On the 29th of December 2017, The Atlantic published an article – “8 Overly Confident, Mostly Pessimistic Predictions About Tech in 2018.” Soon after this article was published, it sparked a debate in the technology domain worldwide with its rather pessimistic technology trend predictions for 2018.
In the article, staff writer – Alexis C. Madrigal reveals that 2017 was a rather strange year for technology companies. According to the article, technology companies were able to boost their share prices without having to add much value to the lives of users. The big five in the technology domain including Google, Apple, Facebook, Amazon and Microsoft increased their share value by more than 33%, and tier 2 tech companies such as Autodesk, HP, Intel, Dell, Salesforce, Oracle, and Adobe were also able to optimize and increase their share value by over 25%.
Online media sources cited industry insiders and experts stating that the technology industry’s worldwide boom, undergoing massive changes, over the decades. Many industry insiders believe that most of the trends, outlined in the Atlantic article, came to the fore in 2017 and are likely to disrupt the technology industry. These trends are likely to bring a substantial shift in the industry in 2018 (and beyond).
Let’s take a closer look at just some of those tech trends.
Trend #1: Tech Companies will Continue to Make Profits
One of the major tech predictions is that more tech businesses will continue to grow stronger and make more profits in 2018 and beyond. This is despite the fact that technology companies have been losing out on their reputation and have been negatively impacting the labor market worldwide. Technological advancements are likely to accelerate further making users even more dependent, generating more profits for the technology companies.
Trend #2: Artificial Intelligence will Make Media Less Trustworthy
Madrigal points to the increasing impact of artificial intelligence techniques on the mainstream media. With artificial intelligence techniques such as ‘Neural’ networks, it is easier than ever to doctor archived video and audios instigating a series of fake news and controversies, creating a state of confusion and chaos. This is likely to make mainstream media even less trustworthy in 2018 and beyond.
Trend #3: Rise of Battery Powered Vehicles
2017 brought a dramatic surge in the number of battery powered vehicles. The relatively lower cost, increased efficiency, and greater safety quotient further added to the popularity of these battery operated vehicles. It is likely that these battery operated vehicles will evolve with more intelligence backed in them in 2018 and beyond.
Trend #4: Facebook will Stop Trending News Feature
In 2014, Facebook got into the news business. The social media giant started its breaking and current news feature where they collaborated with media sites, sending torrents of traffic to these sites. However, Facebook has been strategically trying to pull back this feature. The claim was made evident by many online news publishers that reported to have experienced a dramatic slump in facebook referral traffic.
Facebook has revealed that the idea behind the move is to ensure greater control for users by emphasizing posts shared by users on trending new topics. It is thought that Facebook may completely stop this feature in 2018.
Trend #5: Cameras will become an Essential Part of More Devices
Another trend likely to make waves in 2018 is the focus on the use of cameras in increasingly more devices. Over the years, manufacturers have turned cameras into an essential component of a large number of products including doorbells and baby monitors. It is expected that manufacturers will install high-tech cameras with artificial intelligence software into devices to ensure low-level intelligence for machines rather than humans.
Conclusion
These are just some of many tech trends that are likely to continue making news in 2018 and beyond. But that’s just a part of the story; talking about The Atlantic predictions, tech experts at Packagor, a popular trending news publication, suggests that cryptocurrencies, augmented reality, and autonomous vehicles will be the trends that will dominate in 2018 (and beyond).
Though it is really difficult to say which of these trends will evolve and outlast the rest, one thing is clear – there are enough surprises packed in the cusp of 2018 for both technology experts and end-users.
