Even if the economic outlook for 2023 is still unclear, it is obvious that developing technologies will be crucial in assisting businesses in becoming more flexible. Five Forrester technology analysts talk about their expectations for various technological fields in 2023 in this episode.
The first segment of the session features analyst Rowan Curran discussing his most recent forecasts for generative AI, or AI-supported digital content creation. In 2023, 10% of all employees, according to Curran, will use generative AI. While it may come out as being unduly optimistic, he notes that as the demand for creating marketing and product content has increased, so too have the use cases for generative AI. Also, Curran offers several doable next steps for technology leaders aiming to increase their usage.
Next up, Vice President and Principal Analyst Craig Le Clair dives into the prediction that automation technology will become a lifeline for the retail industry in 2023. From physical robots becoming cooks to robotic process automation technology supporting the finance or supply chain functions, retail’s labor shortages will be lessened with new automation uses. “Amazon’s Just Walk Out solution means being able to go into a store that has no cashiers,” Le Clair says, adding that retail firms that have already implemented some automation should take a more holistic view of their use cases in 2023.
In the cloud area, Principal Analyst Lee Sustar predicts that in 2023, 40% of firms will take a cloud-native-first strategy. “We think people are going to move in a decisive direction toward cloud native,” he says, adding that this prediction is an indication that the early adoption phase of cloud native has ended and a new phase is emerging. Sustar also provides guidance for technology leaders trying to determine where to focus their cloud technology spend in 2023.
Principal Analyst Michele Pelino explains why she predicts edge computing will see more growth in 2023. “Rising businesswide networks, confidential computing, and Zero Trust edge (ZTE) will ignite many different edge deployments in 2023,” she says. But new and fragmented use cases will bring new security issues, and Pelino provides steps that tech and security leaders can take to secure their edge environments.
Lastly, VP and Research Director Chris Gardner predicts that in 2023, the growth of low-code and citizen development will lead to at least one headline security breach, or possibly more, as many firms haven’t established governance policies around citizen development. Gardner provides tips on how citizen developers can work more closely with security teams to reduce their risk.
To hear more of Forrester’s 2023 predictions for technology executives, be sure to register for our live webinar on Feb. 28 or watch the replay.