Trends Identified
3D printing opens up amazing opportunities for manufacturers (and others)
Related to increasing automation, the invention of 3D printing is disrupting manufacturing, and other industries, in many positive ways. In traditional (subtractive) manufacturing, objects are cut or hollowed out of material, such as metal, using something like a cutting tool. But in 3D printing (also known as additive manufacturing), the object is created by laying down, or adding, layers of material. The materials used in 3D printing can be pretty much anything: plastic, metal, concrete, liquid, powder, even chocolate or human tissue! With 3D printing, far more complex shapes can be created than in traditional manufacturing – and using less material, too. It also allows for much greater customization of products, without worrying about economies of scale.
2017
9 Technology Mega Trends That Will Change The World In 2018
Forbes
We’re interacting with technology in very different ways
The way we interact with technology has changed dramatically in recent years – and is still changing. Thanks to smart phones and tablets, we can carry out a whole range of tasks on the move simply by touching a screen. Mobile web usage has increased to the point where, in 2016, it overtook web usage through traditional computers. Google has also confirmed that searches on mobile devices now outstrip desktop searches. We’re also talking to our devices, using voice searches via Siri and the like. Estimates suggest that, by 2020, 50 percent of all searches will be voice searches, and around 30 percent will involve no screen whatsoever. As a result, all kinds of businesses are gradually integrating their products with the likes of Siri, Alexa and Google Assistant. For example, Alexa is being integrated into BMWs from 2018. Virtual reality and augmented reality represent the next huge leap in interface innovation, transforming how businesses interact with customers.
2017
9 Technology Mega Trends That Will Change The World In 2018
Forbes
Blockchains: An invention that could change our world
Blockchain technology is a very practical solution to the problem of storing, authenticating and protecting data. Think of a blockchain as a decentralized, extremely secure database. Or, to get slightly more technical, it’s a distributed, peer-to-peer ledger of records. While nothing is ever totally ‘hack-proof’, blockchain represents a huge leap forward compared to our current data security technology as, unlike a centralized database, there’s no one single point of failure. The records in a blockchain are called ‘blocks’ and every block is connected to the previous block (hence, ‘block’ and ‘chain’). The whole chain is self-managed, which means there’s no one person or organization in charge of the entire chain. If that sounds familiar, it might be because the virtual currency Bitcoin functions on blockchain technology. Financial services, insurance and healthcare are just some of the sectors where blockchains are likely to be heavily adopted. In fact, 90 percent of major European and North American banks are exploring blockchain solutions.
2017
9 Technology Mega Trends That Will Change The World In 2018
Forbes
Platforms are the way forward for businesses
A platform is essentially a network (digital or physical) that creates value for participants by facilitating connections and exchanges between people for services, products or information. The platform is rarely the actual service provider; instead, it acts as a facilitator for the crowd, making interactions possible, easy, and safe for participants. Platforms have given rise to businesses like Airbnb, Uber and Amazon, and are also the foundation of what Facebook and Twitter do. However, platforms offer growth opportunities across all kinds of businesses, industries and sectors – not just tech companies. Even long-running businesses with more traditional business models, like Ford, are beginning to develop platform strategies.
2017
9 Technology Mega Trends That Will Change The World In 2018
Forbes
Automation, employment and productivity
Automation is an idea that has inspired science fiction writers and futurologists for more than a century. Today it is no longer fiction, as companies increasingly use robots on production lines or algorithms to optimize their logistics, manage inventory, and carry out other core business functions. Technological advances are creating a new automation age in which ever-smarter and more flexible machines will be deployed on an ever-larger scale in the workplace. In reality, the process of automating tasks done by humans has been under way for centuries. What has perhaps changed is the pace and scope of what can be automated. It is a prospect that raises more questions than it answers. How will automation transform the workplace? What will be the implications for employment? And what is likely to be its impact both on productivity in the global economy and on employment?
2017
A future that works
McKinsey
Computing fore-cast: Into the clouds
Long foreshadowed under names like “grid computing” and “network computing,” cloud computing is finally gaining momentum. Rather than simply replacing one computing paradigm with another, the era of the cloud looks to create a somewhat chaotic proliferation of options, with many paradigms coexisting. Any layer of the technology stack—from computing power to storage to services—can be sourced from the “cloud” and, because IT needs are diverse, every cloud layer should be able to find a market. Organizations will be free to evolve individual IT models, based strictly on business needs rather than on technology constraints; hybrid, “partly cloudy” models will be the norm. This new, adaptable IT frame - work may make it much easier to manage 4 issues of cost, scale and agility. But decision makers must also be prepared to navigate a new set of tradeoffs: the price of agility may be the loss of some visibility—or some control. Most enterprises will want to take their bearings carefully before heading off into the cloud.
