The tech world is booming and innovative new products and services are coming to light every day. For the less technically inclined, staying up to date with the latest tech terms and trends is no easy task. But luckily we’ve got you covered. Take a look at our emerging tech urban dictionary of sorts, guaranteed to impress your early-adopter coworkers at the next watercooler chat.
Distributed cloud is the application of various cloud computing technologies to connect data and applications served from a multitude of geographic locations. Due to distributed cloud behaving as a single system, it is both efficient and flexible, bringing operations closer to the end user and decreasing latency issues. Edge computing also fits into the distributed cloud system.
In short, AI refers to the simulation of human intelligence in computers or machines. There are four different types of AI systems: reactive machines, limited memory AI, theory of mind AI, and self-aware AI. Have a look at our Online Learning Day video to learn a bit more about the different types of Artificial Intelligence systems.
Not to be confused with the internet of things, IoB refers to the process of deciphering user online activity from a behavioural psychology perspective. IoB uses a variety of existing technologies such as big data, facial recognition and location tracking, and equips companies with the necessary info to optimise user experience and search experience.
Often referred to as the next major leap in digital transformation, hyperautomation refers to the use of emerging technologies such as artificial intelligence, machine learning and robotic process automation to automate tasks currently performed by humans. The goal of hyperautomation is not to replace humans in the workplace, but rather to take over smaller, mind-numbing tasks, giving humans more time to focus on the bigger tasks at hand. For example, in banking, customer onboarding is a cumbersome process that can be automated by means of RPA and AI, cutting back on costs and time. Automated customer onboarding would involve bots extracting data from documents and building risk profiles via machine learning and a combination of human-in-the-loop and ML models, verifying and validating customer information.
Extended reality (XR) refers to immersive technologies such as augmented reality (AR), virtual reality (VR) and mixed reality (MR), which combine the physical and virtual worlds to create a fully immersive user experience.
In AR, real world objects are enhanced by computer-generated perceptual information. Some of the most popular AR examples include Nintendo’s Pokémon Go app and Google AR Animals.
In VR, users can fully immerse themselves in a 3D, 360-degree digital environment by means of a VR headset or head-mounted display. The gaming industry has been one of the leading adopters of VR technology, but other market segments such as healthcare, retail and tourism have also started to adopt VR tech.
Also referred to as hybrid reality, MR allows digital and real-world objects to co-exist and interact with each other in real-time. Microsoft’s Hololens is a popular example of an commercially available MR device, which allows users to interact with holograms visible through a specialised headset.
This is hardly an exhaustive list, as there are thousands of emerging tech terms, some of which describe technology that have yet to be invented. If any of these emerging technologies spark your interest (beyond the watercooler chats) and you’re curious about how it can supplement your business, get in touch!
Digital Marketing Specialist