The Top 5 Technology Trends for 2022
The Top 5 Technology Trends for 2022
Even in 2022, the covid-19 pandemic will have a significant impact on our lives in a variety of ways, according to the World Health Organization. Thus, the digitization and virtualization of business and society will continue to accelerate in the foreseeable future. Nevertheless, as the new year gets underway, the need for sustainability, ever-increasing data volumes, and ever-increasing compute and network speeds will reclaim their positions as the most important drivers of digital transformation.
The most significant lesson learned by many individuals and organizations over the last two years is that truly transformative change is not as difficult to implement as previously believed, provided that the motivation exists! Regardless of whether we survive or thrive in a changing world, we will undoubtedly continue to leverage our newly discovered capacity for flexibility, agility, and innovative thinking as the emphasis shifts away from merely existing but thriving in a changing world.
Following on from that thought process, here are my predictions for the specific trends that I believe will have the greatest impact in 2022. The topics of quantum computing, neural interfaces, and nanotechnology will not be discussed – while these technologies are undoubtedly on the horizon, their impact will not be felt for several years. Instead, the most significant trends in 2022 are likely to revolve around the convergence of technological trends, as new tools allow us to combine them in novel and incredible ways.
Datafication, Digitization and Virtualization
After a rapid implementation of remote working arrangements, many of us will remember the virtualization of our offices and workplaces in 2020 and 2021 as a common occurrence. This was simply an acceleration of a much longer-term trend brought about by the crisis. It is expected that by 2022, we will be familiar with the concept of the "metaverse," which refers to persistent digital worlds that exist concurrently with the physical world in which we currently live. Many of the functions that we are accustomed to performing in the real world will be replicated in these metaverses – such as the one recently proposed by Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg – and we will be able to interact with other people. Working, playing, and socializing are examples of these activities. Because of the advancement of digitization, these metaverses will become increasingly accurate models and simulations of the real world, allowing us to have more immersive, convincing, and ultimately valuable experiences in the digital realm. Despite the fact that many of us have already had some experience with virtual reality through headsets, a variety of new devices on the market will soon significantly improve the experience by providing tactile feedback and even smells. During the pandemic, Ericsson, which provided virtual reality headsets to remote employees and is developing a "internet of senses," predicts that by 2030, virtual experiences will be indistinguishable from real life experiences. Although it is possible that this is a step beyond the scope of this article Together with a new Matrix film, 2022 will undoubtedly bring us one step closer to witnessing the matrix in person.
Everything-as-a-service and the no-code revolution
In addition, the continued democratization of data and technology will be a significant driving force. Recent years have seen the emergence of an entire industry dedicated to the goal of putting the skills and tools necessary for tech-driven innovation in the hands of the broadest and most diverse possible segment of society, regardless of their expertise or previous experience. When it comes to experimenting with new ideas, cloud storage, network, and processing solutions significantly reduce the costs and risks associated with establishing expensive infrastructure. Hybrid solutions – which are intended for use in situations where public cloud services are insufficient, such as when dealing with extremely private or valuable data – have matured to the point where a "best of both worlds" solution is frequently viable in many situations.
Innovation has been stifled in some areas due to the lack of skilled workers, which may appear to be a problem, but has actually acted as a catalyst for the explosion of self-service and "do it yourself" solutions. Because they can lease a "digital brain" for the specific tasks at hand, not every business is required to hire an army of computer geniuses to create their own "digital brain." Marketing, human resources, project management, and the planning and design of manufacturing processes are just a few of the applications for artificial intelligence that are currently available. Until 2022, businesses will be able to continue to deploy AI and IoT infrastructure without having to purchase a single server or piece of intellectual property (IP).
No-code interfaces will become increasingly popular as a lack of programming knowledge or a thorough understanding of statistics and data structures ceases to be an impediment to bringing a game-changing idea to fruition or bringing a game-changing idea to fruition. Elon Musk founded OpenAI, which is supported by companies such as Microsoft. The organization recently unveiled Codex, a programming model that can generate code from natural, spoken human language. The maturation and convergence of this technology with the capabilities of cloud infrastructure, which will begin in 2022, will result in our innovation and imagination being less frequently stifled due to a lack of resources or technical skills.
Sustainable energy solutions
It was renewable energy that saw the greatest increase in usage during the pandemic. When compared to the previous ten weeks, renewable energy usage increased by 40% in the United States during the lockdown. The global consumption of nonrenewable energy decreased as a result of the closure of factories and people staying at home, resulting in an overall 8 percent reduction in emissions. As a result, it is expected that increased investment in renewable energy generation will occur in the coming years.
