UPDATED 00:53 EDT / OCTOBER 19 2016

NEWS

AI, machine learning top Gartner’s 10 tech trends in 2017

Advanced machine learning, artificial intelligence and data science will be among the top new technologies shaping business trends through 2017 and beyond, according to analyst firm Gartner Inc.

The research firm presented its “Top Ten Strategic Technology Trends for 2017” at the Gartner Symposium/Itxpo in Orlando, Fl., this week. It said it expects to see “intelligence everywhere” permeate through the enterprise IT landscape in the next three to five years, in the shape of new software-based systems that are programmed to learn and adapt.

David Cearley, Gartner vice president and fellow, said these intelligent trends will intertwine to create a “digital mesh” that blurs the boundary between digital and physical workspaces.

Here’s a rundown of Gartner’s top 10 trends:

1. Artificial intelligence and advanced machine learning

Gartner predicts AI will become “the next battleground through 2020,” and we’ve already seen the battle lines being drawn with companies like Google, Microsoft and IBM all advancing their own machine learning algorithms via the open-source community, while Salesforce.com Inc. recently introduced its own Einstein platform to underpin its services. Gartner says AI and machine learning are composed of many technologies and techniques, such as deep learning, neural networks, natural-language processing, which will trigger autonomous systems that can be programmed to operate independently of humans, allowing IT to go deeper and do more.

2. Intelligent applications

Things such as chatbots, virtual assistants and “smart advisors,” which Gartner describes as enterprise versions of tools like Siri and Alexa aimed at specific tasks and verticals. IBM’s virtual health care assistant powered by Watson, which has memorized most of the world’s medical journals and texts, is an example of this.

3. Intelligent things

Autonomous cars, drones and robots are the best examples of how physical automation will reach new heights, powered by technologies such as AI and machine learning.

4. Virtual reality and augmented reality

Surprisingly, Gartner reckons VR and AR will take off in the enterprise first, ahead of the consumer market.

“The landscape of immersive consumer and business content and applications will evolve dramatically through 2021,” Cearley said. “VR and AR capabilities will merge with the digital mesh to form a more seamless system of devices capable of orchestrating a flow of information that comes to the user as hyperpersonalized and relevant apps and services. Integration across multiple mobile, wearable, Internet of Things (IoT) and sensor-rich environments will extend immersive applications beyond isolated and single-person experiences. Rooms and spaces will become active with things, and their connection through the mesh will appear and work in conjunction with immersive virtual worlds.”

5. Digital twins

A previously unheard of concept which Gartner defines as “a dynamic software model of a thing or system that relies on sensor and/or other data to understand its state, respond to changes, improve operations and add value.” Basically, Gartner is referring to the integration of things such as analytics, condition/state, event data and metadata to build event-driven systems.

6. Blockchains and distributed ledgers

Awareness of the Blockchain has been growing for some time, and Gartner says it will soon have massive implications for the global finance system, powering distributed ledgers and supply chains, among other things.

However, Gartner says it could have much wider implications on society, with potential applications in music distribution, identity verification, title registry and more.

7. Conversational systems

Enterprise is already feeling the impact of AI assistants like IBM’s Watson health care tool, but Gartner says these systems will become more “conversational.” Powered by machine learning and AI, such systems will learn how to adapt to humans and vice versa.

8. Mesh app and service architecture

Here, Gartner is referring to the new app and service model in the enterprise, which it says will be hosted in the cloud, serverless, service-oriented, event-driven and software-defined.

9. Digital technology platforms

In the coming years, IT departments will attempt to build “digital technology platforms” that provide the basic building blocks and become a critical enabler for digital business. Gartner believes five major focal points will enable the new capabilities and business models of digital business, including information systems, customer experience, analytics and intelligence, the IoT, and business ecosystems. It says that organization will have some mix of these five digital technology platforms in the near future.

10. Adaptive security architecture

As intelligent systems permeate through the enterprise, and organizations will need to embed security systems earlier and more deeply into their architectures, Gartner says. Technologies such as AI and machine learning will play an increasingly important role in making security systems more dynamic and adaptive.

“Monitoring user and entity behavior is a critical addition that is particularly needed in IoT scenarios,” Cearley said. “However, the IoT edge is a new frontier for many IT security professionals creating new vulnerability areas and often requiring new remediation tools and processes that must be factored into IoT platform efforts.”

Photo Credit: J-T-M Flickr via Compfight cc

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