AI, IoT and Blockchain: What can we expect in 2017?

Industry experts all agree that in 2017 AI, Blockchain and IoT will keep on playing an important role.

Well-known chip manufacturers like Intel and Qualcomm have already introduced energy-saving chips for IoT devices. The network heavyweights like Cisco and Juniper Networks are extending their network hardware and software with some IoT features.

The IoT is a promising technology for the market. However, safety-related and data protection concerns will remain the key challenge this year, while hard- and software companies will clash over because of their competing ecosystems.

AI for personalized mobility services

In 2017, the development of Mobility-as-a-Service is expected to speed up. Cities and communities are creating new traffic systems and bike-sharing-platforms, optimizing the local transport, and launching programs for self-driving vehicles in order to reduce congestions, improve security and ensure sustainability and economic growth.

Concurrently, digital assistants based on AI are becoming increasingly popular. Soon we will see how they bring all our information together and make intuitive, self-integrating and self-learning services for multimodal mobility options that are very easy to use.

Such a digital assistant will be able to calculate the right time for you to wake up and to set your alarm clock depending on your appointments the next day. It can make suggestions on the optimal transport types for the whole route to work and perfectly predict when you will be in the office. Besides, it can order food and further services to your house that will be delivered at the same time you come back home, inform your friends and family in case your appointments are postponed, etc.

Blockchain breakthrough

The technologies used by banks to provide services by now have become obsolete. They lack transparency and truly customer-oriented applications.

Blockchain is one of the most revolutionary ideas for fintech industry. By 2021, the global blockchain technology is forecasted to be worth approximately 2.3 billion U.S. dollars.

Blockchain represents a structure of a database behind Bitcoin, a digital alternative currency. All Bitcoin transactions get stored on all participating computers, grouped in blocks, each of them is ‘chained’ to all previous transactions.

So, a central registry like in a bank or a stock market is no longer required. The network checks whether a payment is real and a payer really disposes of a money amount.  The decentralized system cannot totally eliminate frauds; however, it can make it sufficiently complicated.

This year, big financial institutions are expected to lead the movement and push the development of Blockchain.

IoT as a mainstream and the ‘battle’ of ecosystems

The IoT is predicted to become accessible for small and medium-sized enterprises. New IoT- as-a-Service solutions integrated into data analysis will enable also small enterprises to identify short-term trends and business potential in order to optimize services and customer experience.

Concurrently, the growing popularity of the IoT-devices of such tech giants as Amazon, Google and Co. will very likely lead to their ecosystems overlaps.

Amazon is expected to use its’ market-leading position in e-commerce and extensive prime ecosystem to equip consumers’ households with devices like Echo, Fire TV or Dash Button.

Google will use data of consumers’ search results, visited locations and ads click history to customize its’ devices like Google Home. The compatibility with Android will turn its’ smart home platform into a useful extension of mobile end devices.

Security concerns

Data safety will stay one of the most important challenges for both, companies and consumers. Until now, after downloading a new app, the majority of us used to accept the terms of use without reading them. However, now the consumers want to know exactly, what they give their permission for. In 2017, the demand for explicit consent and clear explanations on how personal data is used will grow.