2025年技术趋势报告

TechTrends2025

2025年技术趋势报告

TechTrends2025

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Tableofcontents

02...Executivesummary

INTRODUCTION

05...AIeverywhere:Likemagic,butwithalgorithms

INTERACTION

09...Spatialcomputingtakescenterstage

INFORMATION

17...What’snextforAI?

COMPUTATION

27...Hardwareiseatingtheworld

BUSINESSOFTECHNOLOGY

37...IT,amplified:AIelevatesthereach(andremit)ofthetechfunction

CYBERANDTRUST

45...Thenewmath:Solvingcryptographyinanageofquantum

COREMODERNIZATION

53...Theintelligentcore:AIchangeseverythingforcoremodernization

CONCLUSION

60...Breadthisthenewdepth:Thepowerofintentionalintersections

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Executivesummary

TechTrends,Deloitte’sflagshiptechnologyreport,explorestheemergenceoftrendsinthreeelevatingforces(interaction,information,andcomputation)andthreegroundingforces(businessoftechnology,cyberandtrust,andcoremodernization)—allpartofourmacrotechnologyforcesframework(figure1).TechTrends2025,our16thtriparoundthesun,previewsafutureinwhichartificialintelligencewillbeasfoundational

aselectricitytodailybusinessandpersonallives.AsourteaminDeloitte’sOfficeoftheCTOputfinishingtouchesonTechTrends2025,werealizedthatAIisacommonthreadinnearlyeverytrend.Weexpectthatgoingforward,AIwillbesoubiquitousthatitwillbeapartoftheunseensubstructureofeverythingwedo,andweeventuallywon’tevenknowit’sthere.

Figure1

Sixmacroforcesofinformationtechnology

INFORMATION

What’snextforAI?

INTERACTION

Spatialcomputingtakescenterstage

COMPUTATION

Hardwareiseatingtheworld

BUSINESSOFTECHNOLOGY

IT,amplified:

AIelevatesthereach(andremit)ofthetechfunction

CYBERANDTRUST

Thenewmath:Solvingcryptographyinanageofquantum

COREMODERNIZATION

Theintelligentcore:AIchangeseverythingforcoremodernization

Introduction

AIeverywhere:Likemagic,butwithalgorithms

GenerativeAIcontinuestobethebuzzwordoftheyear,butTechTrends2025—andinfact,thefutureoftechnology—isaboutmuchmorethanAI.Thisyear’sreportrevealstheextenttowhichAIisbeingwovenintothefabricofourlives.We’lleventuallytakeitforgrantedandthinkofitinthesamewaythatwethinkofHTTPorelectricity:We’lljustexpectittowork.AIwillperformquietlyinthebackground,optimizingtrafficinourcities,personalizingourhealthcare,orcreatingadaptativeandaccessiblelearningpathsineducation.Wewon’tproactivelyuseit;we’llsimplyexperienceaworldinwhichitmakeseverythingworksmarter,faster,andmoreintuitively—likemagic,butgroundedinalgo-rithms.ThesixchaptersofTechTrends2025reflectthisemergingreality.

Interaction

Spatialcomputingtakescenterstage

Spatialcomputingcontinuestosparkenterpriseinterestbecauseofitsabilitytobreakdowninformationsilosandcreatemorenaturalwaysforworkersandcustomerstointeractwithinformation.We’realreadyseeingenter-prisesfindsuccesswithusecaseslikeadvancedsimula-tionsthatalloworganizationstotestdifferentscenariostoseehowvariousconditionswillimpacttheiroper-ations.Withastrongerfocusoneffectivelymanagingspatialdata,organizationscandrivemorecutting-edgeapplications.Inthecomingyears,advancementsinAIcouldleadtoseamlessspatialcomputingexperiencesandimprovedinteroperability,ultimatelyenablingAIagentstoanticipateandproactivelymeetusers’needs.

Information

What’snextforAI?

