Technology has remarkably changed the way we live today, there is no denial to it. Compared with our ancestors, we stand far away from them in using different technologies for our day-to-day works.
So many technologies are developed in the past couple of years that have revolutionized our lives, and it's impossible to list each of them. Though technology changes fast with time, we can observe the trends in which it changes. Last year, 2016 had bought so many fresh innovative ideas and creations towards automation and integration etc., and this year 2017 is expected to continue the similar kind of trend.
In this article, we are going to discuss some of the notable trends for this year, which will make us look beyond the horizon.
Gartner's 2016 Hype Cycle for emerging technologies have identified different technologies that will be trending this year. The cycle illustrates the fact how technology innovations are redefining the relations between the customer and marketer.
This year, Gartner has identified Blockchains, Connected Homes, Cognitive Expert Advisors, Machine Learning, Software-defined Security etc. as the overarching technology trends, which have the potential of reshaping the business models and offering enterprises the definite route to emerging markets and ecosystems.
#1. Blockchain
Popularly known as 'Distributed Ledger Technology' for both financial and non-financial transactions, is one of the mystifying concepts that technologists could only understand to the fullest. Various advancements in blockchain have helped many people and more businesses in 2016, to experience its potential in banking and finance industry. This year, it is anticipated that blockchain technology would go beyond just banking sector, helping the start-ups and established businesses to address the market needs with different application offerings.
#2. Internet of Things & Smart Home Tech
With the advent of IoT, we are already eyeing the world of inter-connected things, aren't we? Our dreams of living in smart homes are met to a certain extent in 2016. So, what is stopping us from fulfilling our dreams of living in smart connected homes?
Well, the fact is that the market is full of abundant individual appliances and apps, but only a little amount of solutions integrate them into a single, inclusive user experience. It is anticipated that 2017 will notice this trend to undergo a big step towards fulfilling our dreams.
#3. Artificial Intelligence & Machine Learning
In the recent times, Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning have taken the entire world by storm with its amazing inventions and innovative technologies. By observing the on-going advancements in this field, it will be no longer an imagination to experience the world where robots and machine will dominate the society.
Last year, we have witnessed the rise of ML algorithms on almost all major e-commerce portals and its associated mobile apps, which is further expected to spread across on all social networking platforms, dating websites, and matrimonial websites in 2017.
#4. Software-defined Security
In 2016, we have observed a significant growth for increased server security. Many organizations have started recognizing the significance of cybersecurity to enable their move of emerging as digital businesses. The growth of cloud-based infrastructure is causing a great demand for managing unstructured data, and moreover, the lack of technical expertise and threat to data security, are the key factors hindering the substantial growth of software-defined security market this year.
#5. Automation
Automation will be the mainstay throughout 2017, the coming years will be transformative for IT industry, enabling the automation of human performed tasks. When Machine Learning is combined with automation, the marketers are likely to witness wide business opportunities with enriched market results.
#6. Augmented Reality (AR) & Virtual Reality (VR)
AR and VR transform the way users interact with each other and software systems. The year 2016 has experienced path-breaking steps in AR and VR technology.
With the launch of Oculus Rift, the market had received an overwhelming response from the users, making way to a plethora of VR-based apps and games. Further, when Pokémon Go was released, it has completely re-defined the definition of gaming experience. It was one of the most profitable and downloaded the mobile application of 2016.
The response AR and VR technology has received last year was farfetched, and it forecasts that the world is ready to adopt this trend to the next levels in 2017.
#7. On-Demand Services
From the last few years, the global market has been experiencing a great response for on-demand services. Thanks to the start-ups like Uber, Twiggy etc. that started the fleet of offering on-demand cab services and food delivery services on just a few clicks. This trend has triggered the development of various mobile apps, offering multiple on-demand services on the fingertips. Though these services were limited to definite regions, it is forecast that it will reach to maximum locations in 2017.
#8. Intelligent Apps
Intelligent apps include technologies using personal digital assistants (PDAs) that have the caliber of transforming the workplace into more interactive, with effective communication. Using AI technology, service providers will concentrate on the autonomous business processes that will utilize the big data tools to the fullest, towards enhanced customer experience levels.
#9. Humanized Big Data (Visual, Empathetic, Qualitative)
From the last couple of years, Big Data has been the great topic and have created a large buzz in the global market. The intent is that mass amounts of collected data - which we have access to - can assist us in every little thing i.e. from planning advanced medical treatments to deploying exceptional business promotion strategies.
Big data's biggest strength is its quantitative and numerical foundation, which is also a major weakness. By experiencing the success Donald Trump had in USA elections, there arises a big question mark on the Big Data analysis and its practice in decision making. It is anticipated that big data in 2017 will undergo major advancements, which will help the marketers to humanize and seek empathetic, qualitative bits of data for projecting it in a more visualized manner.
What do you think of these emerging trends?
Most of us know that making assumptions is generally a puzzling feat, but to literally predict something related to future technology in a course of a year time is a futile exercise. There may be additions to the above-listed trends, but the ones mentioned are most likely to draw market attention in 2017. This forecast will certainly help the marketers to plan their future business strategies and to deploy right resources who are having proven expertise in these technologies.
