There’s nothing new about the term digital transformation. It feels like it has been around forever. What is new, however, is the perception of its applicability in business.
We recently examined a report in this area and wanted to provide a brief synopsis.
Specifically, new insight from research group Omdia identified the following digital transformation trends for 2022:
The emergence of AI/ML at the Edge
Machine learning (ML)-based analytics is expanding from its traditional home in the cloud/data center- and mobile-based applications to the IoT edge. This enables more granular, personalized, and context-specific analysis based and enables analysis of more complex types of data, such as audio, images, and video.
Growing accountability in AI
There are a growing number of enterprises embracing ethical AI and actively governing their AI implementations. This is being supported by expanded use of tools and services to include bias detection and explainability to increased audits and certifications.
“We need to do it ourselves – to hold our AI and our organizations accountable by making the right choices every single day,” said Natalia Modjeska, Director of the Omdia AI Research team. That’s “because what we choose matters, no matter how small these choices may appear. Together, they create the future – for us, for our children, and for generations to come. We need to act responsibly.”
Quantum is moving beyond the hype
The quantum computing market is slowly entering a phase of commercial development. In addition to a range of technological achievements, other factors contributing to this development are greater amounts of financial investment into the market, increased focus on near term use cases that include launch of specific pilot programs and expanding partnerships between research centers/centers of excellence and QC hardware and software vendors.
“The Quantum Computing market is maturing. It’s clear that organizations are allocating resources to a wide range of potential use cases. in which QC can address specific challenges that cannot be overcome via traditional computing methods. We expect momentum and investment in this area to accelerate in 2022,” said Principal Analyst, Sam Lucero.
Among the key issues cited were the move of machine learning-based analytics applications to the IoT edge, increased focus on ethical AI from enterprises, and quantum computing’s evolution into a phase of commercial development.
Jenalea Howell, Vice President, AI & IoT Markets at Informa Tech, summarized her thoughts on the findings as follows: “As we enter 2022, we are living in a world that increasingly revolves around data, a movement that is being enabled and supported by technologies such as AI, IoT and Quantum Computing. The pandemic created a unique environment in which the adoption of these technologies was viewed as essential by enterprises across a wide range of industries. Whether automotive, healthcare, or manufacturing we have seen more projects powered by these transformative technologies move forward than seen in the past.”
Howell also notes that the greatest influence is typically seen when transformative technologies come together. “Individually, technologies such AI and IoT are valuable. But their convergence is what turn what were once simple solutions into complex, truly impactful offerings that will alter businesses for years to come.”