What are the top tech trends in 2023?

The late American economist Peter Drucker once said that “trying to predict the future is like driving down a farm road at night with no lights, while looking out the back window,” where the future is a mystery.

In terms of anticipating new trends in technology, it can be said that change is happening very quickly, with 2022 seeing an even greater shift towards automation. But for those who follow the latest developments in innovation, we could see even more patterns and technologies as 2023 begins.

In this context, CNN asked four experts to predict the technologies that will shape our lives this year. Here are the highlights of their responses.

Artificial intelligence

Artificial intelligence (AI) has become part of our current reality, and is present in every aspect of daily life, from e-commerce to social media algorithms.

 Ayesha Khanna, co-founder and CEO of Addo, an AI and data solutions company, predicts that there will be a huge increase in AI-generated photos and music in 2023. She adds that although AI will not replace... Humans, but it will become a new member to assist humanity in many functions.”

Expects future author Bernard Marr, author of the book “Future Skills: The 20 Skills and Competencies Everyone Needs to Succeed in a Digital World”The focus of artificial intelligence this year will be on “increasing workers, as new tools are available to enable the workforce to fully benefit from artificial intelligence.”

But Khanna warns that more work will be needed to ensure Copilot's generative AI technologies are accurate and unbiased, especially in fields like healthcare, where there are serious consequences if an AI-powered virtual assistant makes a doctor's recommendation. With the wrong treatment.

Metaverse

The metaverse is a huge social network that includes a combination of virtual reality (VR), augmented reality (AR), mixed reality (MR), and 3D environments, in addition to artificial intelligence technologies, to be interacted with in real time, effectively and continuously, with unlimited numbers participating. From people around the world, it provides a real immersion environment for users and a real feeling, and real virtual communication in environments that are completely similar to the environments in reality, and in which different types of transactions take place such as communications, payment, etc. 

Khanna pointed out that Meta, which was formerly known as Facebook, has incurred billions of dollars in losses in its efforts in the field of metaverse technology, but the idea of spending time in virtual Internet worlds has become part of the consciousness. year, and is scheduled to increase in 2023. 

“Retail and entertainment companies will increasingly launch pilot programs on how to build customer engagement and loyalty at various scales, especially gaming platforms like Roblox,” she says.

Mar points out that more small companies will join larger organizations that have already established “outposts” on metaverse platforms. “Metaverse technology will also become more portable and accessible through devices such as headphones and smart glasses, and companies will be forced to think about how to leverage these opportunities to create immersive and effective experiences,” he says. 

Sustainability Tech

says Abishwar Prakash, co-founder and geopolitical futurist at the Center for Future Innovation (CIF) in Toronto and author of “The World is Vertical: How Technology is Reshaping Globalization”“The entire field of sustainability, supported by technologies, will play a huge role in 2023.” He adds: “In 2023, clean energy projects, such as those transporting solar-generated electricity from Africa to Europe, will advance, adding a new dimension to the global energy war.”

Cynthia Selin, a professor at Arizona State University, believes that in 2023, amid the promotion of renewable energy sources, short-term and long-term energy storage such as batteries and hydrogen will be key.

“Continued investment and favorable policy conditions...mean that clean hydrogen (including hydrogen made using renewable energy) can see sustainable growth, development of the necessary infrastructure, and better cost competitiveness,” says Celine. She also believes carbon capture and storage – removing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and storing it – will also become increasingly important.

Semiconductors industry and self-reliance

Prakash predicts that the war in Ukraine will usher in a new era of geopolitics and globalization, adding: “The quest for self-reliance, a catalyst for vertical globalization – the emergence of geopolitical blocs based on technology dominance – will accelerate in 2023, and will affect every aspect of technology.” .

“Automakers in China are buying their own ships to export their cars to the world,” he says, and points to Apple’s plans to move production outside China.

Prakash points to another trend: the struggle over semiconductors that power our smartphones, computers, cars and home appliances. He says, “Semiconductors may turn global affairs in 2023 and become an area of competition between the United States and China.”

Internet of Things (IoT)

The Internet of Things (IoT) refers to a set of connected devices and technological means that facilitate communication between devices and the cloud, as well as between the devices themselves. Thanks to the advent of affordable computer chips and high-bandwidth communications, we now have billions of devices connected to the Internet.

Celine believes that the Internet of Things will continue to bring changes to the energy sector in 2023. “Smart thermostats to track energy consumption and regulate temperatures help reduce energy consumption and costs,” she says. “More devices are coming to the market that use smart sensors and data-driven intelligence to inform energy choices and increase energy efficiency.”

Marr expects that 2023 will witness a rise in Internet of Things products and services related to health and well-being, “with devices such as smart watches that offer advanced sensors to monitor various health indicators.”

He adds that there will be a focus on “enabling more complex interactions between machines by developing global standards and protocols that devices can use to communicate with each other, in addition to improving the security architecture of the Internet of Things to prevent attacks.”