2021 have been a year of recovery from the less memorable 2020. We have seen market re-opening due to mass vaccination programmes occurring in many countries. 2021 have also seen a huge development in the number of technological fields that will start to make their presence in 2022. Here are 5 technological trends to look out for in 2022.

Metaverse

In 2021, Mark Zuckerberg revealed his vision of realigning this social media company to focus on the metaverse. The metaverse has been classed as the new web 3.0 which involves the integration of the web with reality using virtual and augmented reality. Microsoft has been involved in the metaverse by implementing virtual avatars into their Microsoft Teams application. With many companies out there already developing virtual and augmented reality, the next step is for a company with the financial and technological power to blend virtual and physical reality. Even though we won’t be seeing a fully function metaverse, we will see technological advancements that will contribute to the development of the metaverse.

Cloud Computing

COVID-19 has accelerated the utilisation of cloud computing. Cloud computing service providers such as Microsoft and Amazon are expanding their infrastructure to cope with demand by strengthening cybersecurity. As businesses look to transition to cloud-based applications to enable businesses to continue to function and allow employees to access them securely from anywhere in the world.

Passwordless Authentication

Over the years, companies have increased the criteria of a strong password such as asking us to add uppercase letters and special characters to ensure our passwords are more complex to crack. With the improvement of artificial learning and machine learning, even the strongest password can be broken into with enough time. 2022 will see a shift to password authentication using mobile devices, tokens, and biometrics in many websites or applications. This will eliminate the need to keep and regularly change passwords.

Cryptocurrency/Blockchain

Cryptocurrency and Blockchain have been the hot topic of the past few years and will continue into 2022. Cryptocurrencies are now on the radar of governments as they look to regulate and safeguard investors. Cryptocurrency facilitates the exchange of goods and services online in a decentralised fashion. Blockchain is the technology behind cryptocurrency that tracks and stores information in various places making forgery impossible.

5G

With the emergence of the internet of things (IoT) devices becoming more available, a faster, more mobile internet is needed to send and receive data instantly. This is where 5G comes in as the logical successor to 4G. 5G exists in certain areas as mobile providers are experimenting with the technology. 5G will increase the speed, capacity of the quantity of data, and quality of connection. In the UK, 2G and 3G will be phased out by 2033 to enable new equipment makers to enter the market without having to support older technologies.

Summary

2022 will see the development of new technologies. The metaverse space will see huge development as companies look to be the first creators of the metaverse. Companies will look to recover from 2020 and build a robust business powered by cloud computing to ensure the business can be run from anywhere in the world. With the uptake of cloud computing on the rise, cloud computing providers look to strengthen their security via different methods such as tokens and biometrics. Cryptocurrency and blockchain will continue to be important topics for governments and financial institutions as well as for investors. The technology behind blockchain will continue to develop as it will be an important part of the metaverse. Countries will continue to transition to the use of 5G technologies which will enable a higher capacity to send and receive data quickly as we want to monitor the environment, our lives, and health in real-time.