TotakeadvantageoftheburgeoningexcitementaroundgenerativeAI,manyorganizationshavealreadyadoptedlargelanguagemodels(LLMs),thebestoptionformanyusecases.Butsomearealreadylookingahead.Despitetheirgeneralapplicability,LLMsmaynotbethemost

efficientchoiceforallorganizationalneeds.Enterprisesarenowconsideringsmalllanguagemodelsandopen-sourceoptionsfortheabilitytotrainLLMsonsmaller,moreaccuratedatasets.TogetherwithmultimodalmodelsandAI-basedsimulations,thesenewtypesofAIarebuildingafuturewhereenterprisescanfindtherighttypeofAIforeachtask.ThatincludesAIthatnotonlyanswersquestionsbutalsocompletestasks.Inthecomingyears,afocusonexecutionmayusherinaneweraofagenticAI,armingconsumersandorganizationswithco-pilotscapableoftransforminghowweworkandlive.

Computation

Hardwareiseatingtheworld

Afteryearsofsoftwaredominance,hardwareisreclaim-ingthespotlight.AsAIdemandsspecializedcomputingresources,companiesareturningtoadvancedchipstopowerAIworkloads.Inaddition,personalcomput-ersembeddedwithAIchipsarepoisedtosuperchargeknowledgeworkersbyprovidingaccesstoofflineAImodelswhile“future-proofing”technologyinfrastruc-ture,reducingcloudcomputingcosts,andenhancingdataprivacy.AlthoughAI’sincreasedenergydemandsposesustainabilitychallenges,advancementsinenergysourcesandefficiencyaremakingAIhardwaremoreaccessible.Lookingforward,AI’scontinuedintegrationintodevicescouldrevolutionizetheInternetofThingsandrobotics,transformingindustrieslikehealthcarethroughsmarter,moreautonomousdevices.

Businessoftechnology

IT,amplified:AIelevatesthereach(andremit)oftechtalent

Executivesummary

AfteryearsofprogressingtowardleanITandevery-thing-as-a-serviceofferings,AIissparkingashiftawayfromvirtualizationandausterebudgets.Longviewedasthelighthouseofdigitaltransformationthrough-outtheenterprise,theITfunctionisnowtakingonAItransformation.BecauseofgenerativeAI’sapplicabilitytowritingcode,testingsoftware,andaugmentingtechtalentingeneral,forward-thinkingtechnologyleadersareusingthecurrentmomentasaonce-in-a-blue-moon

opportunitytotransformITacrossfivepillars:infra-structure,engineering,financeoperations,talent,andinnovation.AsbothtraditionalandgenerativeAIcapa-bilitiesgrow,everyphaseoftechdeliverycouldseeashiftfromhumaninchargetohumanintheloop.SuchamovecouldeventuallyreturnITtoanewformofleanIT,leveragingcitizendevelopersandAI-drivenautomation.

Cyberandtrust

Thenewmath:Solvingcryptographyinanageofquantum

IntheirresponsetoY2K,organizationssawaloom-ingriskandaddresseditpromptly.Today,ITfacesanewchallenge,anditwillhavetorespondinasimilarlyproactivemanner.Expertspredictthatquantumcomput-ers,whichcouldmaturewithinfiveto20years,willhavesignificantimplicationsforcybersecuritybecauseoftheirabilitytobreakexistingencryptionmethodsanddigitalsignatures.Thisposesarisktotheintegrityandauthenticityofdataandcommunications.Despitetheuncertaintyofthequantumcomputertimeline,inactiononpost-quantumencryptionisnotanoption.Emergingencryptionstandardsofferapathtomitigation.Updatingencryptionpracticesisfairlystraightforward—butit’salengthyprocess,soorganizationsshouldactnowtostayaheadofpotentialthreats.Andwhilethey’reatit,theycanconsidertacklingbroaderissuessurroundingcyberhygieneandcryptographicagility.

