2017 has been a remarkable year for digital transformation. Machine learning, AI and Big Data are some of the technologies that dominated 2017. Advancements and enhancements in these technologies will continue for coming years – but what can we predict for the IT industry in 2018? Will AI prove to be a job creator or a destroyer? Will global tech-giants have to self-disrupt to shape their new leadership opportunity? Will 2018 prove to be a slow death for IT specialists?
Today, tech innovations arrive faster than most of the enterprises can cope up with. All too often, before one innovation is embraced and implemented, other two appear on the horizon. To cope with these endless innovations, CIO’s of the enterprises must pursue and excel the role of a business strategist first and secondly as a technologist, thereby developing an appropriate pace for the digital transformation.
Rates of innovation and progress wouldn’t slowdown in 2018. Hence, we have pulled together some impactful technology predictions for 2018 to watch and plan for:
Prediction #1: Global tech-giants will deliberately self-disrupt
Global tech giants like Amazon, Facebook, Apple, Google, Microsoft, Alibaba, Baidu have brought innovations by exploring the previously unexplored options such as conversational UX, Chatbots and voice and visual search. Eventually, their influence has grown so large that now it is tough to find fresh external areas to innovate. Thus, these tech-giants potentially self-disrupt their revenue bases to create new opportunities.
For instance, Apple’s recent face ID launch vs its touch ID and AWS lambda versus traditional cloud virtual machines sets example for the self-disruptions of the tech-giants.
Prediction #2: Blockchain based cryptocurrencies will contribute trillion-dollar business value to the banking industry
According to CNBC report, the total value of all the digital currencies (about 1300 different cryptocurrencies) combined is over $588 billion with bitcoin value dominating the market. This market capital value is bound to cross $1 trillion, looking at the increase in market interest. Blockchain technology has a real place in the future of technology- regardless of the price of the Bitcoins.
Prediction #3: Rise in roles of IT Versatilists
It is predicted that, globally, the IT sector is going to face an enormous job churn in 2018, where it will add some 1,00,000 new job profiles while eliminating only 80,000. AI related job creation will touch 2 million net new jobs.
Today, IT specialists account for about 42% of the entire IT workforce. According to Gartner, in coming years 40% of IT workforce will be IT versatilists and we would witness a fall of more than 5% in hires of IT technical specialists. The role of an IT versatilists would be more of a business strategist, rather than of a technologist, scaling the digital business of an enterprise.
Prediction #4: Increase in digital commerce for the brands that revamp their websites to support visual and voice search
Visual and voice searches are transforming the engagement of users with digital channels. With the emergence of voice assistants like Alexa, Google Assistant and Siri, voice search queries hold the majority for the fastest growing mobile search type. Visual search, on the other side provides more accuracy in a search, for, a picture speaks more than a thousand words.
Huge investments that the tech giants like Apple, Google, Facebook, Microsoft make in machine learning and AI would be evident based on how smoothly their voice and visual searches accelerate in coming years.
Prediction #5: Increasing investments in bots and chat bots, sidelining mobile applications
Bots and chat bots are the new facets of the AI. User attention is shifting to the bots and chat bots from individual mobile applications that the enterprises have. Predictions claim that by 2022, over 60% of all the large enterprises will have at least one Chat bot deployed. Apt usage of virtual assistants will increase customer engagement and can automate different tasks to free the workforce.
Accelerated enhancements made in the Natural Language Processing, enable today’s chatbots to interpret the user intent better than their previous generations.
Prediction #6: Open source will keep rising the ladder
A decade ago, Linux was a newbie while it is mainstream today. In earlier days, Google, Amazon, Microsoft were compelled to create their own propriety tools because they did not have any software to meet their needs. Many open source frameworks are rapidly forming an integral part of a developer’s workflow. Thus, this paradigm shift is changing what enterprises are investing in. Making open source software, the greatest competitor of the traditional software.
Prediction #7: IoT to transform to BIoT
The combination of IoT with Blockchain is predicted to be an empowering blend in IT, this year, where it would usher in a whole host of new businesses and services. By implementing BIoT, real- time updates from different sensors embedded on products will empower everyone in the distributed chain with insights which they were unable to receive earlier.
2018 is also going to witness developments in 5G connectivity, IT security driven by AI, over the air wireless charging and ARM powered laptops. Although, these technologies can help us better connect and communicate with our audiences, but they have the potential to change the way we live and interact with each other.
Article first appeared on Cygnet Infotech.
Hemang Rindani
