Top Mobile Application Development Trends in 2020
Apoorva Verma
Building the Generative AI at Biz4Group | AI Consultant | AI Architect
Every few years, the technology sector is reshaping itself. First, it began with the introduction of the Internet to the world in the 1990s; then the advent of communication technology when the transition from 2G to 3G happened. The third was the market influx of smartphones that helped in transitioning from 3G to 4G and now getting us ready for 5G tech. In this era of great digital transformation, Mobile App Development trends have also changed to a great extent.
The latest trends of mobile apps have taken the business to another level. As per Statista, with nearly 3.5 billion smartphone users spread across the world, the global revenue generated through mobile apps is going to reach USD 581.9 billion and will get close to USD 935.2 billion by the year 2023.
The latest trends in the mobile app are also giving the required boost to the growth of the mobile app industry viz. Machine Learning and Artificial Intelligence, Blockchain Technology, Instant Mobile Apps, Internet of Things (IoT), Cloud Integrated Apps, Accelerated Mobile Pages (AMP), Improved App Security, Enterprise Mobile Management (EMM), Application Performance Management (APM), Beacon Technology, Wearable Apps, On-Demand Applications, Augmented Reality and Virtual Reality, Mobile Wallets, Chatbots, Predictive Analysis, etc. There are a lot more technologies that are ready to set new app trends, but amid all these advances, let's discuss those application development trends that will rule the year 2020.
The top 10 Mobile Application Development Trends that are going to change the industry game in 2020 are:
1. Blockchain Technology
2. Internet of Things
3. Beacon Technology
4. Machine Learning and Artificial Intelligence
5. Wearable Application
6. AR and VR
7. Instant Mobile Apps
8. Mobile Wallets
9. 5G Technology
Chatbots
The dawn of the digital age has helped mobile technology to take the most magnanimous shape. Whether you talk about communication/ social networking, e-commerce, business analytics, state administration, BFSI sector, or Oil and Gas Industry, Mobile Apps have entered almost all other industry verticals and have made the end-to-end operations a lot easier than before. This is the reason why Mobile App Development Trends are becoming the new buzz across the globe.
Whether you are a startup or an established organization, the scope of business establishment and gaining profit is really high in the mobile app industry trends. We, at Biz4Group, offer a plethora of innovative mobile app development services. We provide agile and scalable mobile app development that are compatible on Android, iOS, and hybrid platforms as well. With AMP (Accelerated Mobile Pages) and the latest technological trends, we work with the latest tools to create your ideated app and ensure that your app help expands your business in profitable terms.
First, Let's have a detailed view of the latest trends in a mobile app that pose better business avenues:
Blockchain Technology
The tech was initially kept adhered to cryptocurrency, but the scope of blockchain is much more than that. Indeed, blockchain can bring revolution in all major industry verticals, especially when used in developing mobile apps for business purposes. Blockchain being a decentralized database can be enlarged as and when new data is recorded and added. The best part about the blockchain technology is the security and safety of data; in other words, the data pool becomes unbreachable with blockchain.
Given the advantages and better security features that blockchain possesses, from online wallets and ledgers to the healthcare and finance sector, all verticals are greatly accepting this trend in their mobile apps. Whether it is a Ricardian Contract of BaaS (Blockchain as a Service), the app trends encompassing blockchain have become the new buzz. As per Statista, the blockchain tech market is hovering around USD 3.9 billion in 2020, posing to further grow to USD 23.3 billion by 2023. Any better prospects than this? Indeed, that is the reason blockchain is the real game-changer in the mobile development trend.
Internet of Things
IoT isn't any singular tech, but an amalgamation of different technologies put together that is going to change the epoch of digital transformation. Developers across the world are leveraging IoT to create intuitive platforms to control different IT and non-IT equipment via mobile apps.
With almost every tech company, ranging from startup to MNCs binging on IoT, the market share for IoT investment is set to cross USD 120 billion by 2020. Some of the examples for this are – Android Ubidots, Xively, Thingworx, etc. it won't be an exaggeration to say that IoT has become altogether a new industry segment in recent times and its deployment in other industries has made it the golden goose of the modern age. Today's application development trends are greatly dependent on IoT, as it gives a real-time solutions to complex business problems and bridges the gap between different service requirements simultaneously.
Beacon Technology
Healthcare, Hospitality, Travel, and Retail are the leading industry verticals that are leveraging the newly developed Beacon tech for geo-location tagging and proximity marketing. Today, this beacon tech merged with IoT has become part of leading mobile app development trends and helping hotels, resorts, hospitals, retailers and others to enhance their business.
From the consumer point of view, we can state that beacon tech-enabled apps easily guide its users to find their preferred products, their costs, and other related info in real-time. This tech utilizes BLE (Bluetooth Low Energy) signals and proposes great avenues for the marketing sector. Apple's iBeacon and Google's Eddystone are the two big examples of beacon tech developed on iOS and Android platforms, respectively. In 2020, this tech is expected to get leveraged in the fields of sports, mobile payments, travel, and tourism as well.
Machine Learning and Artificial Intelligence
Artificial intelligence has shaken the very roots of civilization since its inception. The days aren't far when everything around us could be controlled and managed using the AI. Though there has been a constant debate in the pros and cons of AI, yet when it comes to the latest trends in mobile apps, the role of AI is getting bigger by each passing day. AL enabled Machine learning is also helping the users in different verticals by learning human actions and activities.
