Infrastructural advancements, advancements in technology, economies of scale and low labour costs have fuelled the growth of the IT sector in India. The onset of the pandemic in 2020-21 accelerated digitisation and provided a fillip to the Indian IT sector. According to Ernst and Young, India’s data usage per smartphone increased by about 20% – 25% in the first two months of the 2020 lockdown alone. Moreover, new-age technologies promise more innovation and exciting developments in the sector.
AI: Artificial Intelligence is a powerful tool that can revolutionise the IT sector by automating certain human tasks such as addressing customer queries, recognising speech and text, etc. Doing so enables humans to focus on the core tasks. A Transparency Market Research (TMR) report predicts the global AI market to grow at 36.1% CAGR from $126.14 billion in 2015 to $3,061.35 billion in 2024. 2022 will witness a further strengthening of AI with the increasing adoption of AI engineering, which will automate all updates to data, models and applications. Moreover, AI can also automate the running and managing of company networks. AIops platforms can simplify the management of IT platforms and enhance grievance resolution. AI-powered automatic network management and AIOps are poised to become a reality a few years from now.
5G: 5G is expected to be rolled out in India by the end of this year. With an improved speed, the implementation of 5G implies faster downloads, uploads, streams and transfer. 5G will spur the adoption of the Internet of Things allowing internet-powered smart devices to link and operate together with a more incredible speed, latency and connectivity.
Hyperscalers and Industry clouds: Hyperscale cloud providers offer cloud infrastructure, cloud platforms and Software as a Service (SaaS) coupled with in-house business solutions to ensure holistic cloud-based solutions. The hyperscale cloud service market is currently dominated by a few prominent players. In 2022, we foresee this consolidation of this niche, shortened cycles of innovation and expansion of hyperscalers into cloud-associated rather than merely cloud-originated IT markets.
Based on cloud technology, industry clouds are tailored to cater to a specific industry. Hence, they are a step ahead of Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) or Platform as a Service (PaaS) by vertically integrating industry business solutions, customer relationship management, enterprise resource management, etc. It will aid organisations to become more agile and lower the speed and cost of IT modernisations by ensuing automatic updates of associated platforms.
Metaverse: Metaverse refers to the 3D space wherein users can interact with each other and the surroundings via avatars. It promises to open a wide gamut of opportunities for businesses. Metaverse spaces have made a great beginning, and it won’t be long before citizens will own virtual assets and trade them as non-fungible tokens (NFTs) on metaverse. The key to its adoption is greater awareness and experimentation on its potential uses and applications.
Quantum computing: Quantum computing holds great promise to transform the IT industry radically. This technology will be instrumental in solving optimisation problems across finance, biotechnology and pharmaceutical sectors. The Quantum technology hub launched by KPMG is a great leap towards the adoption of this nascent technology.
Cybersecurity: Amid accelerating digitisation, cybersecurity is a formidable challenge for businesses. Evasion techniques have become more sophisticated, with hackers spending considerable time upgrading their IT skills. According to a Deep Instinct report, the use of malware increased by a whopping 358% and ransomware usage by 435% in 2020 compared to the previous year. Cybersecurity not only dents customer experience and diminishes the credibility of businesses; it costs organisations $2.9 per minute, with large companies losing up to $25 per minute due to data breaches, according to the RiskIQ study. It warrants the need for greater awareness, standardisation of safe practices and upgradation of IT skills of the workforce to tackle it effectively.
These technologies, if harnessed effectively, can aid organisations to respond to the pace of change promptly by developing appropriate software solutions and applications and enabling quick decision-making. Technology also promises to impart a greater resilience and a solid foundation for the IT sector, thereby enabling enterprises to scale in a cost-effective manner.
