The IT digital trends to watch for in 2022

People, organizations, and society began to look ahead to influence their futures rather than just surviving the present, according to recent McKinsey research. Hopes for herd immunity, the end of pandemic lockdowns, and a return to normalcy were all dashed this year — at least for the time being. Aside from the Great Social Media Resignation, which saw burnt-out Gen Z workers announce their resignation via TikTok and Instagram, the rise of non-fungible tokens (“NFTs”), and the introduction of the metaverse, the world’s space-going billionaires were as wealthy and productive in business and technology as they had ever been. 

Quite honestly to predict anything lately is a little bit unfair, given the unpredictable environment we’ve been experiencing over the past two years; the year ahead will undoubtedly bring many surprises, but here are the IT digital trends that will influence life in 2022 … 

1– Social Media: it’s all about being more private, the quality of content and algorithm twists

In terms of feeds, platforms will focus on privacy and content quality. Despite recent public criticism, Facebook is expected to continue to grow in terms of membership and income. By the end of 2022, all major social media platforms will have changed their privacy rules and altered their algorithms with an eye on privacy and content quality. Meanwhile, a new tribe of creative “influencers” will emerge in response to the demand for a more powerful and engaging content; in addition they will have a significant impact on branding and engagement, in other words a new era of influencers!!!

Instagram and TikTok are anticipated to see an increase in ad spending in 2022, thanks to the growing popularity of short-form video content or what is known as reels, and Instagram will continue to grow beyond its 50% ad income share. Customer service and relationship management, which have been underutilized in social media marketing, will eventually thrive on these platforms.

2– WELCOME TO THE METAVERSE
From 2D to 3D Web

In October 2021, Mark Zuckerberg announced a company name change to “Meta” signifying Facebook, Inc.’s desire to shape the metaverse’s metamorphosis. The word relates to the virtual and augmented reality possibilities. Users can engage, socialize, explore, and produce content in a virtual world, and use block-chain technology and crypto-currencies to monetize their virtual transactions. NFTs and crypto-currencies, which enable to monetize interactions by creating and selling digital artifacts, are inextricably related to the metaverse (or Web3). Web3 is predicted to be a major commercial issue in 2022, with major companies such as Nike, Adidas, Gucci, Dolce & Gabbana, Burberry, Microsoft, and others are supporting it.

3– The enlargement and speeding up of Crypto & NFT

Non-fungible tokens (“NFTs”) had a considerable surge in usage in 2021, and this trend is expected to continue in 2022. NFTs, a novel value exchange mechanism in the global online economy (and one of the most notable digital trends of the 2021), have the potential to revolutionize the value and function of digital assets and artworks, allowing artists to earn resale royalties, among other things. Real estate, debt, bonds, shares, virtual art and even actual collectibles are among the types of assets that can be linked to NFTs, according to the Frankfurt School Block-chain Centre, which expects a $1.5 trillion market for tokenized assets in Europe over the next three years. 

4– AI is still the future

Artificial Intelligence (AI) has the potential to alter how we think about, create and consume food, or fashion and even how we look for work. Many firms are using AI to extend the way they analyze and appraise job prospects, according to Michael Spranger, COO of Sony’s artificial intelligence team. He also mentions that some of the most fascinating AI applications in gastronomy would expand chefs’ and culinary specialists’ imagination and inventiveness beyond what is currently achievable. Furthermore, robots such as Flippy are already flipping burgers at McDonald’s and other eateries.

5– An increase in connectivity leading to more digital transformation

A faster connection will be enabled by 5G and the new Wi-Fi 6 standard, which is critical if the globe is to adopt these new digital trends. “Future applications will include smart cities, the internet of things, and vehicle-to-vehicle communications; which would ideally improve traffic flow and safety,” said Jerry Paradise, vice president of product management at Lenovo, a Chinese computer company.

Working from home will become more “hybrid,” according to Lenovo, as consumers and businesses continue to think outside the box. The vast majority of IT executives anticipate working outside the office in the future, using smaller and smarter devices, as well as wireless and noise-cancelling headphones. In this vein, hybrid employees are expected to participate in video meetings and make phone calls not only from their home office, but from ANYWHERE.

6– New Workplace, New Skills

With the workplace changing, it is likely that skills will follow. According to the World Economic Forum, new occupations will account for 27% of large corporate employee bases in 2022, while technologically obsolete positions will decline from 31% to 21%. A shift in the labor division between humans, computers, and algorithms has the potential to eliminate 75 million current job openings while creating 133 million new ones. 

There will still be a high demand for data analysts, software and application developers, e-commerce specialists, and most importantly social media specialists including in retail. In the meantime, many “human” jobs, such as customer service, organizational development, and innovation management, are expected to grow. So, rather than “taking our jobs,” AI will create jobs and ensure employment in a variety of fields, as well as accelerate larger digital trends.

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