The integration of AI and ML has made iOS and Android app development a lot easier than before. If we have to encircle the potential work areas for AI and ML, prediction of user behaviour, IoT integration, subject camera identification, cybersecurity, and language translations are just a few among others.
If it doesn't ring a bell directly, think of Apple's Siri, Google Assistant, Amazon's Alexa, and other similar smart mobile assistants that are helping smartphone users in their day-to-day life. Voice and speech recognition, text prediction, calendar management, and office administration are just some of the applications of this tech. Statista has forecasted the AI market to grow to USD 12.4 billion in 2020 and the majority to that stack will be in mobile apps only.
Wearable Application
We have all seen how likely technology tends to become smaller, the more advanced it gets. From computers that occupied the space of an entire room, we now have fully functional computers that can easily fit on the palm of your hand. Some of the finest examples of this miniaturization of technology come in the form of wearable tech. These wearable apps encompass a more significant share of the new age mobile app development trends.
The market for wearable devices has grown exponentially in the last decade. The wearable statistics as per the website 3dinsider was 39.5 million in the year 2015, the estimated number of adults in the US to use some sort of wearable devices has grown to 81.7 million in 2018. This figure clearly reflects a good portion of adults who use wearable devices own more than one device. At the Global level, It is estimated that by 2021, the number of wearable devices that will be purchased in the US is expected to reach more than 559 million units.
Unlike normal mobile applications, in modern app trends, Wearable Apps are expected to carry out functions that are a lot more unique and creative in various aspects. For instance, activity tracker apps that keep track of the calories you regularly burn with the help of a smart-watch. We, at Biz4Group, offer a plethora of innovative wearable app development services.
AR and VR
Augmented Reality and Virtual Reality has already taken the world by storm. What was once considered just imagination or part of science-fiction in movies, is finally getting a realistic shape through AR and VR. From Gaming to Online Shopping, and numerous other genres, AR and VR have changed the consumer experience. These mobile development trends are going to have a breakthrough in human life through smartphones. Right from the use of AR in games like Pokemon Go to furniture and accessories styling in the IKEA app, the results of this trending tech will take new shape in 2020.
On the other hand, companies like Sony, Samsung, Mi, Google, and other tech giants are producing VR enabled devices to give realistic experience to users right in the comfort of their homes.
From an entirely artificial environment to complete immersion, VR can take users into a new experiential yet artificial world filled with wonders. Augmented Reality, on the other hand, helps virtual objects laid on real-world environ. Things don't end here; the combination of VR and AR as Mixed Reality is also going to make things easier for the digital age mobile users in 2020.
Instant Mobile Apps
'Time is Money', and this most essence-filled element has brought in the concept of Instant Mobile Apps. For iOS and Android developers both, this new mobile app development trend is getting breakthroughs in the B2B business segment. It is helping businesses to have a better conversion ratio as compared to conventional mobile applications.
These instant mobile apps are actually based on native apps, just with an additional feature that you don't require to download the app on your smartphone to use it. Hollar Inc., New York Times Crossword, and Skyscanner are some of these small-sized mobile apps. In the modern world, where the users abstain from sitting in the waiting area for the apps to download and install, this one of the latest trends in mobile apps helps people in having a better user experience with the minimum waiting time.
Furthermore, these instant apps also provide users with a complete app experience before they can install the same and use it. Beginning with the B2B segment, these instant mobile app trends are going to enter the B2C segment as well in the year 2020.
Mobile Wallets
One of the key mobile application development trends that have come up in 2020 is mobile wallets. The actual entrance on this kind of mobile apps began around 2016-2017 and by now has entered the mainstream of the BFSI sector catering to customers in both B2B and B2C segments.
Whether it is mobile banking, online transaction, purchasing on e-commerce platforms or other payments; the availability of mobile wallets viz. Google Wallet, PayPal, etc. which are also secured through blockchain tech are carving a bigger clientele niche.
Not just this, but payment gateways and merchant accounts are helping the transition from plastic money to mobile wallets, making payments even more secure, safe, and quicker for users across the B2B and B2C segments. In other words, we can say that mobile wallets have established itself as one of the latest trends in mobile apps.
5G Technology
From GPRS to 2G and now 4G to 5G transition is going to be one of the biggest breakthroughs that the IT and communication industry across the world will face in the year 2020.
Among the top mobile application development trends, 5G wireless tech is anticipated to work much faster than 4G. The cellular network providing companies across the world are already working on the frequency bandwidths to ensure that 5G enters the market by 2020 and can revolutionize the mobile usage of over 3.5 billion smartphone users spread across the globe. 5G is set to attain a decrease in latency, efficiency in connection density and spectrum efficiency, ability to handle higher traffic, and near 100% optimization of network efficiency. It is because of its buzz in the mobile app industry trends; smartphone manufacturing companies have fastened their belts to introduce 5G capable smartphones in the global market this year.
Chatbots
This revolution has already begun and is all set on a rocket ride to be one of the top mobile app development trends in 2020. Chatbots have succeeded in achieving a real-time 24/7 interaction between companies and their customers. It has further advanced to a level, where chatbots aren't just for queries and complaints, rather with the support of AI-enabled ML system, they pose as a navigation assistant to the mobile app users.
The chatbot market, as a part of mobile development trends, was settled at USD 190.8 million in 2016 and with its spike from the year 2020, it's all set to reach USD 1.25 billion worldwide. The days are long gone, where customer support was an arduous task for companies. With chatbots in place, the modern age companies across various industry verticals are improving their customer experience and increasing their revenue generation through the deployment of quality chatbots supported with machine learning algorithms.