Top 5 Tech Trends To Watch

Last year, the tech industry solidified its place as a headliner maker. From the Cambridge Analytica scandal, the fall of Bitcoin, and (even more) massive cybersecurity breaches, tech companies, for better or for worse dominated the national conversation.

Tech is front and center for the world. In my opinion, here are five trends to watch out for in 2019.

1. Artificial Intelligence

AI is currently being used in items we use every day — Siri, Alexa, Tesla, Pandora, Nest, and Netflix. AI technology will continue to improve in 2019, particularly in terms of supporting each of us in our own different or quirky ways. Gentle nudges to hit your step count, to getting you an answer on a site or voice prompt through a chatbot / intelligent capability, or the next phase - making a suggestion based on your previous buying or activity pattern (you recently bought X product or service and the company is having a sale – this information can be pushed to you instead of pulled) AI will continue to make better and more cost-effective predictions in 2019.

2. RPA

Robotic Process Automation, sometimes working in conjunction with AI, is already eliminating tedious or manual processes in the workplace. The touch screens at your local fast food spot, automating data entry tasks, reviewing resumes electronically for keywords, and responding to customer queries (password resets for example) save time and money. loan processing. In 2019, RPA technology will continue to make strides, including further deployment in the workforce and integration - checklist tasks such as monitoring a CRM effort, reviewing a client onboarding list, ensuring a set number of client outreach activities occur, and many others – RPA is a huge time saver for many non-complex, but essential, tasks.

3. Blockchain

Even after the steep decline in the price of Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies, and all the hype surrounding the crypto – but not the technology, blockchain technology will continue to become more prominent. Large financial institutions (like Bank of America, JP Morgan, and other financial institutions) have already embraced the technology for payments, reconciliations of activities, and even Business Intelligence since all data sits on one ledger. Manufacturing companies have embraced blockchain to provide transparency into their supply chain. Telecoms and Carriers are investigating blockchain tech to enable IoT – only a truly distributed ledger can really record the immense amount of data produced by IoT ecosystems. And, given my investment management background, I think this is the year that we move significantly forward (but not all the way there) for tokenizing not easily traded / illiquid / real assets - for example art, gold, or real estate. (Personally, I wouldn’t mind owning a small piece of 30 Rock). Blockchain will likely become normalized in 2019, with more obvious use cases in both for-profit and nonprofit entities.

4. Augmented Reality

The Magic Leap One and Microsoft HoloLens have generated buzz in the augmented reality space. While many practical use cases haven’t yet been possible due to the price of the hardware, the endless product upgrades, or even the usability (still not the easiest for anyone with corrective vision), several companies are taking advantage of the technology. For example, Harley-Davidson has developed an augmented reality app that shoppers can use in its stores. DHL has also incorporated AR glasses to improve efficiency in warehouses. Some tourism centers offer a virtual trip to a location before booking an actual trip. Medical colleges and educational institutions are starting to use the tech to simulate real-world experiences for training and learning experiences. Expect more companies and educational / training systems to incorporate AR as the technology improves, familiarity goes up, and hardware prices go down.

5. Ethics and Technology

2019 was a tough year for technology when it comes to technology and ethics. Personal data is everywhere, but where does it go from useful to creepy or even worse – malicious? User privacy will be a huge issue this year as to who owns what data, and what can be done with it. Even if the user ‘consents’ by downloading an app, do they really understand what will happen with their personal information? And the potential for the pendulum to swing the other way is with medical records, super strong HIPPA laws have their place, but they also have caused huge headaches for patients, physicians, and care delivery. GDPR in the EU, and the recent California Consumer Privacy Act (AB 375) are just the beginning of what will amount to nothing less than a ‘showdown’ between big tech, government, and advocacy groups. The question of how do you get users information, and give them a real choice (i.e. you can’t use Facebook without agreeing to their policies / terms and conditions), yet without stifling innovation – will be very interesting to watch how it plays out.

And #6 as a teaser. 5G - Lots of fanfare, but will this be the year of the ever-hyped communication network?

Watch out for the these 5 (+1) trends, and, as always with the tech scene, expect at least one Black Swan to surprise us all and shatter headlines (let’s hope it’s not Bieber induced).