According to a report from leading analytics firm GlobalData, the top tech themes to have an impact on TMT in 2022 include artificial intelligence (AI), cybersecurity, cloud computing, 5G, Industry 4.0 and more.
GlobalData’s top macroeconomic themes in 2022 include Covid-19, geopolitics, China and more. Its top regulatory theme impacting the TMT industry meanwhile is data privacy.
Go deeper with GlobalData
These trends will have an impact across all sectors, and, like a New Year’s evening of revelry, will likely keep CEOs up long into the night. Find out more with Verdict as we dive into the data that underpins the year ahead, and attend a free webinar taking place today at 4pm GMT as GlobalData gives a guide on some of the hottest themes for 2022 and the top TMT predictions for the coming year.
TMT predictions 2022: AI
2022 will see the expansion of practical, more subtle AI. The tech, GlobalData forecasts, will be integrated into software and will play its role unobtrusively through autonomous behaviour and feedback cycles.
Expect the further rollout of semantic search, generative AI systems and computer vision (as profiled on Verdict last year), while developments in next-generation chips will allow further AI use cases in TMT industries.
Big Tech’s advantage in AI will only widen data and computing power are essential in the development of AI. Big Tech companies have both in abundance, and this represents a huge advantage. An example of this is Big Tech’s access to location data, essential for context-aware computing.
How well do you really know your competitors?
Access the most comprehensive Company Profiles on the market, powered by GlobalData. Save hours of research. Gain competitive edge.
Thank you!
Your download email will arrive shortly
Not ready to buy yet? Download a free sample
We are confident about the unique quality of our Company Profiles. However, we want you to make the most beneficial decision for your business, so we offer a free sample that you can download by submitting the below form
By GlobalDataBig Tech is also using its vast troves of data to improve the performance of conversational platforms. Voice will be the primary user interface in the future, so Big Tech’s strength in conversational platforms will be a huge advantage.
Also expect to see AI further disrupt key TMT sectors of enterprise security, cloud services, IT infrastructure and IT services.
First off, AI will continue to play a crucial role in automating security systems online. These solutions replace human intervention by performing analysis on risk data faster and more accurately.
AI can help discover and prioritise risks, direct incident response and identify malware attacks before they occur. Some cybersecurity unicorns, such as Arkose Labs, are hot properties due to their AI-powered fraud detection products.
AI in IT infrastructure meanwhile will become more comprehensive and further embedded in infrastructure operations. GlobalData also expects the depth of features for AI to continue to expand, especially around automated AI responses to IT infrastructure events.
Also, IT enterprises will increasingly need to work across cloud environments. This means incorporating data from multiple locations and integrating tools from multiple vendors, with AI reducing the complexity.
Cloud Computing
The global cloud computing market will be worth $616bn by the end of 2022, according to GlobalData forecasts, up 13% from 2021.
Whether it is hardware failure, IT systems error or an on-site power outage, downtimes can cost companies billions, as evidenced by Meta’s major 2021 outage. Investment in disaster recovery as a service (DRaaS) will therefore be key for TMT in 2022, particularly for critical national infrastructures (CNIs), which require the constant smooth running of their services. Many healthcare and energy services, for example, heavily rely on cloud services.
Successful companies in 2022 and beyond will secure their data and applications for ease of use for remote workers using cloud-native applications. They will also keep their operations running even with higher risks of downtime.
5G and IoT
There will be a continued rollout of 5G in 2022, which will encourage more software defined networks (SDNs). 5G will foster open and interoperable equipment, bringing cost savings and more flexible networks. The increasing mass of data collected by the growth of the Internet of Things (IoT) market will also contribute to the further adoption of SDNs, GlobalData predicts.
With 5G connections continuing to become more available in 2022, edge computing implementations will increase significantly. Although edge computing is in the early stages of development, GlobalData forecasts that it will grow to reach a market value of $17.8 billion by the end of 2025.
Edge computing involves the deployment and use of computer processing, data storage, and analytics capabilities close to where data is collected. Expect IT infrastructure vendors to promote cloud-like consumption and delivery models for their edge solutions in 2022.
Finally, intelligent edge – performing data analysis at the edge of a network – will begin to transform IoT this year. Shifting data analytics functions to the edge of the network and closer to the source of data generation will reduce latency.
This performance improvement will increase uptake of Industry 4.0 technologies that require a near real-time response. Intelligent edge will also improve data security since data is not transported across several networks.
Industry 4.0 in 2022
Speaking of the fourth industrial revolution, adoption of Industry 4.0 tech will expand far beyond manufacturing and logistics.
Industry 4.0 technologies cover three main areas: connectivity (Industrial Internet, cloud computing, 5G); intelligence (digital twin, advanced analytics, AI); and flexible automation (3D printing, robotics, VR, AR).
Many companies failed to handle the supply chain disruptions that occurred in 2021. Industry 4.0 technologies can help when such disturbances arise by proactively assessing disruptions and providing prompt data-driven strategies.
Of all the technologies, GlobalData believes that companies that do not use digital twins in a business context will lose out the most in 2022.
Representing the next generation in business information modelling (BIM), digital twins are real-time representations of physical assets, systems or processes that can be built using AI, mixed-reality or a combination of the two.
Digital twins have been cited by GlobalData as a rising theme in technology, being already used in sectors such as power, healthcare and rail.
The tech digests data and uses it to create representations of either a specific part of an organisation or the organisation itself. They can apply to any system: a car, a home, a factory, a power grid, a telecom network, a city. even our planet.
Digital twins enable the user to understand an asset’s condition, run simulations and scenario. They therefore offer the prospect of short and long-term efficiency and productivity gains for TMT businesses in 2022.
“Companies that fail to integrate technologies such as AI, digital twins, and edge computing into their systems in 2022 will be sidelined by the next disruptive event,” GlobalData researchers report.
In other words, when planning ahead for Industry 4.0 in 2022, think of the “twin” power of two when it comes to digital disruption.
Find out more in a free webinar taking place today January 13th as GlobalData gives a guide on some of the hottest themes for 2022 and the top TMT predictions for the coming year. January 20th meanwhile sees a free webinar from GlobalData all about ESG; register here.
