new opportunities to improve business processes, including training, education, and hiring. For example, trainees can learn in more immersive environments, with information being visualized in much more exciting ways.
The key takeaway here is that XR can help your business turn information into experiences. If you think about it, this has the potential to change pretty much everything, from the way we consume information to the way we interact with others. In the future, then, XR could extend to all aspects of life as we know it – to the point where we could potentially transform the world around us into something personalized, using special glasses, headsets, or even (looking further afield) contact lenses and implants. I believe our experience of the world will increasingly take place in this blurred space between the real world and the digital one. If you think of the time people spend on social media, crafting their online persona, it's clear the line between the digital world and the real one has already become pretty porous. I'm certain XR is going to accelerate this.
And that means we need to find innovative new ways to boost trust in the digital world.
Trend 6: Digital Trust
Digital trust can be defined as the confidence users place in organizations to build a secure digital world, where transactions and interactions can take place safely, securely, and easily. Many believe blockchain and distributed ledger technology will play a central role in raising digital trust and making transactions more secure. (When serving as CEO of IBM, Ginni Rometty said, “What the Internet did for communications, I think blockchain will do for trusted transactions.”)10 This technology already exists, but it has some way to go before it's truly accessible for all organizations. That said, advances in more ubiquitous computing, 5G, edge computing, and cloud computing may combine to make blockchain technology more accessible (for example, by harnessing distributed computing power around the world, instead of having entire server farms dedicated to running just one blockchain).
But let's back up a bit. What exactly is blockchain technology? In very simple terms, it's a super-secure way of storing data. Blockchain promises a practical solution to the problem of storing, authenticating, and protecting data, thereby providing a new way to authenticate information, identities, transactions, and more. This makes blockchain an increasingly attractive tool for industries like banking and insurance, but in fact blockchain can be used to provide a super-secure real-time record of pretty much anything: contracts, supply chain information, even physical assets.
To get a little more technical, a blockchain is a form of open, distributed ledger (i.e., a database), where the data is distributed (i.e., duplicated) across many computers and is typically decentralized. This means there's no one central point of attack for hackers to target – hence why blockchain is so secure.
How does it work? Records in a blockchain are called “blocks” and each block has a time and date stamp, noting when the record was created or updated. Each block is linked to the previous block, thus forming the “chain.” The chain itself can be public (Bitcoin is a prime example of a public blockchain) or private (like a banking blockchain).
What about the difference between blockchain and distributed ledger technology? Although I use “blockchain” as a catchall term here, strictly speaking, the two terms aren't quite interchangeable. A good way to sum up the difference is this: a blockchain is typically open and permissionless, while a distributed ledger tends to be permissioned. Blockchains are generally public, creating a truly decentralized, democratic system where no one body or person is “in charge” (Bitcoin being the perfect example). A distributed ledger, on the other hand, could be private, meaning access is restricted by one centralized body (say, an organization). So a distributed ledger isn't necessarily decentralized and democratic, but it is still distributed and generally far more secure than traditional databases.
Blockchain and distributed ledger technology brings many advantages for businesses: securing data, removing intermediaries, increasing transparency, and supporting super-secure, frictionless, real-time transactions. But there are challenges to overcome – chief of which is how to implement this technology within the constraints of an organization built on legacy technology. The answer may lie in partnering with the many new innovators and entrepreneurs who are making real headway in the blockchain space. According to Deloitte, 45 percent of emerging disrupters have already brought blockchain to production, compared to less than 25 percent of enterprise businesses.11 In other words, fully harnessing blockchain technology may require a complete rethink of operations, rather than trying to bolt this revolutionary technology onto existing systems.
And while we're on the subject of rethinking business processes, we can't ignore the potential for 3D printing to overhaul manufacturing.
Trend 7: 3D Printing
3D printing allows us to rethink how we produce things. It gives manufacturers the ability to make things that simply can't be produced with traditional methods, to streamline the manufacturing process, and easily create highly personalized products (even completely unique one-offs), all while eliminating waste and reducing costs.
Also known as additive manufacturing, 3D printing means creating a 3D object from a digital file, by building it layer upon layer. Traditional manufacturing tends to be a subtractive process, meaning an object is typically cut or hollowed out of its source material, using something like a cutting tool, which is hardly the most efficient way of manufacturing things. 3D printing, on the other hand, is an additive process, meaning you create the object by adding layers upon layers of material, building up until you have the finished object. (If you were to slice a 3D printed object open, you'd be able to see each of the thin layers, a bit like rings in a tree trunk.) So, with 3D printing, you start from nothing and build the object up bit by bit, as opposed to starting with a block of material and cutting or shaping it down into something.
The main benefit of 3D printing is that even complex shapes can be created much more easily, and using less material than traditional manufacturing methods (good for the environment and the bottom line). Transport needs are reduced, since parts and products can be printed onsite; a factory, for example, could 3D print replacement machinery parts rather than having to order and wait for components to be shipped halfway around the world. And one-off items can be made quickly and easily, without worrying about economies of scale, which could be a game-changer for rapid prototyping, custom manufacturing, and creating highly personalized products. What's more, the materials used for 3D printing can be pretty much anything: plastic, metal, powder, concrete, liquid, even chocolate. Even entire houses can be 3D printed. In 2021, a 3D printed house was listed for sale in the US for the first time. Priced at $299,999, and featuring over 1,400 square feet of living space (plus a 750-square-foot garage), the home was 50 percent cheaper than comparable newly constructed homes in the same area.12
As you can imagine, 3D printing has the potential to transform manufacturing, particularly when it comes to the mass personalization of products. As consumers increasingly expect products and services to be uniquely tailored to their needs (see Chapter 12), 3D printing allows manufacturers to customize products and designs to suit one-off requests and orders. So while 3D printing may not seem as exciting as something like AI or storing data on cubes of DNA, I believe it's still a transformative tech trend that companies should be preparing for.
But let's return to the more futuristic and sci-fi end of the tech trend spectrum.
Trend 8: Gene Editing and Synthetic Biology
As Steve Jobs once said, “The