Coremodernization

Theintelligentcore:AIchangeseverythingforcoremodernization

CoresystemsprovidershaveinvestedheavilyinAI,rebuildingtheirofferingsandcapabilitiesaroundanAI-fueledorAI-firstmodel.TheintegrationofAIinto

coreenterprisesystemsrepresentsasignificantshiftinhoworganizationsoperateandleveragetechnologyforcompetitiveadvantage.Thistransformationisaboutautomatingroutinetasksandfundamentallyrethinkingandredesigningprocessestobemoreintelligent,efficient,andpredictive.Itrequirescarefulplanningduetointe-grationcomplexity,strategicinvestmentintechnologyandskills,andarobustgovernanceframeworktoensuresmoothoperations.Butbewareoftheautomationpara-dox:Themorecomplexityisaddedtoasystem,themorevitalhumanworkersbecome.AddingAItocoresystemsmaysimplifytheuserexperience,butitwillmakethemmorecomplexatanarchitecturallevel.DeeptechnicalskillsarestillcriticalformanagingAIincoresystems.

Conclusion

Breadthisthenewdepth:Thepowerofintentionalintersections

Organizationshavelongreliedoninnovation-drivennewrevenuestreams,synergiescreatedthroughmergersandacquisitions,andstrategicpartnerships.Butincreasingly,segmentationandspecializationhavegivenwaytointen-tionalintersectionsoftechnologiesandindustries.Forexample,whentwotechnologiesintersect,theyareoftencomplementary,buttheycanalsoaugmenteachothersothatbothtechnologiesultimatelyacceleratetheirgrowthpotential.Similarly,newopportunitiescanemergewhencompaniesaimtoextendtheirmarketsharebypurpose-fullypartneringacrossseeminglydisparateindustries.

INTRODUCTION

AIeverywhere:Likemagic,butwithalgorithms

TechTrends2025revealshowmuchartificialintelligenceisbeingwovenintothefabricofourlives—makingeverythingworksmarter,faster,andmoreintuitively

KellyRaskovich

Twoyearsaftergenerativeartificialintelligencestakeditsclaimasthefreespaceoneveryone’sbuzzword-bingocards,you’dbeforgivenforimaginingthatthefutureoftechnologyissimply…moreAI.That’sonlypartofthestory,though.Weproposethatthefutureoftechnologyisn’tsomuchaboutmoreAIasitisaboutubiquitousAI.Weexpectthat,goingforward,AIwillbecomesofundamentallywovenintothefabricofourlivesthatit’severywhere,andsofoundationalthatwestopnoticingit.

Takeelectricity,forexample.Whenwasthelasttimeyouactuallythoughtaboutelectrons?Wenolongermarvelthatthelightsturnon—wesimplyexpectthemtowork.ThesamegoesforHTTP,theunseenthreadthatholdstheinternettogether.Weuseiteveryday,butI’dbetmostofushaven’tthoughtabout(letaloneuttered)theword“hypertext”inquitesometime.

AIwilleventuallyfollowasimilarpath,becomingsoubiquitousthatitwillbeapartoftheunseensubstruc-tureofeverythingwedo,andweeventuallywon’tevenknowit’sthere.Itwillquietlyhumalongintheback-ground,optimizingtrafficinourcities,personalizingourhealthcare,andcreatingadaptativeandaccessiblelearn-ingpathsineducation.Wewon’t“use”AI.We’lljustexperienceaworldwherethingsworksmarter,faster,andmoreintuitively—likemagic,butgroundedinalgo-rithms.Weexpectthatitwillprovideafoundationforbusinessandpersonalgrowthwhilealsoadaptingandsustainingitselfovertime.

NowhereisthisAI-infusedfuturemoreevidentthaninthisyear’sTechTrendsreport,whicheachyearexploresemergingtrendsacrossthesixmacroforcesofinforma-tiontechnology(figure1intheexecutivesummary).Halfofthetrendsthatwe’vechronicledareelevatingforces—interaction,information,andcomputation—thatunderpininnovationandgrowth.Theotherhalf—thegroundingforcesofthebusinessoftechnology,cyberandtrust,andcoremodernization—helpenterprisesseamlesslyoperatewhiletheygrow.

Asourteamputthefinishingtouchesonthisyear’sreport,werealizedthatthissublimationanddiffu-sionofAIisalreadyafoot.Notthe“onlytrend”nor“everytrend,”AIisthescaffoldingandcommonthreadbuttressingnearlyeverytrend.(Forthosekeepingacloseeyeathome,“Thenewmath:Solvingcryptographyinanageofquantum”—aboutthecybersecurityimplica-tionsofanothergame-changingtechnology,quantumcomputing—istheonlyoneinwhichAIdoesnothaveafoundationalrole.Yetbehindthescenes,AIadvance-mentsareacceleratingadvancesinquantum.)

