11 Jan Top Tech Trends in 2023
As we welcome a new year, we take a look back at 2022 and look ahead to what’s in store for the top tech trends in 2023.
The world of digital technology is ever changing and we like to keep our finger on the pulse so we can share all the knowledge and some tangible beneficial changes with our customers.
Last year Sure Communication celebrated our 25th year of providing web systems that help businesses do better business.
This year, the Internet celebrates its 40th birthday!
The exact dates around this are a little sketchy, but it is generally taken that its birthday is the 1st of January, 1983.
The technology has existed since the 1960s thanks to network developments by the United States Department of Defence. But it wasn’t until the Internet Protocol (IP) framework was standardised that the networks could become connected worldwide.
This was the turning point that led to the birth of the World Wide Web and the internet as we know and love today.
Of course, the internet has its faults; but where would we all be without it today? Back to the 1980s, we would go. Perhaps not a bad thing; we had better music back then!
2022 tech in review –
The pandemic, the war in Ukraine and climate change have taken a global toll and this has led technology brands to make shifts in their offerings.
One such shift has been by Apple. They have taken note of changes in consumer habits who apparently prefer to hold onto their devices longer.
Sustainability has become more important, which has seen brands use more recycled materials in their products.
Apple has taken note and has made changes to their iPhone 14, which launched in September 2022 in the UK. The latest iPhone model from Apple allows for easier and cheaper repairs.
Not quite the Fairphone 4 with its sustainability offering but it’s a step in the right direction.
Samsung is also taking positive steps toward greater sustainability by recycling old fishing nets to use in their Galaxy products. This move has won them the 2022 SEAL Sustainable Product Award.
Computer tech is also getting a sustainability makeover with the Framework Laptop producing a notebook PC that can easily be repaired and even upgraded by the user.
These developments have been coming for a while now, but it’s really hit home to consumers and brands in 2022 that tech sustainability needs to progress much further and much faster than it has been.
Speaking of the 80s
When science fiction writer Steven Lisberger wrote and directed the film Tron, released in 1982, did he realise he was predicting the future?
We mentioned the Metaverse last year.
This virtual reality has a long way to go but it has made an interesting start with stars like Snoop Dogg, Paris Hilton and Prince Harry all showing an interest in this brave new virtual world.
According to Beyond Games, some celebrities are now creating their own virtual worlds via gaming and NFT platforms such as The Sandbox and Roblox, and Justin Beiber gave a virtual concert on the Wave platform.
It remains to be seen where this will all lead. But what once seemed like a wacky idea that will “never take on” can often end up changing future generations’ lives; for the better, who knows?
We talk more about the 2023 Metaverse developments below.
Looking ahead to tech in 2023
Auto automation has been around for some time now but industry watchers predict this will become even more popular this year.
Autonomous vehicles not only provide driver comfort, convenience and efficiency, but they also help to improve safety.
Self driving cars for the mainstream are still some way off. Still, the investment being made in autonomous vehicle technology developments is driving (pardon the pun) consumer interest and increasing demand.
Self parking capabilities are now a feature in several well known car brands.
This clever technology goes beyond the well known parking sensor tech seen in most cars and can now literally parallel park the car without the driver being involved.
Mercedes, Volkswagen, BMW and a car brand one would expect to have this level of autonomous tech; Tesla.
The auto parking tech ‘Active Park Assist’ can even find a suitable spot to slip into. Some luxury car brands go one step further with a remote control feature on the key or app.
Autonomous vehicles are also helping in the fight against climate change because they can help reduce CO2 emissions by improving fuel efficiency.
It’s easy to see why autonomous tech is a key focus for the auto industry in 2023. With greater investment, these ‘smart’ cars will no doubt become self-driving cars in less time than expected.
Perhaps with this slower transition, self driving cars won’t seem such an alien concept as they did just a few years ago.
Will this remove the joy of taking to the open road?
Perhaps in some vehicles, yes.
Auto brands such as Morgan Motor Company are managing to retain that classic drive experience whilst improving the tech spec.
By including drive enhancing tech such as gearbox calibrations, electronic stability control and Sennheiser audio technology into their Plus model classic sports cars, they are able to perfectly marry classic with modern.
Autonomous everything
There may indeed come a point where we will no longer need to do anything ourselves. 2023 may be the birth of this period in time.
Autonomous tech will be used in self driving transportation, delivery drones, and warehouses will all embrace it, even more, this year.
Brands such as Ocado have already invested heavily in automation within their warehouses. The autonomous robots can select products, lift and distribute them ready for packing and delivery. This has proven so successful that the Ocado company is sharing their technology with other retailers.
