Four Emerging Technologies for Business Use

Technology is taking on a new responsibility for today's business. With more value placed on data, and contemporary innovations offering viable options for business use, technology is now front and center for many companies. Below let's review four of the most emerging technologies and how organizations are beginning to utilize them.

Artificial Intelligence

AI implementation is en vogue right now, and if the results are any sign, the technology isn’t disappearing anytime soon. Like humans, as machines get smarter they can accomplish more; but, unlike humans, machines don’t suffer from emotional value determinations. Whether you look at this as a positive or negative trait will depend on whether or not your business is looking to put it to work for you. Here are a few ways companies will deploy AI:

• Processing large amounts of data
• Personalizing customer experiences
• Operational automation
• Security
• Predicting demand
• And more

With organizations that are suffering from what are typically expensive operational problems fueling demand for AI-integrated business solutions, the market for these solutions is increasing rapidly. The more businesses that understand how beneficial automation is, the higher the demand there is going to be for artificial intelligence.

Blockchain

Blockchain has been in the news for the past couple years, usually in the cryptocurrency conversation. Blockchain is a public ledger that’s distributed rather than centralized. Each “block” stores all the digital pieces of relevant information about a transaction. Once the data is captured it can’t be changed. This provides significant data security benefits.

With the inherent security that the blockchain offers many organizations have been looking for ways to create applications using a more distributed system. As more people work with blockchain, more is known about it; and, as a result, there isn’t a lot of energy expended trying to do superhuman things with the technology. Instead, more blockchain-related tools are being designed to help businesses. Blockchain is being utilized in various ways, including:

• Managing supply chains
• Identity management
• Recordkeeping & archiving
• Data security
• And more

Blockchain is so popular among application developers that Oracle’s head of blockchain development said that half of businesses will be using some type of blockchain tool in the next three years.

5G

Wireless broadband access has significantly altered the way people use technology. In the 40 years that wireless has been offered the standard has gone from wireless capabilities of 2.5 Kbs to over 100 Mb/s, but in the next couple of years that standard will be dwarfed by the deployment of 5G. 5G Wireless is set to be introduced in 2019, and it should completely change the world.

With data speeds of 1 Gb/s and higher, companies will gain the following benefits:

• Faster speeds
• Reduced Latency
• Greater Capacity
• Improved Battery Life
• And more

Innovation will speed up and business will move faster than ever. Also, new industries will present themselves as technology is developed. In fact, a study by Qualcomm found that once 5G is completely implemented it will become a “general purpose technology” on par with electricity and the automobile.

Virtual Reality

If you polled 100 people, the prevailing sentiment around virtual reality would probably be that it is cool, but as a technology, it is a novelty. Nothing could be further from the truth. With advances in both hardware and software, virtual reality is set to change the way people see the world. For business use, the applications available from the integration of virtual reality are virtually limitless.

With its current novelty status, it is now a popular technology utilized by businesses to market their products. VR provides unprecedented immersion and by creating virtual spaces that permit potential customers to virtually experience the use of products and create a more emotional connection. As the technology becomes more prevalent, you will begin to see it used for training, talent management, product design, and shared experience.

Emerging technologies play a significant role of a forward business strategy, and with the myriad of new technologies just now coming to market, that position will continue. What do you think about these technologies? Would your organization utilize them to move your business forward? Leave your thoughts in the comments section below.