AIeverywhere:Likemagic,butwithalgorithms

Spatialcomputingtakescenterstage:FutureAIadvancementswillenhancespatial-computingsimu-

lations,eventuallyleadingtoseamlessspatial-com-putingexperiencesintegratedwithAIagents.

What’snextforAI?:AsAIevolves,theenterprisefocusonlargelanguagemodelsisgivingway

tosmalllanguagemodels,multimodalmodels,AI-basedsimulations,andagentsthatcanexecutediscretetasks.

Hardwareiseatingtheworld:Afteryearsofsoft-waredominance,hardwareisreclaimingthespot-

light,largelyduetoAI’simpactoncomputingchipsanditsintegrationintoend-userdevices,theInternetofThings,androbotics.

IT,amplified:AIelevatesthereach(andremit)oftechtalent:AI’sapplicabilitytowritingcode,testing

software,andaugmentingtechtalentistransform-ingITandsparkingashiftawayfromvirtualizationandausterebudgets.

Theintelligentcore:AIchangeseverythingforcoremodernization:Coresystemsprovidershave

investedheavilyinAI,whichmaysimplifytheuserexperienceanddata-sharingacrossapplicationsbutwillmakethesesystemsmorecomplexatanarchitecturallevel.

BecauseweexpectAItobecomepartoftomorrow’sfoundationalcore—likeelectricity,HTTP,andsomanyothertechnologies—it’sexcitingtothinkabouthowAImightevolveinthenextfewyearsasitmarchestowardubiquity,andhowweashumansmaybenefit.WehereatTechTrendswillbechroniclingeverystepofthejourney.

Untilnexttime,

KellyRaskovichOfficeoftheCTO

Executiveeditor,TechTrends

AIeverywhere:Likemagic,butwithalgorithms

Trendingthetrends

INTERACTION

INFORMATION

COMPUTATION

BUSINESSOFTECHNOLOGY

CYBER

ANDTRUST

CORE

MODERNIZATION

2025

Spatialcomputingtakescenterstage

What’snextforAI?

Hardwareiseatingtheworld

IT,amplified

Thenewmath

Theintelligentcore

2024

Interfacesinnewplaces

Genieoutoftheboサle

Smarter,notharder

FromDevOpstoDevEx

Defendingreality

Coreworkout

2023

Throughtheglass

OpeninguptoAI

Abovetheclouds

Flexibility,

thebestability

Inuswetrust

Connectandextend

2022

Datasharingmadeeasy

Blockchain:Readyforbusiness

Cloudgoesvertical

DEItech:Toolsforequity

Thetechstackgoesphysical

CyberAI

IT,disruptthyself

2021

Rebootingthedigitalworkplace

Bespokeforbillions

Machinedatarevolution

MLOps:

ed

Industrializ

Strategy,engineered

Supplyunchained

Zerotrust

Corerevival

AI

2020

Humanexperienceplatforms

Digitaltwins

FinanceandthefutureofIT

Architectureawakens

Ethical

gy

technolo

andtrust

2019

Intelligentinterfaces

Beyondmarketing

AI-fueledorganizations

NoOpsinaserverlessworld

Connectivityoftomorrow

DevSecOpsandthecyberimperative

2018

Digitalreality

Enterprisedatasovereignty

API

imperative

Blockchaintoblockchains

No-collarworkforce

Reengineeringtechnology

Thenewcore

2017

Mixedreality

DarkanalyticsMachine

intelligence

Everythingas-a-service

Trusteconomy

IT

unbounded

Inevitablearchitecture

2016

InternetofThings

ARandVRgotowork

Industrializedanalytics

Democratizedtrust

RightspeedITAutonomic

platforms

Reimaginingcoresystems

Note:TolearnmoreaboutpastTechTrends,gotowww.deloi/us/TechTrends

Source:Deloieanalysis.

