10 Breakthrough Technologies In 2022
5. The Metaverse
Progressive thinking businesses are already creating spaces in the metaverse — virtual worlds where users come together via avatars to interact with each other and their surroundings. Some even enable its citizens to own virtual assets on the blockchain and trade these publicly as non-fungible tokens (NFTs). Even as the technology for the metaverse is being built, businesses are gearing up for a radical transformation. But given the concept of the metaverse has only recently gained traction in the mainstream, leaders often don’t know how to engage with it. While many consider it all hype from science fiction, it’s important not to dismiss it.
The first step is education. We’re starting to see how more organizations are trying to wrap their head around what’s being done and then look for opportunities to experiment in today’s metaverses. This can include exploring NFTs, leveraging virtual real estate, or buying a virtual reality headset to immerse yourself in these worlds. If your organization doesn’t experiment, you may find yourself behind the ball.
6. Malaria Vaccine
Malaria kills more than 600,000 people a year, most of them children younger than five. A new malaria vaccine approved by the World Health Organization could help save hundreds of thousands of lives every year. It’s also the world’s first vaccine for a parasitic infection.
The World Health Organization endorsed the first-ever malaria vaccine, the protein-based RTS,S/AS01. The four-dose vaccine, advanced by landmark COVID-19 prevention efforts, is a major milestone that scientists have painstakingly worked toward for decades.
7. Synthetic Data For AI
Training AI requires vast amounts of data. Oftentimes, though, that data is messy or reflects real-world biases, or there are privacy concerns around the information included.
The potential benefits of using AI at scale are undeniable. But so are its challenges. A key challenge is embedding trust and transparency into the equation so that we can unlock AI in ways we haven’t done before. Consequentially, there are few mandates or regulations in this space. As well, the cost and effort to provide sufficient assurance for AI applications can be prohibitive, and the fear of public scrutiny and ethical implications has held organizations back from using AI at scale.
Some companies are starting to create and sell synthetic data to avoid these problems. It’s not perfect, but it could be a better way to train AI.
8. Proof Of Stake
Cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin use large amounts of electricity. This is due to the way transactions are verified, which now requires significant computing power, which is encouraging miners to turn to renewable energies and other initiatives to improve sustainability.
Proof of stake offers a way to verify transactions without using so much energy. Ethereum plans to transition to the system this year, cutting energy use by 99.95%. Ethereum is transitioning from a proof-of-work to a proof-of-stake consensus mechanism (Ethereum 2.0).
Proof-of-stake, in which validators must stake to participate offers the potential for improved energy efficiency, particularly as the blockchain is scaled and the transaction throughput is proposed to increase to potentially tens of thousands per second.
9. Low-Code/No-Code Platforms
Over the past year or so, low-code/no-code platforms have become well established. They allow users to easily prototype, iterate and customize applications with little to no experience, making software development happen faster and at a fraction of the cost. They can also serve as an accelerator for large-scale digital transformation projects. These days, many apps are developed by what we call the “iGeneration”. A tech-native cohort of professionals that is well versed in basic programming skills and has an appetite to innovate and create digital tools outside their domain expertise.
Now that this technology is widely available and its benefits have been established, organizations need to make the necessary cultural shift. But this move from a top-down to a bottom-up approach is easier said than done. The democratization of technology changes the dynamics of your organization. Established hierarchies are altered as the balance shifts toward greater agility and cross-functional collaboration. Business and IT functions need to come closer together. While the C-suite needs to get comfortable translating business demands into digital requirements, technology leaders need to demonstrate that their agenda delivers tangible business outcomes. To benefit from the potential of low-code/no-code technology, organizational and cultural change now needs to follow suit with technological advancements.
10. Carbon Removal Factory
Reducing emissions is a key step to mitigating climate change. But it’s not enough, according to the UN. To avoid catastrophic future warming, we must also remove carbon dioxide from the air. The world’s biggest carbon removal factory recently opened in Iceland to do just that.
This is the world’s first and largest factory to capture and convert carbon dioxide from the air into stone. The Orca plant set up by Swiss startup Climeworks AG to reduce the effects of the greenhouse gas on the planet represents a milestone in the direct air capture industry.
In a highly connected world, technology has the potential to revolutionize and reinvent how we do business. As we look forward and prepare for a post-pandemic future, we’re optimistic the latest tech trends can help address some of our most pressing challenges.
Based on industry insights and the demands of the times we have listed the 10 breakthrough technologies in 2022 we hope will make our lives easier and more productive.
