Trends Identified
Governing is getting harder
Publics will demand governments deliver security and prosperity, but flat revenues, distrust, polarization, and a growing list of emerging issues will hamper government performance. Technology will expand the range of players who can block or circumvent political action. Managing global issues will become harder as actors multiply—to include NGOs, corporations, and empowered individuals—resulting in more ad hoc, fewer encompassing efforts.
2017
Global Trends: The Paradox of Progress
USA, US National Intelligence Council
The nature of conflict is changing.
The risk of conflict will increase due to diverging interests among major powers, an expanding terror threat, continued instability in weak states, and the spread of lethal, disruptive technologies. Disrupting societies will become more common, with long- range precision weapons, cyber, and robotic systems to target infrastructure from afar, and more accessible technology to create weapons of mass destruction.
2017
Global Trends: The Paradox of Progress
USA, US National Intelligence Council
Climate change, environment, and health issues will demand attention
A range of global hazards pose imminent and longer-term threats that will require collective action to address—even as cooperation becomes harder. More extreme weather, water and soil stress, and food insecurity will disrupt societies. Sea-level rise, ocean acidification, glacial melt, and pollution will change living patterns. Tensions over climate change will grow. Increased travel and poor health infrastructure will make infectious diseases harder to manage.
2017
Global Trends: The Paradox of Progress
USA, US National Intelligence Council
Artificial intelligence
AI is about machines with human attributes - speaking, reading, seeing and even recognising emotion - completing tasks while also "learning" from repeated interactions. Using algorithms that adapt to location, speech or user-history machines can perform tasks that are dangerous or tedious, more accurately or much faster than humans. Within a few years, analysts predict that all software will use AI at some level, according to US research and advisory firm Gartner. Importantly AI offers the opportunity to continuously tailor products and services providing a competitive advantage over rivals that is not easily copied. The question to ask is 'how can AI help my organisation?
2019
Five tech trends for 2019
University of Technology Sydney
Augmented reality
Systems that combine real-time 3D vision, sound, haptics (the sense of touch), location data and even other senses such as smell enable people to immerse themselves somewhere else, react to what's around them and alter their virtual environment in real time. Organisations are increasingly applying this technology across a wide spectrum of human activity from art and entertainment to commerce, education and the military. It's used to train doctors, nurses, teachers and police officers and will soon be available on your smart device. Could you use AR to lift efficiency for your internal stakeholders or help you communicate with your customer base?
2019
Five tech trends for 2019
University of Technology Sydney
Blockchain
The fortunes of digital currency Bitcoin have drawn public attention to Blockchain technology, but this secure system for recording and verifying transactions and storing trusted records has the potential to disrupt enterprises of many kinds. Companies are using Blockchain technology to transform time-consuming, centralised, less reliable and less secure systems. Digital democracy platform MyVote, for example, uses Blockchain to store users' personal data and voting history to give citizens a more direct voice in the political process. Could you use Blockchain to keep your data secure?
2019
Five tech trends for 2019
University of Technology Sydney
Automation
Robots in manufacturing go back to the 1960s. Now it's the scale and breadth of the transformation that automated systems make possible, as a result of other advances in machine learning and connectivity, for example, that puts automation firmly at the forefront of technology trends. From convenient devices at home to industrial applications on a massive scale, automation will be a key focus of technological change, with potentially far-reaching economic and social consequences. Currently, professional services such as the legal and finance industry are being disrupted by automation with feedback from these sectors being that core technical skills together with management and people skills being more important than ever. How will automation disrupt your industry?
2019
Five tech trends for 2019
University of Technology Sydney
Internet of Things
Gartner calls the combination of technologies and the connection of people, devices, content and services the "intelligent digital mesh." This is the foundation for new business models, platforms and possibilities that will transform how we live and work with implications that go far beyond the technology itself and involve disciplines such as law, economics, business and politics. It is early days for the application of IoT strategy but it is clear that opportunities will exist for those with the technical knowledge to connect platforms as well as those with the data analytics skills to utilise the rich stream of information generated by IoT applications. What could you learn from connecting and analysing the data from your products or elements of your core operations?
2019
Five tech trends for 2019
University of Technology Sydney
Artificial intelligence and machine learning
Progress in AI has accelerated rapidly since around 2010, driven by the confluence of the growing availability of large data sets from commerce, social media, science and other sources; continued improvements in computational power; and the development of better machine learning algorithms and techniques (such as “deep learning”). Systems are now capable of learning how to accomplish a task without having been provided with explicit steps for doing so. Once designed and deployed, the neural network that underpins modern AI can formulate its own rules for interpreting new data and designing solutions, with minimal— or no— human participation.
2018
World Economic And Social Survey 2018: Frontier Technologies For Sustainable Development
United Nations
Renewable energy technologies
Following recent technological breakthroughs, a growing number of current and emerging technologies in the area of renewable energy generation have achieved a sufficient level of technical and economic maturity to render them ready for large-scale deployment.
2018
World Economic And Social Survey 2018: Frontier Technologies For Sustainable Development
United Nations