Deloitte reveals five biggest tech predictions for 2020
Deloitte has announced its technology, media and telecommunications (TMT) predictions for 2020. For 19 years, Deloitte has been providing an outlook on key trends in the TMT sectors. This year, the multinational professional services network forecast advancements in the smartphone multiplier market, industrial 5G, and enterprise robots.
A smarter smartphone
It predicts that the smartphone multiplier market, which includes hardware, content, services, ringtones and mobile apps, will drive an estimated €412 billion in revenue this year. Further, it predicts a five to 10% annual growth rate through 2023.
“Deloitte research shows that 91% of Irish people own a smartphone,” said Daryl Hanberry, head of technology, media and telecommunications at Deloitte Ireland. “While ownership ownership rates may be approaching a ceiling, the smartphone economy is just getting started and it is an industry brimming with potential. From earbuds to mobile apps or business storage, we see the multiplier market across hardware, content and services to be a large revenue driver in 2020.”
Industrial 5G
Deloitte predicts that more than 100 companies will evaluate or deploy 5G in industrial environments such as factories, ports and logistics centres by the end of the year. Hanberry said; “5G is poised to be the most disruptive mobile technology since the mobile phone itself. The way we work fundamentally changed by the launch of 4G and Wi-Fi. 5G will bring a similar transformation to the connectivity of machines and devices, delivering a boost to productivity in factories and warehouses, in particular.”
Man and machine
One million robots will be sold for enterprise use worldwide in 2020, according to Deloitte. It expects that roughly 50% of these will be professional service robots and will generate €14 billion in revenue – a 30% increase on 2019. It anticipates that industrial robots will account for €16 billion in 2020, a 9% year-on-year increase.
Pedal power
The number of people who cycle to work will grow by 1% over the next three years, which Deloitte said equates to tens of billions of additional bike rides. This growth goes hand-in-hand with the launch of e-bikes, it said. Between 2020 and 2023, Deloitte expects to see 130 million e-bikes sold globally. This boom will help cities to manage the strains of urbanisation, it said.
Not only are e-bikes less arduous than traditional bikes, but thanks to technology innovations such as predictive analytics, wireless connectivity, digital urban planning tools and 3D-printed parts, they make cycling safer, faster, and easier to track.
“Improvements in lithium ion battery technology, pricing, and power has led to a significant surge in interest globally,” said Hanberry. “The number of e-bikes on the roads worldwide will easily outpace other e-vehicles by the end of next year.”
Audiobooks and podcasts
Deloitte also predicts that podcasts and audiobooks will experience a boom in 2020. It expects the global podcasting market to increase by 30% this year, to just under €1 billion, and that the audiobook market will grow by 25% and surpass €3 billion.
Deloitte drew these predictions from thousands of conversations with member firm clients, industry analysts, leading executive from around the world and contributions from Deloitte member firms’ partners and managers specialising in TMT.
Commenting on the year’s predictions, Hanberry said: “In 2020, we will start to see a canopy effect where industry players will work more closely together as individual technologies like edge AI chips, robots and private 5G become better connected, and promising innovations like low-earth orbit satellites finally come to life.”
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