Technology Trends 2018

We are now in the most technologically innovative time in recent history and as we enter 2018 it is an appropriate point to consider major technology trends, here we consider eight that will impact the way we work, live and socially interact this year and beyond.

One: Digital Data Everywhere 

According to the World Economic Forum 156 million emails are sent; 1.8 million snaps are created; 46 thousand Instagram posts are loaded; 40 thousand hours of music are streamed on Spotify and 900 thousand people login to Facebook every minute. IDC Research predicts digital data will grow at a compound annual growth rate of 42% through 2020, which is the equivalent to a doubling every two years.

Whether we are using apps like Instagram and Snapchat to keep in touch with our friends, tapping in and out of the tube, buying a muffin and quick coffee, or simply listening to music, almost everything we do in our daily lives leaves a digital fingerprint. The increased digilisation of the world that we live in has led to the creation of new data on unprecedented levels.

Companies of all types are waking up to the power and value of consumer data. In 2018, the collection and interpretation of data will become an ever greater priority across society. With consumers talking to smart speakers throughout their day, and relying on digital devices for most of their daily tasks, companies will soon have access to — and start using — practically unlimited amounts of our personal data. This has many implications, from reduced user privacy to better predictive algorithms in healthcare.

Two : Artificial Intelligence (AI) Augments Jobs

The growth of digital data, increased computational power and billions of dollars in funding is fueling the rapid evolution of artificial intelligence, which is largely manifesting through machine learning algorithms.

In 2018 AI will be incorporated into an increasingly diverse range of applications, potentially making an appearance in almost every new platform and device. It will become even more of a mainstay in all forms of technology, for example AI that allows computers to listen & speak (think Alexa waiting to respond to your requests), to see (think the new iPhone with facial recognition) and soon be able to gauge our emotions (consider emotional recognition technology).

The application of AI to business processes and infrastructure is known as Intelligent Automation (IA). This year we will start to really witness both the benefits and the disruptive effect of the implementation of IA. Tasks which share a predictable pattern of repetitive activities, the likes of which are possible to replicate through machine learning algorithms will increasingly be automated. IA will change and augment many jobs significantly, including professional jobs in fields like healthcare or accounting. According to Gartner, by 2020 AI will become a positive net job motivator, creating 2.3mn jobs while only eliminating 1.8mn jobs.

See: Rise of the Humans

Three: The Internet of Things (IoT). Everything is getting connected.

Every day millions of new sensors and smart devices are connecting the real world to the digital world fueling the potential for fast growth in our hyper-connected world. Allowing us to do things like ask our digital assistant to turn off the lights or order a pizza. Bosch has a strategy in place to connect every device they make to the Internet, whether they can see a use for this today or not.

Due to the commoditisation of components reducing the costs of IoT enabling a device, we will start to see the majority of electronics in new product designs incorporating IoT and many exciting prototypes that have been under development will reach the market providing us with greater insight into the way our world works.

We will see IoT combined with blockchain and AI to usher in a whole new host of services and business disrupting supply chains, creating smart cities and intelligent traffic systems. We will see an increase in the number of open APIs used to access these systems which will create exciting new opportunities for innovation and new risks. We will also see vulnerable smart devices hacked and used to create new threats. Consequentially, securing IoT devices will become a high priority for security professionals. 

The IoT is a key enabling technology that will integrate Industry 4.0 throughout the product life cycle driving the optimisation of manufacturing processes and unlocking a step change in business performance that will also create the next wave of connected devices. When smart products are tied together with smart processes, unprecedented value will be created for customers, manufacturers and their suppliers.

See: Industry 4.0 Beyond the Hype

Four: Blockchain Beyond Bitcoin

 2017 saw the meteoric rise in the value of Bitcoin and many other cryptocurrencies. Recent history demonstrates that making predictions about cryptocurrencies is a fool’s game, the first bitcoin bubble occurred in 2011, when the currency crashed from a high of $30. Today it has reached the astronomic heights of $16,000 and remains highly volatile. However, the rise of Bitcoin has also raised awareness of its underlying technology, blockchain.

Blockchain is at its core a digital ledger (think spreadsheet) that is distributed (i.e. can be accessed by industry participants) and stores a record in real time of transactions, whilst being strongly encrypted. The application of blockchain to business processes will have an even bigger impact over the next few years as it makes the removal of middlemen from transactions feasible, replacing them with the ‘Smart Contract.’

Dubai has just announced that it intends to be the world’s first blockchain powered government with a plan to move 100% of its visa applications, bill payments and license renewals onto blockchain powered systems by 2020. It plans to move 100 million government documents onto the blockchain so it won’t need lawyers and government departments for verification. It will provide digital passports and blockchain security to deliver seamless entry and exit from the country for its citizens. It will record all property related transactions such as rental, utility and telecom bills. The emirate estimates it will save 25 million hours and that this change will result in $1.5 billion in savings per year for the emirate, all whilst making its citizens happier by reducing the amount of time spent on paperwork. Expect other technologically progressive governments to announce similar programmes in 2018.

Five : Intelligent Transport.

 The application of technology to transport is rapidly changing the way people and things move. Our cars are becoming increasingly connected; by 2020, a quarter of a billion cars will be connected to the internet.

