5 Big Ideas that will change tech and startups in 2024, according to experts on LinkedIn

2023 brought with it a rapidly changing business landscape for professionals and organisations alike in India’s IT and tech space and in the startup ecosystem, defined by the rise in AI adoption across sectors, the shifting tides of startup funding in India, and IT’s return-to-office.

While the IT sector grappled with highs and lows like increased attrition of women , scaled back hiring , and deal revivals , more tech professionals embraced the gig life . The startup ecosystem saw segments like space tech , electric vehicles , and Generative AI rise to new heights despite the slowdown.?

How will the learnings of this year shape the trends of the year ahead? And more importantly, how can individuals and businesses rise to the challenge and set themselves up for success in 2024?

In this special edition of Tech Wrap India, we invited our community of Top Voices and experts in their field to share the Big Ideas they believe will define the year ahead in the world of tech, innovation, and startups.

This is by no means a complete list, and we invite you to join us!

What Big Ideas do you think will emerge in 2024? Share your thoughts in the comments or publish a post, article or video on LinkedIn with #BigIdeas2024 .?

Tech will rise to environmental challenges

India today finds itself on the frontline of climate change impact and environmental issues like air pollution , natural disasters , and biodiversity loss . As the tech ecosystem gears up for a sustainability boost , tools for monitoring ecosystems, interpreting climate changes, and predicting environmental shifts will also gain prominence, says Navveen Balani , Managing Director and Chief Technologist - Technology Sustainability Innovation at 埃森哲 .

Expect new roles to emerge and existing roles to evolve with this trend, writes Balani in this article — with the focus being on professionals who can bridge the gap between intricate environmental systems and rapidly advancing technology, says Balani. Environmental Data Scientists will integrate environmental insights with data techniques, Generative AI Data Analysts will adapt AI models for environmental data and predictions, and Blockchain for Sustainability Experts will promote transparency in eco-projects using blockchain technology, he adds.

??For more on the intersection of environment and tech, follow Abhishek Deshpande , Shweta Dalmmia , and Unaise Urfi, PMP?

AI will help build and fund startups

Founders, meet your new possible partner in entrepreneurship: Artificial intelligence. “AI-enabled venture building is poised to disrupt traditional startup models like incubators, accelerators and venture capital," says Varun Mallapragada , Chief Operating Officer at Mantra Launchspace (MLS) , a global venture-builder for early-stage startups.?

While venture capitalists are already looking at AI to assist research , increase productivity, and identify promising startup ideas, Mallapragada envisions a more all-encompassing experience, as he writes in this article . What would this look like? “Imagine building your startup by leveraging a platform that provides an intuitive experience in a high-trust environment, streamlines project management, ensures quality research, and facilitates reliable talent and investor matching — all while offering targeted masterclasses to help you level up as a founder/startup,” he says.

??For more on venture capital and entrepreneurship, follow Pearl Agarwal , Pushkar Singh , and Aditi Chaurasia .

Blockchain will power safer identity verification

“In 2024, a significant shift towards decentralised identity verification systems is on the horizon,” says Pradeep Rao , Director and Chief Architect at Kyndryl , an IT infrastructure services provider. What’s wrong with our current system, you ask? Conventional centralised identity systems have exhibited major vulnerabilities, leading to substantial data breaches and identity theft incidents even with IT services companies, writes Rao in this article.

The game changer will be decentralised identity verification — driven by blockchain and distributed ledger technology — which empowers people to assume control over their digital identities, according to Rao. The result? Reduced risk of unauthorised access and data breaches,? secure storage of identity information on a blockchain, and heightened privacy and security, he adds. In India, these systems will find applications across the board, including in e-governance, healthcare, and financial services, and with its adoption, the role of cybersecurity professionals will evolve to include expertise in blockchain, encryption, and decentralised systems, says Rao.

??For more on cybersecurity, follow Amit Jaju , Santosh Kamane , and Vaishali Thakur

Employment will get a startups boost

Even amid a slowdown in the startup ecosystem, as of August 2023, India’s 110 unicorns employ more than 4.5 lakh people , which makes the Indian startup ecosystem one of the largest job-creating industries in the country. Building a strong startup ecosystem will be the biggest priority for governments around the world, says Krishna Pera , Partner at Data by Choice LLP. ,? because they will become the most important source of job creation.

Any state Government that funds and builds a shared-venture-builder will be laying down the foundation for millions of jobs and a super-growth economy, says Pera. There are other benefits to this strategy, too. A strong startup ecosystem means more successful startups, more unicorns, and with luck a few super-unicorns, he adds. Along with the economic benefits, states and cities with strong startup ecosystems are also likely to become more diverse, more cosmopolitan, attracting talent from different parts of India and even other countries over time.

??For more on hiring trends in tech and startups, follow Rituparna Chakraborty ,? Sumit Sabharwal , and Kamal Karanth

AI ethics will move from theory to practice

“We were suffering from a myopic vision of getting AI systems to the marketplace, not looking after how they behave once operationalised,” says Vidhi Chugh , Founder of All About Scale , and AI Strategist and Ethicist. The problem is that ethics is an abstract concept and difficult for a developer building machine learning models to put in a system by design, she says, adding that it’s this gap that ethics and governance will see a big change in 2024.

According to Chugh, we are moving past the theory and seeing the advent of tools that check for bias, data representation, privacy adherence, and fairness. India’s Government, too, has called for a global framework on the expansion of ethical AI. To balance innovation with ethics , crucial components like international collaboration and standardisation, ethics review board within organisations to consider potential biases, discrimination, and privacy infringements, and frameworks for independent audit committees will come into play, adds Chugh.?

??For more on AI, follow Puspanjali Sarma , Vaibhav Goyal , and AmitKumar Shrivastava

What trends do you believe will shape the year ahead in the tech and startup space? Share your thoughts in the comments or publish a post, article or video on LinkedIn with #BigIdeas2024 .?

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