The 2022 Technology Predictions report looks at current and future problems and opportunities for the use of technology to address these problems. It also identifies sustainable solutions and business opportunities. One of the predictions is that AI will revolutionize health care, enabling doctors to perform procedures remotely. Another prediction is that cybersecurity of critical infrastructure will be a priority, as well as the medical/biological supply chain. Both of these issues will require new types of cybersecurity measures.
One of the biggest problems with the futurists is that they fail to take into account social changes. For example, in 1966, an article in Time magazine pointed out that remote shopping would not be a reality by the year 2000. Another example is the recent prediction by Microsoft CEO Steve Balmer that the iPhone would not have significant market share. Neither of these predictions have come true. As the world continues to change, so will the role of the human workforce.
A new wave of technology is transforming the world. By 2050, the world economy will grow twice as fast as the population and the EU27’s share of global GDP will fall to ten percent. In 2021, a pandemic will drive adoption of technology in the healthcare industry. In the meantime, everyone over the age of 45 will get a blood test every year, so that early cancer detection can be detected.
By 2026, artificial intelligence will be indistinguishable from human intelligence. It will surpass human intelligence in many areas, but will lag behind humans in creative and emotional fields. In the same timeframe, virtual reality will be widely used by 5% of the US population. It will be used as an alternative to authentic reality, allowing people to experience what they never had access to in the real world. It could even become a substitute for humans in the future.
Aside from this, another technology prediction for our future is that computers would be able to run on a single atom. By 2025, computing power would be equivalent to that of a toaster. In ten years, we could see computers powered by five atoms. The cost of developing small transistors would be cheaper than manufacturing chips. However, as Moore’s Law has been implemented in the past, it will take a long time to reach this point.
AI-driven technologies will help carbon-heavy industries decarbonize. While industries like manufacturing and oil and gas have been slow to adapt to the demands of climate change, regulators want these industries to do more to curb their emissions. Increasingly, technology-enabled initiatives in sectors such as transportation and building have accelerated the decarbonizing efforts. This is a major shift for our future. Our world will be much more advanced than we have imagined.