Experts weigh in on top tech trends that will shape our world

After at least a decade of unstoppable growth, the tech industry has been hit harder than others during this economic slowdown. Soaring inflation, diminishing advertiser spending and a reset from the pandemic years — where our online lives became our only lives — have put pressure on financial outlooks across the sector.

But that has not held back some countries in the Gulf region from investing heavily in the industry. The Middle East and North Africa could reap great socio-economic benefits if the countries in MENA fully digitized their economies, with universal access to digital technologies key to unlocking that potential, says 世界银行 .?

Oil-rich Gulf countries?Saudi Arabia and the UAE have put billions into technology, as they benefit from the currently volatile oil market amid ambitions to diversify their economies. Meanwhile, residents in other nations with far less favorable economic climates are also turning to technology – such as digital currency – to help mitigate their grim financial situations.?

??See this and other predictions for 2023 by checking out our Big Ideas.

Despite uncertainty, hitting the brakes is not an option as tech firms and leaders alike continue to seek out growth and opportunity – be it progress in green technology in order to tackle the climate crisis, upskilling the workforce of the future or creating equitable opportunities within the tech industry.?

But it can’t be done without the input of experts and other big thinkers around the world. From the future of the metaverse and Web3 to the adoption of cryptocurrency, we spoke with several Top Voices to get their take on the biggest emerging technologies.

What's next for the tech sector in the Middle East? Which issues or emerging opportunities are you most interested in? Check out these Top Voices' insights and share your thoughts using #LinkedInTopVoices to spark conversations with your network about the latest innovations.

How far off are we from seeing Web3 a reality? What are the key challenges?

There are too many uncertainties at play, not in the least the social acceptance of any technology, which is hard to predict and depends a lot on factors such as utility and user experience. Regulation is also a consideration. The shift to Web3 is already under way. The key challenges, as I see them, are numerous and non-trivial, starting with technical issues – interoperability, scalability, to regulation, public trust in Web3 and IP issues.

How does the increased adoption of virtual assets support people’s finances in MENA? How risky is it?

There is undoubtedly an increased interest in virtual assets in the MENA region. Some businesses started to allow customers to use crypto as a payment method. Unfortunately, many of the services are still for crypto-savvy people, and being their own banks (in the sense of holding their own digital assets such as cryptocurrencies and NFTs in wallets with private keys) does not appeal to many individuals.?

What emerging technologies are you most excited about?

Metaverse, as it’s closely related to Web3. Metaverse is hyped and misunderstood; it reminds me of the early days of blockchain or the internet itself, for that matter. The Metaverse - and there can only be ONE, singular metaverse, in my view - is a fusion of physical, digital and biological worlds, a new concept of “reality,” and we would be able to experience this reality with all five human senses involved. We’re far from realizing this grand vision.

?? See more from Tatiana Zalan, MA, MBA, PhD . Tatiana, currently an associate professor of management at the American University in Dubai, has done extensive research on technology, startups, entrepreneurship and the digital economy. She addresses the challenges of the metaverse as well as NFTs as an art, among other technologies.

Do you see MENA retailers adopting NFTs as a way to increase foot traffic to physical stores?

We're seeing an interesting evolution where the lines between physical and virtual are blurring. The future will become more phygital: the journey will start by buying an NFT and unlocking perks in real life, or vice versa, where the customer buys an item in-store, which allows them to claim an NFT that gives them virtual experiences (such as dressing their avatars in virtual environments with the digital twin of the item they just purchased).?

I believe that we'll see many projects in 2023 where NFT owners will be able to purchase exclusive collections for them only, get pre-access to collections or get specific offers for them only. Finally, another way to drive traffic to stores with NFTs is by use of POAPs (proof of attendance protocols), which is a badge that validates that you visited the store and has the same functionality as an NFT. Retailers will be able to reward people who visit their stores frequently with this technology.

What wearable technology trends do you expect to take off in 2023?

I hope to see an evolution in smart glasses and lenses as I believe that the metaverse will be experienced as an overlay of reality, rather than via visiting a gaming platform on our laptops or phones. The hardware is slowly getting there but it might take a company like Apple to launch their Apple Glasses to force a breakthrough in this hardware segment. The new year will, nonetheless, be a crucial one for Meta and its Oculus business unit. If they cannot generate traction for their VR offering, they might get into a vicious cycle.

What emerging technologies are you most excited about?

I'm excited to see how the various use cases for AI are progressing. I feel like we overestimated Artificial Intelligence 5-7 years ago but are now giving it too little attention. If we see the extraordinary examples of deepfake technology, text-to-image/video/3D, chat automation, hyper-personalization in recommendations? and self-driving cars. The last one is –? by far – what I'm most excited about. Autonomous vehicles will have a similar impact on our society as the Internet had.

?? See more from Nick Vinckier . Nick is the head of corporate innovation at Chalhoub Group, he regularly shares posts about corporate innovation, luxury retail, e-commerce and innovations in AI.?

How can businesses responsibly incorporate AI and automation in a way that does not put employees' jobs at risk??

I think many businesses try to embrace artificial intelligence in a responsible way, but, on the other hand, no business has ever experienced the speed and scale of change that they are faced with today. So, mistakes will be made. AI is changing the way business is done, and so it’s critical that businesses are in charge of that change, not their tech suppliers.

One of the chief criticisms of AI is that it will take people's jobs. While it's not completely true, it is essentially true. Automating more of your business, removes the need for some human work and that means the business may need less humans in that particular area. Fortunately, there are many ways that AI can be used to enhance human work, customer experience and business value. Where AI solutions often work best, is when the quality of the end result is prioritized, versus purely the cost of the result.?

