A report by Forrester on Tuesday identified ten technologies that every company should be aware of.
The 30-page document identified four technologies which are predicted to be beneficial to companies on a short-term basis, four that are predicted to benefit them in the mid-term and two for the long run.
The report explains each trend’s potential benefits, business value, key use cases, examples where it is being used and its risks.
The following technologies are short-term:
- Generative AI for Visual Content
- Gen AI for language;
- IoT Security;
- TuringBots is a software development tool that uses AI.
The mid-term technology includes:
- AI agents
- Autonomous Mobility;
- Edge Intelligence; and
- Quantum security.
Long-term tech includes:
- Extended Reality (XR)
- Zero Trust Edge is a networking and security solution that can only be provided by one vendor.
Creativity Accelerant
Forrester believes that gen AI will be the best option for creatives and marketers. The technology will speed up creativity. Global companies that manage brands and portfolios of brands will see the biggest benefits.
These benefits are not without risks. They include distorted images in the visual output, unintentional likenesses of celebrities, inaccurate images and legal liability for copyright infringements.
Aaron J. Rafferty is the founder of Tech Buzz in San Jose, Calif. StandardDAOA community of digital content owners in Mountain View (Calif.) explained what benefits Gen AI can bring.
TechNewsWorld reported that he said “What used to be a ten-step process can now be done in just one.”
“Simply create a long-form piece of video content, and it is automatically clipped into the top and most viral short-form videos, redone by AI personas that are most applicable to consumer types/ethnicities/genders, republished in multiple languages, and even reproduced for viral text via newsletters, threads, or short-form social media posts across all channels,” he said.
He added, “The most talented creators will focus their efforts on improving the quality of their content and shrink their teams.” “Their distribution networks will multiply overnight.”
Customer Service Blow
Forrester also expressed optimism about the gen AI for languages, which they predict will transform knowledge work. One of the areas where it will have an immediate impact is customer service — where its ability to extract and retrieve knowledge from unstructured data allows high volumes of inquiries to be handled without the cost of adding staff.
Rafferty noted that the disruption of customer service was already occurring in service industries. Klarna’s costs have been reduced dramatically [its] Headcount and tens millions of expenses. It is as simple as creating a call agent or chatbot that understands your company, and improves over time by handling customer issues and requests.
Forrester stated that gen AI can provide immediate benefits for limited use cases. However, the company acknowledged a low level of trust in this technology. Some of these large models are black boxes. Zeid Khater is a Forrester customer data and analytics analysts and one of 20 authors who contributed to the report.
He told TechNewsWorld that “trust is growing and will continue to grow” as we become more familiar with the technology. Like most technologies, it has its advantages and disadvantages. Knowing the limitations will help you decide where to place your trust.
“But for sensitive decisions, I don’t think AI will become the be-all-and-end-all until we create explainability frameworks which are themselves reliable to a large degree,” he said.
IoT Security is Growing in Importance
It was noted in the report that IoT Security is a trend, as it evolves to protect important data and devices. It explained how IoT security can help reduce the risks of data compromise and increase the value of edge technology. These devices are not protected by traditional endpoint security or attack surface management.
Krishna Vishnubhotla is the VP for product strategy at ZimperiumThe company is based in Dallas.
TechNewsWorld reported that with the increased connectivity of IoT devices, mobile devices included, could be an entry point to cyberthreats. “Securing IoT devices and mobile devices with robust security is crucial to protecting sensitive data and maintaining the integrity of networks.”
John Gallagher is vice president for Viakoo Labs in Mountain View (California), an enterprise IoT-security company, has explained that IoT presents a rapidly increasing attack surface.
TechNewsWorld reported that “securing vulnerable IoT device is critical for enterprises.” “Breaked IoT devices have devastating impacts such as ransomware and data loss. They can also change the chemical balance of municipal water supplies, replace real camera footage with fakes, or disrupt transportation systems.
Richard Stiennon is the founder and chief researcher of IT-HarvestA cybersecurity industry analyst company in Birmingham, Mich.
TechNewsWorld reported that “in the case of IoT,” the recent revelations regarding China’s persistence in infiltrating control systems has improved IoT safety.
He continued, “The number connected devices is growing every day.” It should not be a surprise to anyone that the number of attacks on these devices is increasing.
Cryptographic Landscape Uprooted
Forrester predicted in its report that quantum security — which uses quantum mechanics principles and quantum-resistant algorithms to perform cryptographic tasks or secure communications — will uproot the current encryption and identity-and-access-management landscape.
Stiennon said that the word “uproot” was too strong. Quantum computing is years away. We are about at the stage of the first transistor — 1947 — relative to the first computer using semiconductors.”
“That said,” he added, “it is a good idea for organizations to organize their encryption keys.” They can also create a plan for the long-term transition to quantum-safe encryption while they’re at it.
Duncan Jones, the head of cybersecurity for QuantinuumA company that produces hardware and software for quantum computing. TechNewsWorld reported that “quantum computing will completely disrupt cybersecurity”. “Every inch in cyberspace will be affected.”
But it’s still not all bad,” he said. “Although quantum computers in the future will be able to break many encryptions systems, we can use quantum technology now to strengthen systems. This can be done by hardening the keys using quantum randomness. We will see quantum in the future as a tool for cybersecurity, not a danger.