According to the International Energy Agency (IEA), renewable energy generation and consumption increased by 40 percent in 2020 compared to the previous year, and this trend is expected to continue through the year 2022. The cost of renewable energy generation from a variety of sources, including onshore and offshore wind, solar, and tidal, has decreased by between seven and sixteen percent in the last five years alone. These are significant advantages for countries and businesses attempting to achieve carbon neutrality or even net zero emissions from their operations. Aside from that, exciting new emerging energy sources like biofuels, liquid hydrogen, and even nuclear fusion are becoming more economically viable, even if the full environmental impact of some of these sources will not be felt until well after 2022. However, advancements in any of these areas are likely to garner a great deal of media attention in the near future. fusion energy pioneer Helion Energy, which mimics the process by which the sun generates energy, plans to bring their latest prototype fusion generator online in 2022, according to a press release from the company. Furthermore, it is anticipated that practical applications in the field of "green hydrogen" energy will emerge as a result of these developments. Instead of traditional hydrogen energy generation methods, which rely heavily on "dirty" fossil fuel energy to generate electrolysis, which separates hydrogen and oxygen without emitting carbon, this method makes use of renewable energy, which has a lower overall environmental impact.
Artificial Intelligence (AI) everywhere
A few years ago, "connected" meant nothing more than "connected" – smartphones, smart TVs, and a slew of other smart devices were all essentially the same old toys that had been connected to the internet. Smart devices, as defined today by artificial intelligence (AI) – more specifically, machine learning algorithms – and capable of assisting us in ever-innovative ways are increasingly being referred to as "smart." Artificial intelligence algorithms are used by intelligent automobiles to determine whether or not we are paying attention on the road and to notify us when we are getting tired. In order to perform a variety of tasks, from maintaining call quality to assisting us in taking better photos, smartphones make use of artificial intelligence (AI) algorithms. In addition, smartphones have become crammed with apps that make use of AI to assist us in just about anything. Even smart toilets are on the horizon, with the ability to assist in the diagnosis of gastrointestinal issues by analyzing stool samples using computer vision technology!
Machine learning and artificial intelligence have permeated the tools we use on a daily basis – from ubiquitous voice assistants to language translation and tools that allow us to extract structured data from images, whiteboard doodles, and handwritten notes, among other things. Besides that, it is the engine that drives much of the robotic process automation that has resulted in significant workload reductions in departments such as administrative services, logistics, accounting, and human resources. Whatever industry or job function you're in, there's a good chance you'll be able to find an artificial intelligence-powered solution that will make your life easier.
Among the many components of this broad trend are artificial intelligence (AI), the internet of things (IoT), and newly emerging ultra-fast networks such as 5G, all of which are working together to provide us with capabilities we did not have just a few years ago. This demonstrates that, on a timescale that is longer than the one considered here, convergence will be the most significant trend of all, regardless of the timescale. Rising data volumes, faster network and processor speeds, and "democratization" of data are all working together to have a far greater impact on society than the sum of their individual contributions.
Accountability, transparency and good governance
We, as humans, must be able to put our faith in technology in order for it to function properly. Many current technological applications are being met with strong opposition (which is entirely justified) because they are perceived as obtrusive, dangerous, or irresponsible. Particularly with regard to artificial intelligence, it is frequently depicted as a "black box" – a device that we cannot see inside in order to comprehend how it operates. This is frequently due to the object's complexity rather than to any malicious intent to limit our comprehension, but the effect is the same regardless of why it occurs. Consequently, whenever artificial intelligence is demonstrated to be harmful – such as when Facebook recently began labeling images of black people as "primates" – it should be taken very seriously. The latter is especially true in a society that is increasingly relying on artificial intelligence to make life-altering decisions such as hiring and firing employees.
Over the past few years, the concept of transparent and explainable artificial intelligence has gained traction, as it has become clear that certain segments of society distrust it – and with good reason! Indeed, governments are beginning to recognize the critical importance of a regulatory framework, as demonstrated by the European Union's proposed Artificial Intelligence Act. Authorities are prohibited from developing social scoring systems based on artificial intelligence or from using facial recognition technology in public places under the terms of the proposed legislation. Providers of artificial intelligence solutions must also demonstrate that their systems will not cause a list of potentially harmful effects, including "vulnerabilities" and "physical or psychological harm," before they can be sold. Individuals must be informed when they become subjects of artificial intelligence-driven decision-making processes, according to some critics, but the bill does not include such a provision at this time. Sundar Pichai, the CEO of Google, acknowledges the need for artificial intelligence regulation, but believes "a balance must be struck" in order to avoid stifling innovation. As more people become aware of the potential benefits and drawbacks of artificial intelligence and other technological trends, this balancing act is likely to become more prominent in 2022.