To simulate the real world and speed up the testing process, we are now training self-driving cars using the driving game Grand Theft Auto. This allows cars to label different objects in a scene and drive within the game according to the rules of the road. Techniques like these will mean that the autonomous vehicle will be commonplace much faster than we might expect. This has the potential to bring with it many benefits, it is estimated that by 2030, connected and autonomous vehicles could save 2,500 lives and prevent more than 25,000 serious accidents in the UK alone.

Drone technology is also developing rapidly, drones represent a convergence point for technologies such as video, mobility, IoT, AI, connectivity, security, fog and location services. They provide us with one of the fastest means of digitising the physical world and they have the potential to provide value across many sectors from farming and mining to how cities are run. 2018 will be the year of the drone.

See : Mobility 2030

Six : 3D Printing

3D printing or additive manufacturing, refers to a computer controlled process that adds materials together to create a new object. Objects can be of almost any geometry and are typically produced using a 3D model and successively adding material layer by layer. The materials used in 3D printing can be metal, plastic, concrete, powder, liquid and also human tissue.

These processes allow us to reduce the time and cost to create or reconstruct objects and allow us to manufacture on demand, disrupting existing value chains and creating entirely new businesses.

2018 will see 3D printing emerge in many industries from the built environment to transport systems and healthcare. You may even see your first printed meal somewhere before the end of the year!

Seven : More Powerful Computation & Connection

As predicted by Gordon Moore, we continue to see the exponential rise of classical computing power using digital instruction sets on silicon chips. However, we are now not only on the cusp of 10x computation power, but the ability to use newer, more advanced instruction sets that provide us with computing capabilities that had previously not been feasible. Such as modelling molecules and chemical reactions, creating stronger encryption and improving the accuracy of weather forecasts.

Whilst probably still a decade away from mainstream application, quantum computing is fast becoming a reality with IBM, Google and Microsoft all battling for a leadership position. IBM recently created an operational prototype 50-qubit processor. However, to deliver on the promise of Qubit will require at least 1,000-qubits. Expect to see a 100-qubit processor before the end of 2018.

Alongside advances in computing, it is possible that we could have a 5G network in place—with 5G phones within the next 2 years. 5G has the potential to allow a film to be downloaded in just 1 second, making it even better than most home internet services. Accordingly, it has the potential to revolutionise how consumers use internet and how developers think about apps and streaming content. 2018, then, is going to be a year of massive preparation for engineers, developers, and consumers, as they gear up for a new generation of internet.

Eight : New Interfaces

The way we interact with technology has changed dramatically in recent years – and is still changing. Thanks to smart phones and tablets, we can carry out a whole range of tasks on the move simply by touching a screen. We’re also talking to our devices, using voice searches via Siri and the like. By 2020, 50 percent of all searches may be voice searches, and around 30 percent will involve no screen whatsoever. As a result, all kinds of businesses are gradually integrating their products with the likes of Siri, Alexa and Google Assistant. In 2018 Alexa will be integrated into new BMWs.

In 2018 we will also see increased application of biometrics such as facial, voice and fingerprint recognition which will make shopping faster by eliminating the need to swipe a credit card at checkout. You will be able to verify your identity for a merchant by scanning your eyes with your smartphone, in what is known as a retinal payment. Voice recognition software is already more accurate than a human transcriber and in 2018 we should expect to see the manifestation of seamless transcription allowing us to communicate with our devices without any mistakes. The use of natural language bots will expand from use as automated customer service agents to become a routine part of day to day life. Chatbots will quickly transform the way apps are built. They will be an omnipresent value-add from the brands we trust. Increasingly we are starting to see a transition towards people leaving their phones in their pockets and accessing technology through other means, in order to be prepared for this businesses will likely spend more on creating chatbots in 2018 than on apps in an effort to better serve their customers.

In this space we will also start to see the increased availability of Augmented Reality (AR) entertainment. The introduction of the mobile game Pokémon Go in 2017 unleashed a billion-dollar demand for Augmented Reality (AR) entertainment, and major brands are taking notice. Thanks to the introduction of affordable augmented reality glasses and the release of iOS 11 we will start to see AR appear in sports stadiums, hospitals, factories, mines and construction sites.

Final Thoughts

Understanding the impact of these major technology trends on business will be a critical board issue in 2018. Great governance will be required to ensure that businesses respond to these trends in a constructive manner. Whilst it is important for industries to be aware of what the trends are, it will also be important for them to consider how to best leverage them for their specific needs and to integrate these technologies with their existing businesses cautiously. Making sure that they take the elements of the technologies that match their business and enhance their products and existing expertise rather than branching out into completely unrelated areas. We have seen the most success where companies are being pragmatic about implementing these new technologies into their businesses, a good example of this being Dyson’s discreet incorporation of IoT into many of its existing products which serves to enhance what they are already world class at.

2018 looks to be an extremely exciting year on the technology front and we are looking forward to seeing how all these trends play out and both helping businesses to integrate technology and witnessing what is happening in the market. Thank you for reading our post today and please feel to get in touch if you would like to chat or hear more about anything we have written about.

Written by: Justin Anderson, Director Global Emerging Technology and Mazhar Hussain, Director of Intelligent Automation, Digital & Emerging Technology KPMG.