IT Trends | 5 min read
What are most significant tech trends in 2018? Blockchain, AI, Chatbots, Machine Learning,and more. This post will tell you about the technologies that are going to impress and delight us this year.
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The technology infiltrates into our lives more than ever. This is not new in fact, but the role of the devices is growing so fast that most of the gadgets and software capabilities we just take for granted.
2018 will not be a year of fundamental technological revolution but rather digital déjà vu. We will see technologies and concepts that have existed for some time reach maturity and hopefully fulfill their promise.
What are most significant technology trends in 2018? What will become closer to the status of "common sense"? Read on to learn the technologies that are going to impress and delight us.
Many perceive bitcoins as "an easy way to get rich". However, the blockchain technology is more than that. It has some impressive ideas for the prospects in the field of digital transactions. According to the latest data, 69% of banks are experimenting with distributed technology, and this indicator reaches 90% among leading American and European banks.
Gartner projects that blockchain’s business value will grow to $176 billion by 2025. The blockchain startups are still popping up like mushrooms after a spring rain. In 2018, we hope to see the second wave of ICO but offering much better projects, not those bubble companies led by hype that flooded the entire 2017.
If you do not consider AI as a completely autonomous computer capable of processing all the information of the world, in a specialized form AI already functions in many areas - for example, in some unmanned vehicles, in Facebook algorithms, in voice assistants, and so on.
AI is also popular as a means of analyzing big data - companies like FarmaTrust use AI to fight counterfeit drugs around the world, and to create a marketplace for the safe sale of drugs online.
With the incredible rise of Pokemon Go, 2017 has already shown what AR can do in the field of game development. But, of course, the field of application of this technology is much wider.
According to the publication, AR is much more useful for end users than VR, because it can add virtual layers of information to the real world. Given the ubiquity of mobile devices, the release of Apple ARKit and iPhone X, Tango and ARCore from Google, and the availability of cross-platform software development solutions for AR such as Wikitude, we expect lot more interesting solutions.
The chatbots from Amazon, Google, Sonos have been on the rise lately. Even though these solutions are already popular and in demand, their potential in everyday life is not fully disclosed.
By 2021, more than 50% of enterprises will spend more budget on chatbots than on developing mobile applications. There will come an era of post-applications, in which virtual AI-assistants will come to the forefront, not tied to specific mobile programs. According to Gartner, in a couple of years the chatbots will penetrate all spheres of communication between people.
The idea of such technology has been in the digital community for many years. But it was 2017 that showed the real potential of smart home devices and the participation of mobile gadgets. Of course, this industry is not limited to solutions for the "smart home". Its main idea is to freely introduce technologies into everyday life.
Monitoring systems, smart sensors and counters, as well as cloud systems will become more accessible.
See also: IoT: What 3rd generation of the Internet holds in 2018
Cloud solutions have recently dominated the sphere of data transfer, but the publication notes and the rise of "edge computing". Edge computing is a method for optimizing cloud computing, shifting the very process of data processing from the network center to its periphery - closer to the data source (for example, TribeFIT leads).
This technology allows organizations to analyze important data almost in real time - the need for organizations in many industries, including manufacturing, healthcare, telecommunications and finance.
As the technologies advance so do the vulnerabilities and hacking techniques. While business uses connected networks, cyber security solutions will always be in demand.
By 2022, half of the cost of security in the IoT segment will not be protection from threats, but the elimination of the consequences of errors, including the recall of goods and the restoration of the system after the break-ins.
According to Gartner, almost 60 percent of companies are engaged in creating strategies for the application of AI. The rest are already launching pilot or working projects. The domination in the field of AI development has need claimed by China.
In December, the country presented its plans for 2018-2020 to enter the leaders in the field of artificial intelligence. According to it, Beijing will focus on the production of neural processors, which are necessary to optimize the operation of neural networks. Other spheres include the construction of robots to alleviate the lives of people with disabilities and the development of machine learning to improve the diagnosis of X-rays.
See also: 10 Best Machine Learning Examples in Real Life
More and more organizations are moving away from aging technologies. In an age where employees already expect seamless access to calendar information, shared documents, and call scheduling across platforms, the focus will be on providing consistent multi-channel user experience, leading to improved productivity.
With the proliferation of different collaboration tools available across everything from instant messaging to real-time video conferencing, there is a real risk of fragmentation across organizations. Businesses, particularly those with global operations, will seek to consolidate and standardize the applications and technologies used.