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INTERACTION

Spatialcomputingtakescenterstage

Whatisthefutureofspatialcomputing?Withreal-timesimulationsasjustthestart,new,excitingusecasescanreshapeindustriesrangingfromhealthcaretoentertainment.

KellyRaskovich,BillBriggs,MikeBechtel,andEdBurns

Today’swaysofworkingdemanddeepexpertiseinnarrowskillsets.Beinginformedaboutprojectsoftenrequiressignificantspecializedtrainingandunderstandingofcontext,whichcanburdenworkersandkeepinformationsiloed.Thishashistoricallybeentrueespeciallyforanyworkflowinvolvingaphysicalcomponent.Specializedtasksdemandednarrowtraininginavarietyofuniquesystems,whichmadeithardtoworkacrossdisciplines.

Oneexampleiscomputer-aideddesign(CAD)software.AnexperienceddesignerorengineercanviewaCADfileandgleanmuchinformationabouttheproject.Butthoseoutsideofthedesignandengineeringrealm—whetherthey’reinmarketing,finance,supplychain,projectmanagement,oranyotherrolethatneedstobeuptospeedonthedetailsofthework—willlikelystruggletounderstandthefile,whichkeepsessentialtechnicaldetailsburied.

Spatialcomputingisoneapproachthatcanaidthistypeofcollaboration.AsdiscussedinTechTrends2024,spatialcomputingoffersnewwaystocontextualizebusinessdata,engagecustomersandworkers,andinter-actwithdigitalsystems.Itmoreseamlesslyblendsthephysicalanddigital,creatinganimmersivetechnologyecosystemforhumanstomorenaturallyinteractwiththeworld.1Forexample,avisualinteractionlayerthatpullstogethercontextualdatafrombusinesssoftwarecanallowsupplychainworkerstoidentifypartsthatneedtobeorderedandenablemarketerstograspaprod-uct’soverallaestheticstohelpthembuildcampaigns.Employeesacrosstheorganizationcanmakemeaningofand,inturn,makedecisionswithdetailedinformationaboutaprojectinwaysanyonecanunderstand.

Ifeye-catchingvirtualreality(VR)headsetsarethefirstthingthatcometomindwhenyouthinkaboutspatialcomputing,you’renotalone.Butspatialcomputingisaboutmorethanprovidingavisualexperienceviaapairofgoggles.Italsoinvolvesblendingstandardbusi-nesssensordatawiththeInternetofThings,drone,lightdetectionandranging(LIDAR),image,video,andotherthree-dimensionaldatatypestocreatedigitalrepresenta-tionsofbusinessoperationsthatmirrortherealworld.Thesemodelscanberenderedacrossarangeofinter-actionmedia,whetheratraditionaltwo-dimensionalscreen,lightweightaugmentedrealityglasses,orfull-onimmersiveVRenvironments.

Spatialcomputingsensesreal-world,physicalcompo-nents;usesbridgingtechnologytoconnectphysicalanddigitalinputs;andoverlaysdigitaloutputsontoablendedinterface(figure1).2

Spatialcomputingtakescenterstage

Spatialcomputing’scurrentapplicationsareasdiverseastheyaretransformative.Real-timesimulationshaveemergedasthetechnology’sprimaryusecase.Lookingahead,advancementswillcontinuetodrivenewandexcitingusecases,reshapingindustriessuchashealthcare,manufacturing,logistics,andentertainment—whichiswhythemarketisprojectedtogrowatarateof18.2%between2022and2033.3Thejourneyfromthepresenttothefutureofhuman-computerinteractionpromisestofundamentallyalterhowweperceiveandinteractwiththedigitalandphysicalworlds.

Figure1

Thepossibilitiesofspatialoperations

Physical

Bridging

Digital

Wearables(forexample,headset,smarteyewear,andpins)

Sensors(forexample,LIDAR)andsensorfusion

Augmentedrealityobjects

Next-gendisplays

Computervision

Interactivedigitalobjects

InternetofThingsdevices

(forexample,biometricdevices)

GPS/spatialmappingsoftware

Holographicprojections

Sensorytech

(forexample,hapticsuits)

3Ddesignandrenderingtools

Audiooutputs

Spatialaudiodevices

Comprehensivenext-gennetworkinfrastructure

Avatars

Cameras

Datalakes

GenerativeAI

Next-genbaGeries

Source:AbhijithRavinutalaetal.,“Dichotomiesspatialcomputing:Navigatingtowardsabeerfuture,”Deloie,April22,2024.

