The impact of technology on key sectors: What does the future hold?
During and after the recent pandemic, technology and digital transformation gained more momentum. Humans reduced the contact they had with others because of social distancing policies which were deployed to reduce the spread of the virus.
Cloud-based technologies like Zoom and Google Meet became a new home and office for most people while financial technology enabled instant payments. Meet’s daily growth became over 60% as the need to live online became a huge matter of necessity for conferences, team meetings, and collaborations.
Today, businesses have discovered more intelligent ways to operate with the aid of frontier technologies- Artificial Intelligence (AI), Cloud computing, Robotics, Big Data, Blockchain, Quantum Computing, and Metaverse. Notably, a PwC report predicts that AI could contribute about £15.7 trillion to the global economy by 2030, making it a prominent topic among businesses.
Global spending on digital transformation was estimated to reach £1.6 trillion in 2022 and projected to grow to £3.4 trillion by 2026. This evidence underscores the ongoing and substantial investments in technology across diverse sectors.
We have witnessed the transformative impact of generative AI on traditional business practices, as technologies like ChatGPT, Midjourney, Soundraw, Jasper, and LaMDA deploy Machine Learning to revolutionise content creation, enhance productivity, customer interaction, and provide more personalised experiences.
How does technology affect key sectors?
While technology's influence permeates all sectors, certain industries are currently experiencing the highest level of impact - Finance, Health, Retail, Security, and Real estate. For instance, JPMorgan is getting set with IndexGPT, an AI that selects financial securities and facilitates financial decisions for customers, is poised to revolutionise the FinTech sector. Some have even speculated that the ChatGPT-like programme could replace Financial Advisors.
The healthcare sector has also seen significant change, with the adoption of Electronic Health Records (EHRs) offering a new way to store and access patient data, replacing the monotonous and time-consuming manual processes. MIT’s researchers and Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center are collaboratively developing MedKnowts that enables medical recording and documentation in a single platform. The app combines virtual reality, machine learning, and Human-Computerised interaction to create an intelligent EHR that could render more personalised and patient-centric clinical transactions.
AI has also been deployed by RetiSpec, a Toronto-based medical imaging company that utilises AI and a retinal scan to aid early detection of Alzheimer’s symptoms. It’s amazing how AI is making life better- early detection of a critical brain disease like Alzheimer's could be a quick possible way to reduce the effects of dementia.
In retail, over 74% of companies are implementing Internet of Things (IoT) and experiencing a 10% revenue growth. IoT enables these businesses to ensure products are transported in good condition, thus avoiding demand and waste issues. Additionally, AI-powered CCTVs have transformed security systems, with the AI-powered CCTV market estimated to be valued at £55.22 billion by 2030, according to Allied Market Research.
Technology has left no sector untouched, including real estate, where the application of blockchain enhances transaction security and transparency, minimising fraud and simplifying property deals.
What does the future hold?
The list of technologies and their impact on key sectors appears unending and acts as a strong indicator of future events. Projections suggest that digital trends are rapidly evolving and transforming how humans operate. Companies that keep up with these digital trends gain an advantage by familiarising themselves with the changes and harnessing the potential of digital technologies.
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