2010
Accenture technology vision
Accenture
The new Web
Because of the Web’s reach (1.6 billion devices connected, with this number expected to reach 2.7 billion by 2013), 1 even small changes to its basic capabilities can have enormous potential—changing how people socialize, changing how societies link together and changing how businesses operate. Right now, the Web is in the midst of its most significant overhaul since the first browsers emerged 15 years ago. Low-level engineering work (from networking protocols to browser optimization) is making the Web faster and more robust. New capabilities (location-awareness, online/offline modes, social connectivity and more) are paving the way for whole new classes of Web applications. And a growing set of productivity, communication and integration capabilities is making the Web increasingly attractive as an enterprise platform. The Web world is multivalent: multi-browser, multi-platform, multi- device. It is a world that presents a new set of challenges— privacy, security, control of standards, interoperability— and requires a new set of technical and strategic skills. But very soon, more and more enterprises will find that it is their interest to “speak Web” fluently.
2010
Accenture technology vision
Accenture
Devices as doorways
Conventional computers have become only marginally more powerful in recent years; mobile devices, on the other hand, have increased their capabilities tenfold. During the same period, the amount of content on the Web has grown exponentially. The two trends, taken together, are breaking up an age-old paradigm where certain kinds of devices (temple scrolls, record players, or GPS units) give access to certain kinds of content (words, music, or location). That era is ending. We are now entering a world where any device can deliver any content. In such a world, there are many avenues to a given piece of content, and devices—in different shapes and sizes—are simply doorways. A key principle of the new paradigm is that users will tend toward whatever access patterns maximize their own convenience and productivity, whether this means reading a transcript of a voicemail on a tablet computer, making a dinner reservation using a video game console, or approving a purchase order by touching a phone. For enterprises that see the work machine as the sole way to access corporate information—the old paradigm—this trend will initially appear problematic. Soon, however, they will likely see it as an opportunity to get out of the business of hardware support while improving system security. Users will supply their own devices, and the job of enterprise IT will be to provide a secure transport layer for work information. Through the adroit use of virtualization, “webification” or other thin-client technologies, enterprises will be able to rise with the tide of devices.
2010
Accenture technology vision
Accenture
Fluid collaboration
Collaboration across time zones and geographies is the new business norm. Given the realities of global workforces, carbon-reduction efforts, and the drive for greater productivity, no one expects these numbers to go anywhere but up. Still, the basic technologies that under-pinday-to-day collaboration (such as e-mail) have changed only incrementally in the past decade. Where will the new capabilities come from to equip a more productive, more effective workforce? There will be three sources:• From innovation around the core functions of e-mail, messaging and voice. As communications become more unified, vendors can begin to deliver features—like robust, unified search—that will have real impact. • By expanding the core suite of tools. The challenges to doing so are less technical than practical. For example, valuable tools to improve virtual meetings already exist, in the form of videoconferencing, screen-sharing, digital whiteboards, and more. But these tools are not universal, interoperable or even always user-friendly. With the growing power of the (universal, user-friendly) Web platform, the equation will change. • By supplementing the core messaging suite with collaboration systems based around the principles of publishing and aggregation. A fast-evolving array of tools for social chatter, wiki writing, tagging, rating and voting will provide enterprises with ways to tap human capital, increase peripheral awareness and sustain engagement.
2010
Accenture technology vision
Accenture
The conversation economy
Social computing has brought about substantial change in how people connect, how they converse, and how they get and share information. The social network itself is fast becoming a primary information channel for many people. Any object of attention—rumors, novels, recipes, petitions—can explode in importance and visibility if it taps into the right social channels at the right time. But information can also travel in the opposite direction: social networks are emerging as a rich source of information about consumer sentiment, preferences and desires. One clear implication of all this is that the conversation between organizations and individuals is changing, and customer relationships are being remade. We see three major “discontinuities” in the patterns of business-consumer communications. • Episodic communications are being replaced by continuous interactions;• "Talk at you" broadcast messages are making room for "talk with you" conversations; and • With a powerful media device as close as the nearest phone, companies—and individuals—have a new, powerful ability to “show” instead of “tell.”
2010
Accenture technology vision
Accenture