10 Big Tech Trends That Will Improve Business Development

Business ebbs and flows; much of the struggle lies in identifying what’s coming and capitalizing on it. Everyone wishes they’d been ahead of the curve when the railroad, Big Oil, the automobile, the airplane, the smartphone came along.

So, what lies ahead? There are still business problems to be solved. As consumers become pickier about what products they order online, Augmented Reality might be a great help.

Here are ten trends I think will blow up.

Interacting with Computers Via Voice

Siri was released nearly a decade ago, rolled out as a feature on the iPhone 4s. It faced stern criticism upon its release, was overshadowed in functionality almost immediately by Google, and went on to become a sort of joke… even if half the world used Siri regularly.

The company that took voice-controlled computing to the people was Amazon. Alexa became a part of millions of households, and Amazon soon almost cornered the market on voice-controlled computing and connected homes.

More Businesses Running Free Software

Twenty years ago, software that was functional often cost several hundred dollars per app. Recently, we’ve seen a seismic shift to subscription-based software. Now an increasing number of businesses depend on basically cost-free apps for key points of infrastructure.

We can thank Slack for that, though really the revolution started with Google Docs. A laptop and an internet connection can now provide, for free, a level of infrastructure that years ago would have cost startups tons of capital.

Artificial Intelligence

It’s a term that’s been bandied about for decades. It was fancied by computer scientists, toyed with by science fiction authors, built in theory by Internet-connected programmers, and is now more of a reality than we dreamt of even twenty years ago.

AI is now becoming a tool for business. It solves computing problems before they start. It picks up information trends, reads data from web surfing, and analyzes computer activity in ways unthought back when America Online ruled the web. The possibilities for business in 2019 are endless.

Chatbots

Remember Eliza, the computer program from the seventies that simulated a conversation between a computer user and a computer? Suddenly, “Elizas” are popping up across the entire spectrum of online business.

Heavy-hitters like Slack, Facebook, Starbucks, Spotify, and more are deploying chatbots to perform customer service functions, help customers execute transactions, and make small talk. In the process, they’re reducing overhead and providing seamless customer service that is, shockingly, automated.

It may be that large portions of Internet socializing in 2019 might become… fake.

Connected Gadgets

Connected gadgets are nothing new, since we’ve been using Wi-Fi and Bluetooth to create a seamless wireless connection. This has paved the way for improvements in the gadgets in our offices. Wireless printing has soared over the last couple of years, which has led to deploying managed printers.

These types of wireless printers allow themselves to be grouped together which allows employees to have access to any printer they need. This will give your IT department more time to improve other areas of the company instead of constantly fixing printer issues.

Blockchain

It’s coming back, and it’ll be better than ever. Based on a software footprint left by the mysterious creator of Bitcoin, Blockchain promises to overthrow decades of rigid thinking in computer-based monetary transactions.

Technology like IBM’s seminal invention, bar code, may soon become endangered due to the potential of blockchain software-based brilliance.

3D Printing Impacts Industry

It’s been around forever, but 3D printing just hasn’t ‘clicked’ yet with consumers or small businesses. The reality is that it is poised to automate production in ways not seen since Henry Ford’s assembly line.

3D Printing means small businesses building more custom widgets with shockingly small overhead. 2019 may be the year when the promise of 3D printing comes to fruition.

Data Security

The past half-decade has seen insane democratization in tech. With that new freedom has come huge headaches, especially in the realm of security. The Internet has grown faster than our ability to control it, and that came to a head in 2018.

Many news-making security breaches have necessitated increased attention to–and financial spend on–cybersecurity. It’s a growing field, one that will unquestionably be at the tip of the spear for businesses in 2019.

Augmented Reality

It’s been hyped for years, and now consumers are finally starting to see its benefits. Augmented Reality is empowering consumers to visualize data in new ways, observe the shape and scope of items they’re considering for purchase, and communicate over long distances like never before.

With Augmented Reality technology poised to blow up in 2019, it’ll be fascinating to see how the world of business changes as a result.

Delivery

Really, 2018 was the year of delivery. Every restaurant on earth seems to be offering delivery now, from ultra-chains like McDonald’s to small-fry hipster food paradises.

Food delivery is the name of the game in 2019. As major cities have embraced the service, the rest of the country is poised to see web-based delivery take over in food, groceries, and just about every possible form of consumable.

The Internet started taking over our lives decades ago. In 2019, it’s poised to go deeper into our day-to-day life than ever before.