Artificial Intelligence (AI) everywhere
We have been informing on AI for a while now. 2023 will see AI used in far more places than it ever has before.
AI is now breaking free from its perceived mould and is starting to be utilised by companies and organisations everywhere.
This is because of the latest developments in drag and drop AI which requires no coding to get the benefits of machine learning. Meaning businesses can create products and services that contain far more intelligence than ever before.
The ecommerce and retail sectors are using this algorithm approach to provide their customers with a more tailored shopping experience.
Many consumers will also have noticed changes in how their favourite brands provide deliveries and refunds during this festive period.
Retail brands are also using AI to help make these usually time consuming processes more autonomous and contactless.
This is just the beginning with these tech developments and we may very rapidly expect this to be the norm and wonder how we ever survived any other way!
Remote working in the digital office
The Metaverse (as we mentioned above) is still very much in development. That said; one area it is making sense and being developed with real tangible benefit is the digital working environment.
Consider how few people knew the benefits of Zoom prior to the pandemic. It already existed for many work people but not on the same level it did during the lockdown’s.
This may be one of those things that people don’t realise they need in their lives until they start using it.
Immersive meetings have the potential to become a ‘thing’ in 2023. That’s because companies such as Microsoft are developing their own metaverse platforms which will create online environments for people to work immersively and collaboratively together.
Avatar… not just for the movies
Imagine pitching up to work in the office without physically moving from the desk at home. Of course, we can do this on a 2D version already.
But the development of Avatar technology will mean users can create a digital version of themselves and interact with others within that online environment.
Where the digital world replicates the real world.
Some companies have already adopted the use of AR and VR in their recruiting, onboarding and training processes.
As the benefits become known to a wider audience, it is likely that more companies will embrace these evolving technologies and dip a digital toe into the metaverse.
Using digital to enhance the physical
We’re not talking Weird Science here. We’re still focused on the auto industry.
Formula 1 is leading the way in the use of 3D and more companies are likely to follow suit in this smart way to save time and money.
By creating a digital concept of a physical process or product, teams are able to work in an agile environment using real world data to test new concepts and make instant alterations and improvements.
Formula 1 teams are using this prototyping technology to be able to create 3d printed versions of the digital twin, helping them achieve lighter and faster physical models.
Imagine if this was taken one step further and that collaboration was done with engineers within a digital metaverse workshop.
Web3 – The future of the internet
Web3 first came to light in 2014 when blockchain founders referred to a decentralised online ecosystem. It has since been gaining ground and in 2021 really started to get the attention of a wider audience.
Web3 is considered to be the third generation of the internet. This means that websites and apps will use Artificial Intelligence (AI) to process the flow of information via a web of computers, rather than a central one.
Setting the internet free from its current constraints.
While the two can certainly interact and work together in harmony, the metaverse is not the same as Web3 or the third generation of the World Wide Web (WWW) as it is also known.
The metaverse is essentially a virtual reality online world using human interface, creator economy, connectivity and decentralisation technologies.
Whereas Web3 uses blockchain, cryptocurrency, NFTs (non-fungible tokens), DeFi (decentralised finance) and DAOs (decentralised autonomous organisations) technology.
Together these have the potential to help businesses reach new audiences, create new ways to interact with customers and vastly increase revenue.
AI enhancing CRM capabilities
CRM has always been an important business tool.
We should know, we developed our very own CRM that has the capabilities of being enhanced for any type of individual business needs.
Including AI inside a CRM is like giving it steroids. It increases the power of its capabilities and the benefits to any business.
It does this by increasing deep learning abilities well beyond what any human can achieve. Using predictive analysis and mining data, the CRM can make intelligent recommendations about the data held within.
An example of this is to take the data from SureCo bespoke designed Sales Portal created for the Morgan Motor Group and the manufacturing system (IFS) and include all of the contact channels/touchpoints within.
The goal of this was to produce an engagement score for each contact record, based on their interactions with the various departments of the company.
This real time insight is then regularly delivered in a report to action or follow up by the sales and marketing teams.
By incorporating AI technologies within the CRM, we have been able to create unique algorithms for companies within the auto, car insurance and asset management industries, to name a few.
Technology is ever evolving, so we evolve with it to bring our clients the very best tech solutions to help their businesses thrive.
Final thoughts
Tech trends are ever evolving. It would impossible for us to cover everything here. We hope this has provided an interesting snap shot of the top tech trends for this year.
2023 could see some exciting new developments and we’ll be sure to report on that this time next year.
Perhaps there’s food for thought in how some of these technological developments could help enhance your business.
We would be delighted to discuss these with you in more detail. Please get in touch if we can be of any help in enhancing your online presence and security.