Five predictions for the tech world in 2021

By Forbes Bernard Marr 

It seems a little strange to make predictions for 2021, since it’s still so uncertain how the rest of 2020 will play out. No one foresaw the world-changing events that would occur this year, but one thing is clear: the tech world has been affected as much as every aspect of life.

Another thing that is clear is that today’s most important technology trends will play a major role in helping us respond and adapt to many challenges. From working from home to home offices to new rules about how we meet and interact in public places, technology trends will be the driving force for managing change.

In many ways, Covid-19 will be a catalyst for a host of changes that were already happening thanks to our increasingly online and digital lives. Things will happen faster when demand is the driving force. If Covid-19 “magically disappears,” as some U.S. presidents have predicted, the changes it brought will not happen because we will have learned to do many things more efficiently and safely.

Here are the major tech trends for next year that I identified in my recent book, Tech Trends in Practice. Some of them will play a role in helping us return to “normal” (whatever that means), while some of them will make it easier for us to understand and navigate our changed reality.

1. Artificial Intelligence

Artificial intelligence is undoubtedly one of the biggest technology trends right now, and in 2021 it will become an even more valuable tool in helping us interpret and understand the world around us. The amount of data we collect about healthcare, infection rates, and the success of measures we take to prevent the spread of infection will continue to increase. This means that machine learning algorithms will become smarter and more sophisticated in the solutions they discover for us.

From computer vision systems that monitor capacity in public areas to analyzing crowd interactions through contact tracing, self-learning algorithms will uncover connections and insights missed by manual analysis. They will help us predict demand for services from hospitals and other healthcare providers and allow administrators to make better decisions about when and where to deploy resources.

For businesses, the challenge will be to understand the changes in customer behavior patterns. More human activities will be conducted online - from shopping and socializing to virtual work environments, meetings and recruitment. In 2021, we can expect that the tools we use to analyze these behavioral shifts will become more sophisticated, fitting the budgets and infrastructure needs of more and more organizations.

2. Robots, drones and autonomous driving

As ridership using public transport fluctuates from week to week depending on local conditions, initiatives around autonomous vehicles will continue to move at an increasing pace. Improving the efficiency of public transport networks will be a priority for service providers and governments, where reducing human costs will help balance the uncertainty of customer demand.

In recent years, we have seen the emergence of robots in the care and assisted living sectors, and these robots will become increasingly important, especially when interacting with the most vulnerable members of society, such as the elderly. Rather than completely replacing the human interaction between patients that is so important to many, we can expect robotic devices to be used to provide new channels of communication, such as 24/7 home assistance and companionship when it is not convenient or safe for caregivers. In addition, companies that find that their homes, although vacant, still require maintenance and upkeep will turn to robot suppliers for services such as cleaning and security. This range of needs has already caused the stock prices of robot-related companies to soar.

Drones will be used to deliver vital medicines and will be equipped with computer vision algorithms to monitor foot traffic in public areas in order to identify risks of virus transmission.

3. Service Revolution

As-a-service — the delivery of services we need to live and work through cloud-based, on-demand platforms — is the key to making technology trends accessible to everyone. That’s why AI and robotics are possible for any business or organization, regardless of size or budget. Thanks to cloud computing services from companies like Google, Microsoft, Amazon, and a growing number of startups and spinoffs, innovators in all fields can deploy cutting-edge technologies without having to invest in tools, equipment, or professionals upfront.

As the ongoing pandemic rages across the globe, we’ve clearly seen that companies that rely on the cloud to provide scalable solutions as a service are thriving. Take Zoom, for example, which quickly became a household name due to its ability to quickly add servers, improve coverage, and quality of service. This is due to its cloud-based nature and partnerships with its own service providers who are able to quickly increase capacity to meet demand. This will become increasingly important in 2021 and beyond, opening up more possibilities for everyone.

4. 5G and Enhanced Connectivity

Faster, more reliable internet doesn’t just mean we can load web pages faster and spend less time waiting for Youtube to buffer. Every advancement in mobile connectivity since 3G has opened up new use cases for the internet. 3G made web browsing and data-driven services available on mobile devices, 4G brought the growth of streaming video and music platforms as bandwidth increased, and similarly, 5G will open even more doors in terms of what’s possible.

5G means that services that rely on advanced technologies such as augmented and virtual reality, as well as cloud-based gaming platforms such as Google's Stadia or NVidia's GeForce, are now a viable proposition at any time and from any place. The 5G industry is going to make wired and fiber-based networks redundant because they need to tether us to specific locations.

In short, 5G and other advanced high-speed networks make all the other trends we’ve discussed here available anywhere, at any time. Complex machine learning applications that rely on real-time access to big data sources can easily be automated on-site. A good example is Norwegian fishery operator Salmar, which uses 5G networks to automate the care and feeding of fish. Image recognition algorithms are used to detect which fish are over- or under-fed and automatically dispense the food and medicine needed to keep them healthy. In 2021, programs like this will become increasingly important as companies look to increase automation of their workforces, all based on data and connectivity.

5. Extended Reality (XR) – Virtual and Augmented Reality (VR/MR)

Extended reality includes technologies that project computer-generated images directly into the user's field of view using glasses or headsets. When it's superimposed on what the user sees in the real world, it's AR. When it's used to put the user in an entirely computer-generated environment, it's VR.

Next year, we can again expect to see these trends, as well as the others discussed here, assist in meeting the challenges posed by the current world situation. To a large extent, this will involve allowing us to avoid potentially dangerous situations where there could be a risk of virus transmission. For example, medical examinations and diagnoses could increasingly be carried out remotely. One solution offered by opticians allows myopia tests to be carried out entirely in virtual reality, as a high-definition camera can clearly display the patient's eyes. An augmented reality tool then lets customers browse the glasses in the range to see how they would look without having to leave their home.

We will also see the use of virtual and augmented reality tools in education, which will reduce the need for us to work in crowded classroom conditions — if not all, then at least in areas and times when transmission rates are known to be high.

As more data becomes available about the conditions and ways in which the virus spreads, AR tools will be used to issue real-time warnings when passing through areas where infection is known to spread. Even simple steps, like reminding us to wash our hands when we touch a doorknob in a public place, or sending an alert when a device senses that we have touched our face without washing our hands, can help us save lives and stop the spread of disease in our real-world environments.