Do you think drone delivery will be coming to the Middle East soon?

Drone delivery, flying taxis and driverless vehicles are all coming to the Middle East very soon. However, these new innovations will not replace everything that we already have, nor will they be 100% of the solution for any broad purpose. Drone delivery has clear time and cost advantages for logistics companies over other forms of last mile delivery, but only in certain situations. Likewise autonomous robotics can offer timely and cost-efficient delivery solutions, again only in certain circumstances.

What we will see is a gradual change in the region's transport and mobility ecosystems. Just as we're now used to choosing from a variety of payment and delivery options for home delivery, over the next 5-10 years we will see more different modes of transport used to make that delivery.?

What emerging technologies are you most excited about?

There are so many new technologies that I find exciting these days, but AI remains the most exciting technology of our time: and I'm not even talking about artificial general intelligence. We're currently witnessing the beginning of AI's journey as a technology.?

Just as we've grown used to 'computers' processing data for just about everything, we'll become used to AI processing all our data and doing more with that data than has ever been possible before. The broad application of AI technologies for everything from customer experience to health sciences, and from farming to space exploration, is rapidly changing our world in ways that most of us fail to notice.?

?? See more from Carrington Malin . Carrington is a strategic marketing consultant who talks about technology and future innovations, specifically in the region. His LinkedIn newsletter Middle East AI News sheds light on the latest updates and happenings in the industry, such as drone delivery developments and the metaverse.

Will the metaverse have an impact on the real world?

Metaverse will become a seamless extension of our physical world that will allow us to do all our activities in a more efficient way. It will impact all major industries like healthcare, education, real estate, tourism, government services, manufacturing and enterprise.

To truly understand the metaverse and how it will impact our world… People need to start by fully understanding and embracing the Web3 ethos, which is not a revolution but rather an evolution of the internet. There is a drive for decentralization to build a fairer version of the internet.

Can the metaverse help advance sustainable practices?

The metaverse holds the promise of substantial reductions in carbon emissions, whether through the substitution of physical goods with digital ones, replacing real-world presence with virtual interactions or digital twins that will help us optimize the physical world.?

Metaverse (however) could lead to a dramatic increase in the energy consumed by cloud computing data centers, where many metaverse providers will likely choose to host the infrastructure and software that power their virtual worlds. How these factors affect energy consumption, and, by extension, carbon emissions will depend in large part on data center efficiency and power sources.

What emerging technologies are you most excited about?

Made nearly two million years ago, 'stone tools' were the first known technological invention and to me it's a reminder that innovation doesn’t necessarily have to be complicated or require the creation of advanced technology that perhaps cannot even be scaled or sustainable, sometimes it’s just about simple solutions that just weren’t thought of before or a different way of seeing a problem. For me it's a constant reminder to stay curious and to keep an open mind.

?? See more from Leila Hurstel . Leila, a UAE-based metaverse expert, addresses a range of topics, including cryptocurrency trends and the importance of NFT licenses. She is also part of a crypto startup called AllStarsWomen that aims to close the venture gender funding gap.?

What are the most in-demand tech skills of today’s startup job market??

Coding skills are in high demand, specifically web and mobile app development. While you can train junior developers, senior developers are extremely hard to find. Data science or machine learning skills, data engineering and data analytics are also in demand. Finally there is a need for User Experience (UX) or User Interface (UI) designers and product managers.?

Do you think the region will soon have the home-grown talent in coding that takes innovation to the next level in MENA?

More effort needs to be made for that to happen. It's not enough to say 'we will train x- thousand people'; the outcome must be a skillset high enough to meet the demands of the job market. So we need to focus on quality, not just quantity. To that end, the training must be adapted to the market and continuously evolve with its needs.?

What emerging or deep technologies excite you the most, and why (even if they are decades away)?

MedTech and BioTech are ripe for disruption, with the democratization of rapid DNA testing (enormous new data allowing for personalized medicine) and new RNA-based vaccines. Robotics and AR/VR will also make remote medicine more easy. Finally, AI will allow for faster drug creation and testing.

EdTech: On one side, there are millions of displaced and unemployed youth in low income? or conflict-stricken countries and on the other side, you have a dwindling and aging population in rich countries. There's therefore an opportunity to build global solutions that identify the right talent wherever it is and then to train and connect it to the right job in the right country. AI will probably be needed to make it work at scale.

??See more from Fadi Bizri . Fadi co-founded SE Factory, a technology training and recruitment program that helps youth in Lebanon develop the skills needed to become software engineers. A venture partner at BY Venture Partners, with vast experience in the region’s startup ecosystem, he writes about regional challenges facing tech talent and upskilling specialized talent.

About this article

This article features experts from LinkedIn's Top Voices program covering tech and innovation. Top Voices is an invitation-only program featuring a global group of experts on LinkedIn covering a range of topics across the professional world, helping members uncover valuable knowledge relevant to them. You can learn more here.

Who is eligible to be a Top Voice

LinkedIn members who meet high trust standards, are consistently active on the platform and share valuable expertise are eligible to be a Top Voice, with the exception of LinkedIn and Microsoft employees, members who have violated LinkedIn’s User Agreement — including our Professional Community Policies — or individuals currently running in a political election for an executive, legislative or judicial position.

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Reported and proofread by:?Dana Moukhallati, Nabila Rahhal,?Salma Altantawy, Jaber Al Joodi

Managing Editor:?Lynn Chouman

Region Lead:?Dana Moukhallati

Special projects leads:?Marie Malzac?(EMEA),?Michele Pierri?(International)

International Executive Editor:?Sandrine Chauvin