Now:Filledtotherimwithsims

Atitsheart,spatialcomputingbringsthedigitalworldclosertolivedreality.Manybusinessprocesseshaveaphysicalcomponent,particularlyinasset-heavyindus-tries,but,toooften,informationaboutthoseprocessesisabstracted,andtheessence(andinsight)islost.Businessescanlearnmuchabouttheiroperationsfromwell-organized,structuredbusinessdata,butaddingphysicaldatacanhelpthemunderstandthoseoperationsmoredeeply.That’swherespatialcomputingcomesin.

“Thisideaofbeingservedtherightinformationattherighttimewiththerightviewisthepromiseofspatialcomputing,”saysDavidRandle,globalheadofgo-to-marketforspatialcomputingatAmazonWebServices(AWS).“Webelievespatialcomputingenablesmorenaturalunderstandingandawarenessofphysicalandvirtualworlds.”4

Oneoftheprimaryapplicationsunlockedbyspatialcomputingisadvancedsimulations.Thinkdigitaltwins,butratherthanvirtualrepresentationsthatmonitorphysicalassets,thesesimulationsalloworganizationstotestdifferentscenariostoseehowvariousconditionswillimpacttheiroperations.

Imagineamanufacturingcompanywheredesigners,engineers,andsupplychainteamscanseamlesslyworkfromasingle3Dmodeltocraft,build,andprocureallthepartstheyneed;doctorswhocanviewtrue-to-lifesimulationsoftheirpatients’bodiesthroughaugmentedrealitydisplays;oranoilandgascompanythatcanlayerdetailedengineeringmodelsontopof2Dmaps.Thepossibilitiesareasvastasourphysicalworldisvaried.

ThePortuguesesoccerclubBenfica’ssportsdatascienceteamusescamerasandcomputervisiontotrackplayers

throughoutmatchesanddevelopfull-scale3Dmodelsofeverymoveitsplayersmake.Thecamerascollect2,000datapointsfromeachplayer,andAIhelpsidentifyspecificplayers,thedirectiontheywerefacing,andcriti-calfactorsthatfedintotheirdecision-making.Thedataessentiallycreatesadigitaltwinofeachplayer,allowingtheteamtorunsimulationsofhowplayswouldhaveworkedifaplayerwasinadifferentposition.X’sandO’sonachalkboardarenowthree-dimensionalmodelsthatcoachescanexperimentwith.5

“There’sbeenahugeevolutioninAIpushingthesemodelsforward,andnowwecanusethemindeci-sion-making,”saysJoaoCopeto,chiefinformationandtechnologyofficeratSportLisboaeBenfica.6

Thisisn’tonlyaboutwinsandlosses—it’salsoaboutdollarsandcents.BenficahasturnedplayerdevelopmentintoaprofitablebusinessbyleveragingdataandAI.Overthepast10years,theteamhasgeneratedsomeofthehighestplayer-transferdealsinEurope.Similarapproachescouldalsopaydividendsinwarehouseoper-ations,supplychainandlogistics,oranyotherresourceplanningprocess.

Advancedsimulationsarealsoshowingupinmedicalsettings.Forinstance,virtualpatientscenarioscanbesimulatedasatrainingsupplementfornursesordoctorsinamoredynamic,self-pacedenvironmentthantext-bookswouldallow.Thismaycomewithseveralchal-lenges,suchaspatientdataconcerns,integrationofAIintoexistinglearningmaterials,andthequestionofrealism.ButAI-basedsimulationsarepoisedtoimpactthewaywelearn.7

Simulationsarealsostartingtoimpacthealthcaredelivery.FraserHealthAuthorityinCanadahasbeenapioneerinleveragingsimulationmodelstoimprovecare.8Bycreatingafirst-of-its-kindsystem-widedigitaltwin,thepublichealthauthorityinBritishColumbiageneratedpowerfulvisualizationsofpatientmovementthroughdifferentcaresettingsandsimulationstodeterminetheimpactofdeployingdifferentcaremodelsonpatientaccess.Althoughtheworkisongoing,Fraserexpectsimprovementinappropriate,need-basedaccesstocarethroughincreasedpatientawarenessofavailableservices.

