2020 Top 7 Technology Trends to Watch

Internet of Things (IoT)

IoT is simply the network of interconnected things or devices which are embedded with sensors, software, network connectivity and necessary electronics that enables them to collect and exchange data making them responsive. IoT is hot but there are not as many mainstream applications today as some predicted.

We anticipate that with 5G, the number of connected devices and mainstream IoT applications will reach scale. Amazon recently launched Amazon Go, a system that uses IoT and machine vision technologies to enable consumers to shop without manual check out. Startups Standard Cognition, Accel Robotics, and AiFi provide similar services as Amazon Go.

Evolution of aerospace technologies

Mankind will begin its return to space in 2020, largely driven by the private sector. Since the Cold War, technological advances have slowed. Notable companies now making aerospace advancements include SpaceX and Blue Origin.

Increased demand for edge computing processing power

2020 will see the need for higher performance from edge computing hardware since better sensors and larger AI models now enable a host of new applications. There is a growing need to infer more data and then make decisions without sending data to the cloud. Chip startups SambaNova, Graphcore.

Evolution in Agriculture – Technology

In agriculture, companies that offer products using computer vision, AI, and big data stand out. In 2020, it will become common to monitor crop growth by computer vision Ceres Imaging, Taranis, Farmwise. Robots, such as those by Abundant Robotics, that harvest plants and fruits will become more common.

Autonomous Driving Technology

Autonomous driving is already a hot topic, although level 5 (fully autonomous) has not been realized. Some Tesla cars can be switched to autopilot mode on the highway, but this is only possible up to level 2 (driving support) or level 3 (operated by the driver in an emergency).

Deployment of 5G internet technology

5G competition between the U.S. and China is entering the main stage in 2020. There will be a new competition about who can propel 5G faster into mass consumer use.

Another hot topic is the Starlink Broadband business planned by SpaceX. Until 2020, as many as 2,500 satellites will be launched. This marks a new era of broadband Internet for some users in North America.

Evolution of health care Under the theme of prevention, digital health care has seen much innovation. In the U.S., startups 23andMe and Color lead in genome analysis, while Genesis Healthcare stands out in Japan and Genoplan in Korea. These companies use genomic analysis to learn of diseases and provide prevention methods.