the end point rather than having the data sent to a centralized server in
the cloud. Still, instead of creating a totally new architecture, cloud
computing and edge computing will be developed as complementary models
with solutions in the cloud,
administered as a centralized service that runs not only on centralized servers
but also on distributed servers and in the edge devices themselves.
Chatbots integrated
into different chat and voice assistance platforms are changing the way people
interact with the digital world, just like virtual reality (VR), augmented reality (AR),
and mixed reality (MR).
The combination of these technologies will dramatically change our perception
of the world that surrounds us by creating smart spaces where more immersive,
interactive, and automated experiences can occur for a specific group of people
or for defined industry cases.
Digital ethics and privacy are topics that are receiving more
and more attention from both private individuals as well as associations and
government organizations. For good reason, people are increasingly concerned
about how their personal data is being used by public and private sector
organizations. Therefore, we conclude that the winning organizations will be
those that proactively address these concerns and are able to earn their customers’
trust.
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