New:Dataisthedifferentiator

EnterpriseITteamswilllikelyneedtoovercomesignifi-canthurdlestodevelopaltogether-newspatialcomput-ingapplications.Theylikelyhaven’tfacedthesehurdleswhenimplementingmoreconventionalsoftware-basedprojects.Whiletheseprojectshavecompellingbusi-nessvalue,organizationswillhavetonavigatesomeunchartedwaterstoachievethem.

Foronething,dataisn’talwaysinteroperablebetweensystems,whichlimitstheabilitytoblenddatafromdifferentsources.Furthermore,thespaghettidiagramsmappingoutthepaththatdatatravelsinmostorgani-zationsarecircuitousatbest,andbuildingthedatapipe-linestogetthecorrectspatialdataintovisualsystemsisathornyengineeringchallenge.Ensuringthatdataisofhighqualityandfaithfullymirrorsreal-worldcondi-tionsmaybeoneofthemostsignificantbarrierstousingspatialcomputingeffectively.9

RandleofAWSsaysspatialdatahasnothistoricallybeenwellmanagedatmostorganizations,eventhoughitrepresentssomeofabusiness’smostvaluableinformation.

“Thisinformation,becauseit’squitenewanddiverse,hasfewstandardsarounditandmuchofitsitsinsilos,someofit’sinthecloud,mostofit’snot,”saysRandle.“Thisdatalandscapeencompassingphysicalanddigitalassetsisextremelyscatteredandnotwellmanaged.Ourcustomers’firstproblemismanagingtheirspatialdata.”10

Takingamoresystematicapproachtoingesting,orga-nizing,andstoringthisdata,inturn,makesitmoreavailabletomodernAItools,andthat’swherethereallearningsbegin.

Datapipelinesdeliverthefuelthatdrivesbusiness

Spatialcomputingtakescenterstage

We’veoftenheardthatdataisthenewoil,butforanAmericanoilandgascompany,themetaphorisbecom-ingrealitythankstosignificanteffortinreplumbingsomeofitsdatapipelines.

Theenergycompanyusesdronestoconduct3Dscansofequipmentinthefieldanditsfacilities,andthenapplies

computervisiontothedatatoensureitsassetsoperatewithinpredefinedtolerances.It’salsocreatinghigh-fi-delitydigitaltwinsofassetsbasedondatapulledfromengineering,operational,andenterpriseresourceplan-ningsystems.

Thecriticalpieceineachexample?Dataintegration.Theenergygiantbuiltaspatialstoragelayer,usingappli-cationprograminterfacestoconnecttodisparatedatasourcesandfiletypes,includingmachine,drone,busi-ness,andimageandvideodata.11

Feworganizationstodayhaveinvestedinthistypeofsystematicapproachtoingestingandstoringspatialdata.Still,it’sakeyfactordrivingspatialcomputingcapabil-itiesandanessentialfirststepfordeliveringimpactfulusecases.

MultimodalAIcreatesthecontext

Inthepast,businessescouldn’tmergespatialandbusi-nessdataintoonevisualization,butthattooischang-ing.Asdiscussedin“What’snextforAI?”multimodalAI—AItoolsthatcanprocessvirtuallyanydatatypeasapromptandreturnoutputsinmultipleformats—isalreadyadeptatprocessingvirtuallyanyinput,whethertext,image,audio,spatial,orstructureddatatypes.12ThiscapabilitywillallowAItoserveasabridgebetweendifferentdatasources,andinterpretandaddcontextbetweenspatialandbusinessdata.AIcanreachintodisparatedatasystemsandextractrelevantinsights.

Thisisn’ttosaymultimodalAIeliminatesallbarriers.Organizationsstillneedtomanageandgoverntheirdataeffectively.Theoldsaying“garbagein,garbageout”hasneve