Technology will continue to establish itself as a driving force in a rapidly changing world, both in business and in the human sphere. This is how Globant described it in its recent report Tech Trends 2024, where it published predictions about the technological trends that will mark the year 2024.
Various thought leaders have contributed their opinions to these conclusions with the idea of providing knowledge that serves to build a foundation for long-term success. In addition, Globant experts (designers, software developers, project managers and collaborators from around the world) gathered to discuss what they see on the horizon for the coming year.
According to the report, there are five trends that will stand out in the field of technology in 2024:
1- Generative Artificial Intelligence (AI) will open a range of opportunities: The launch of ChatGPT OpenAI in 2022 has caused an explosion of public interest, giving meaning to the significant investment in the technology over the past five years.
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According to Globant, the research and innovation approach will continue in 2024 as organizations of all sizes define where and how to use this technology to best benefit their users.
“In customer experience, we will see great advances in the use of generative AI, but as this increases, customers will be less aware that they are interacting with AI. We’ve seen this in other forms of AI; “It’s so integrated into every digital product that people don’t even know they’ve been using it for the last five or ten years,” said Nicolas Ávila, chief technology officer at Globant.
2- Quantum computing makes a leap: Quantum computing is still in an academic state. It is slowly moving from a theoretical concept to something that organizations can be ready to benefit from. In 2024, many companies will begin to understand how quantum computing could affect their business, but only a few will take steps forward.
Applications in data- and computing-rich fields such as finance and pharmaceutical research are likely to attract interest and investment first.
Companies such as Alibaba, Baidu, Amazon, IBM, Google and Microsoft are already doing this: they have launched commercial quantum computing services in the cloud. For example, IBM has developed initiatives in this area in collaboration with the University of Tokyo, the University of Chicago, EY and Quantinuum. Canada, on the other hand, is investing $40 million to build and commercialize the world’s first fault-tolerant photonics-based quantum computer.
3- Versatile robots open the way to new applications: Robotics has been on the technological scene in a real and tangible way for more than two decades. While other technologies continue to struggle to gain ground, robotics is poised for a resurgence. And 2024 will be a decisive year for the inevitable evolution of this sector, in which we will see multi-purpose robots taking shape to increase efficiency.
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“The development of robotics and artificial intelligence took place in parallel. Robotics experts want to make smarter, more human-like robots, but without artificial intelligence, it was too complicated. Today, we are starting to move closer to our vision of a robot by combining the capabilities of multiple technologies,” said Agustin Huerta, SVP Digital Innovation at Globant.
And with artificial intelligence, robots have gained autonomy, adaptability and sensory perception, allowing them to interpret data, solve problems and make improvements powered by machine learning, according to Forrester’s report, Predictions 2023: Automation And Robotics.
According to what Globant predicts, next year it will be common to see large companies using robots to provide services. These will not have a humanoid form, but will instead focus on an optimized task such as rolling delivery robots.
A case that stands out is the NYPD’s patrol robot that conducts nighttime surveillance in that city’s subway station. There will also be food delivery robots in the capitals of the world and medicine delivery robots in hospitals.
4- Industrial applications of Blockchain are underway, but mass adoption is lagging: Blockchain technology has valuable examples of use in the supply chain and financial sectors and overall promising results. However, the Globant report recognizes significant challenges for day-to-day organizational use.
In 2024, the relevant industries will continue to invest in this technology as they determine the ideal control and find a way forward for interoperability.
“The world is moving towards data protection with blockchain. Every person has a huge potential to own their data and give them the freedom to make it available. Digital identity control has the greatest potential,” explained Diego Tartara, Global CTO of Globant.
5- Immersive Experiences: Metaverse suffers from a lack of practical use cases compared to the current business environment. While technology like AI is already available in the real world, the meta version is quite the opposite.
Mass adoption requires organizations to ask users to step outside the norm and into a completely different world. 2024 will see static interest in metaversions, with the spotlight in the spatial computing space coming with the launch of Apple’s Vision Pro mixed reality glasses in the first quarter. Ritesh Menon, vice president of technology at Globant, foresaw the device’s potential to create hyper-personalized content and revolutionize business practices.
And this type of device can revolutionize various industries, including education. For example, with Vision Pro, you can offer immersive anatomy classes with 3D models or replay historical events through augmented reality simulations.
However, it is important to distinguish spatial computing from the broader concept of the metaverse. While both include immersive digital experiences, Vision Pro focuses on Apple’s Augmented Reality (AR) technology and devices.
One of the latest conclusions of the report is that the way we have multiple social networks today could be similar to how we will be in many metaversions in the future. In other words: you can reach the point of interaction with five different metaversions for five different reasons, it all depends on each user.