McKinsey tech analysis pinpoints growth in AI and renewables
A new report from the McKinsey Technology Council has identified 15 leading technology trends. After the round of job cuts in the tech sector last year, longer-term prospects look brighter
What are the top technology trends coming onto the radar of business organisations around the world in 2024? A new analysis by the McKinsey Technology Council has identified 15 tech trends that are set to transform the commercial world. Several have potential application and impact in workplace strategy and office real estate.
According to McKinsey’s report authors Lareina Yee, Michael Chui, Roger Roberts and Mena Issler, the standout technologies this year are Generative AI and electrification and renewables. Both show a marked uptick in interest and investment, bucking tough economic headwinds to point to a brighter future for tech innovation.
Upbeat about prospects
While acknowledging downturns in investment and job cuts in the tech industry last year, the report is generally upbeat about the overall prospects for the sector. Enterprise firms, says McKinsey, are being strategic in their investments and ‘recognise that fully adopting and scaling cutting-edge technologies is a long-term endeavour’.
The analysis does, however, point to a ‘wide skills gap’ between what job candidates in the tech sector can offer and what high-end tech roles demand.
The 15 leading technology trends are grouped in five baskets:
- The AI revolution: Generative AI; Applied AI; Industrialising machine learning
- Building the digital future: Next-generation software development; Digital trust and cybersecurity
- Compute and connectivity frontiers: Advanced connectivity; Immersive-reality technologies; Cloud and edge computing; Quantum technologies
- Cutting edge engineering: Future of robotics; Future of mobility; Future of bioengineering; Future of space technologies
- A sustainable world: Electrification and renewables; Climate technologies
Read an expanded extract from the McKinsey Technology Trends Outlook 2024 report in WORKTECH Academy’s Innovation Zone offering premium content for members and partners here.
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