Data continues to grow and is poised to double in 2024. According to Forrester, unstructured data—such as social posts and customer feedback—represent less than a third of managed data today.
With AI itching to unlock a wealth of text insights, these untapped reserves hold huge potential. Language models can surface game-changing trends from unstructured sources, and companies investing now in unstructured pipelines will gain a competitive edge.
This past year focused heavily on the explosive popularity of AI and generative AI (GenAI) along with its evolving applications, including ChatGPT and large language models (LLMs). As the move toward a future state of AI progresses, executive teams will usher in C-level positions focused on overseeing how data is managed in relation to the organization’s AI strategies, according to this same Forrester report.
However, the surge in AI adoption has strained GPU and chip production to its maximum capacity. Limited chip manufacturing capabilities will result in a slowdown in AI processing by 2024, another Forrester report predicts.
Businesses are expected to take a practical approach to AI, based on chip availability, economic considerations, and sustainability. Forrester forecasts that these hardware constraints will temper ambitions, compelling organizations to prioritize applications with clear ROI and adjust their AI strategies accordingly. GenAI offers business potential as well as ethical dilemmas. While it has the capacity to foster creativity and facilitate problem solving, there are also concerns regarding the creation of content, privacy infringement, and potential misuse. Therefore, experts and policymakers are actively striving to find a common ground that balances innovation and effective regulation in AI.
Despite the continued increase in climate change-related natural disasters, the ongoing impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic, and rising inequality, digital and tech ranked as the top risks being prioritizing for mitigation during the next 12 months, according to a survey by PwC of 3,800 business and tech leaders across 71 countries. The survey also found that companies are viewing the rise of GenAI with a mixture of skepticism and excitement. Many are bulking up investments in cybersecurity to protect against cyberattacks.
The top three cyber-related threats reported are cloud-related threats, attacks on connected devices, and hack-and-leak operations. “Our global survey shows that cybersecurity continues to be top of mind for business leaders, and now more than ever. C-Suites need to be agile and adapt to the changing market—with emerging tech developments hitting the market in transformative ways, executives must challenge the status quo by building security into the fabric of the organisation instead of reacting once there is a crisis,” said Sean Joyce, global cybersecurity and privacy leader, PwC U.S.
Gartner is predicting worldwide IT spending to reach $5.14 trillion in 2024, up from $4.72 trillion this year. This would represent an annual growth rate of nearly 4% year over year.
Growth is being driven by cloud spending—a direct result of increased cloud prices and increased use of the cloud. Worldwide cloud spending is forecasted to grow 20.4% in 2024. It’s also being driven by information security spending (itself driven, in part, by scares related to AI).
“The continuous adoption of cloud, continuous hybrid workforce, rapid emergence and use of generative AI (GenAI), and the evolving regulatory environment are forcing security and risk management (SRM) leaders to enhance their security and risk management spending,” said Shailendra Upadhyay, senior research principal at Gartner.
Expert Market Research reports that the rising trend of digitalization and the increasing adoption of advanced technologies such as AI and machine learning have contributed to the multi-cloud management market expansion. These technologies, when integrated with multi-cloud management, can provide predictive analytics, automated processes, and personalized services, making cloud management more efficient for organizations. The rise of remote working practices and the increasing reliance on cloud-based applications have amplified the need for effective cloud management strategies, thereby boosting the multi-cloud management market expansion.
Increasing threats to data security and the need for regulatory compliance have made multi-cloud management an essential aspect of business strategy. With the proliferation of cyberthreats and the stringent regulations on data handling and privacy, multi-cloud management has emerged as a critical tool in ensuring data protection and regulatory compliance, consequently driving the multi-cloud management market growth.
To help make the process of identifying useful products and services easier, each year, DBTA presents a list of Trend-Setting Products. These products, platforms, and services range from long-established offerings that are evolving to meet the needs of their loyal constituents to breakthrough technologies that may only be in the early stages of adoption. However, the common element for all is that they represent a commitment to innovation and seek to provide organizations with tools to address changing market requirements. Beyond the list presented on the following pages, we encourage you to continue your exploration of these products by visiting the companies’ websites for more information. In addition, in this issue, we include Product Spotlight articles penned by company executives that highlight the features that make their products stand out from the rest.