Here are five innovations — and five risks — businesses should look out for over the next five years.
2022
RISK / Remote work will lead to a 300% increase in ransomware attacks in 2022
It’s official: Remote work and hybrid work are here to stay. According to Cognyte, ransomware attacks nearly doubled in the first half of 2021 when compared with 2020. We expect to see cyber criminals ramp up efforts to take advantage of vulnerabilities introduced by the work-from-home renaissance.
INNOVATION / AI will help leaders manage in the workplace.
With workers staying home, management is more challenging than ever. AI will be used more to oversee employee activities, manage deadlines, update budgets and more. That will free up managers to shift their focus to mentoring employees and driving business outcomes.
RISK / Cyber criminals will ramp up attacks on Fortune 100 companies.
Keeping up with an ever-evolving cyber threat landscape is a full-time challenge. As cyber criminals grow bolder and ransomware attacks continue to see payouts, we expect to see a number of Fortune 100 companies targeted in 2023. Furthermore, we anticipate they’ll meet their attackers’ demands to the tune of billions of dollars in damage.
INNOVATION / Synthetic data will steal the spotlight.
When companies collect and store consumer data, they open themselves up to vulnerabilities and make themselves attractive to cyber attackers. Synthetic data — AI-generated data that acts as a stand-in for consumer data — minimizes the risk of data breaches while keeping consumers safer. By protecting user data privacy, this unlocks many opportunities for data sharing and collaboration on a larger scale in the future.
2023
RISK / Techno-nationalism will snap the digital thread.
The digital thread — a holistic information-sharing network that spans the entirety of the supply chain — will clash head-on with techno-nationalism, which is a line of thinking that holds that a company’s technological progress is tied directly to its national identity. Techno-nationalism will push companies to adopt only national technology and avoid data-sharing with vendors or partners from other countries. As a result, product management will step back from digital enablement and paper trails will make a comeback, particularly in highly regulated industries.
INNOVATION / Quantum computing will find its way into everyday life.
Any real-world problem or process is full of so many variables that the universe of possible outcomes is limitless. Not even a supercomputer can handle so much complexity — but quantum computing can. By 2024, quantum computing will be used to tackle the world’s most complex problems down to the molecular level.
2024
RISK / Non-native technology will cause a major national security incident.
Countries are already beginning to proactively restrict non-native technology in the interests of national security, but we anticipate those actions will kick into high gear after a breach of national security — for example, shutting down a nation’s power grid — is traced back to the use of non-native technology. Such an incident would serve to stoke the flames of techno-nationalism that’s already dividing countries.
INNOVATION / AI will move out of the cloud and onto the chip.
The AI chip market, which has grown steadily over the past several years, will boom over the next several years, with AI chips being used to introduce machine learning into more devices and organizations. At the same time, AI will steadily move off the cloud, minimizing the threat of data breaches and cyber attacks.
2025
RISK / Ransomware attacks will become too advanced for companies to detect.
It’s already challenging for employees to determine what is and isn’t a ransomware attack, and tactics like phishing and vishing have been increasingly successful for bad actors. Further developments will allow ransomware attacks to become virtually indistinguishable from genuine communication, meaning that companies will need to prioritize stopping the attackers from ever reaching employees in the first place.
INNOVATION / The metaverse will gain traction.
The metaverse will go from theory to reality, and everyone will have the option to have a digital life that mirrors their physical life. Furthermore, the physical world will become inextricably intertwined with the digital world, and much of how we work and function in day-to-day life becomes increasingly digital-dependent instead of digital-enabled. For example, more people will have fully digital jobs as opposed to in-person, physical jobs.
2026
2022
2023
2024
2025
2026
RISK / Remote work could lead to a 300% increase in ransomware attacks in 2022.
It’s official: Remote work and hybrid work are here to stay. According to Cognyte, ransomware attacks nearly doubled in the first half of 2021 when compared with 2020. We expect to see cyber criminals ramp up efforts to take advantage of vulnerabilities introduced by the work-from-home renaissance.
INNOVATION / AI will help leaders manage in the workplace.
With workers staying home, management is more challenging than ever. AI will be used more to oversee employee activities, manage deadlines, update budgets and more. That will free up managers to shift their focus to mentoring employees and driving business outcomes.