Covid-19 Pandemic will continue to have an influence in our lives in the year 2022. It is a perfect time for us to utilize availability and enhance our strengths, making our skillset more flexible.
This pandemic has transformed the way technology companies think and operate. No old school thought will work anymore as we are reshaping our future with technology.
We could have never imagined companies like Tesla which have transformed the concept of electric self-driven cars into reality. India has its own share of electric cars from companies like Tata and everyone now is in the race to create more robust and sustainable technologies.
We have moved from dial-up modems to 2g, 3g, 4g and now 5G with 6G being in talks already. Things are changing in front of us at a pace which is difficult to catch up.
The top 5 technologies which job aspirants, engineers and technology students can benefit from in year 2022 as market trends are –
#1 Artificial Intelligence (AI)
Hottest field from 2021 and in 2022 will be AI. AI innovators in a field that is hotter than ever and getting more so all the time. Just so you know, of the 9,100 patents received by IBM inventors in the year 2018, about 1600 (or nearly 18 percent) were AI-related.
Artificial Intelligence is important for the future as it forms the very foundation of computer learning. Machine learning is the science of getting computers to act without being explicitly programmed. With AI, computers have the ability to process massive amounts of data and learn through it.
This gives them intelligence to make critical and optimal decisions and discoveries in a very short time as compared to humans. Medical science, robotics, education, manufacturing and research, all are getting more and more influenced and driven by AI or related technologies. Technology giants like Google, Apple, Amazon and Microsoft are spending billions of U.S. dollars in creating AI related products. With that being said, the future for AI is very strong and safe for aspirants who have an interest in this field.
Skills you need to possess to participate in the field of AI are Python programming, Machine Learning, Mathematics and Deep Learning. Markets are expected to grow from around 58 billion U.S. dollars in 2021 to 300+ billion U.S. dollars by 2026.
#2 Cloud Computing/Services
Companies like Pinterest, Instagram, Netflix and Target have already moved to Cloud. It is not just a storage technology anymore. It is a more flexible and robust computing process for the future.
With businesses under pressure to respond faster to changing business conditions, Cloud is the only way to go since it provides resources instantly for expansion. Cloud technology is maturing now to be more secure and agile for today’s needs where the future is becoming more modular on all fronts.
There are many companies which offer cloud platforms with various names (Microsoft Azure, Amazon Web Services, Google Cloud, IBM Cloud, CloudLinux and many more) so do not get confused. Fundamentals should be understood first and then the knowledge of custom services on offer should be pursued.
Knowledge of programming, databases, Linux, networking and APIs are few must haves. Get going and participate in this 300+ billion U.S. dollars industry.
#3 Cyber Security
With a lot of data and wireless networks which operate without human intervention, we are becoming susceptible to all kinds of online threats. We have so much data online related to our personal lives and work and this is a very vulnerable scenario. Here, cyber security comes into play. We see and hear about a lot of threats like phishing, CC theft and ransomware. Cyber security holds a great future as the whole human race will need to be protected from these threats. To play a role in this field, you should have good knowledge and skills of working on operating systems, networking & communication, programming and virtualization. 2022 will be a great year for cyber security as almost all organizations have created dedicated security teams to protect their and customers’ data from these threats.
#4 IOT
It was in the year 1999 when British technologist Kevin Ashton came up with the term Internet of Things (IoT) to define a network that not only connects people, but also the objects around them. Your smart watch, heart monitors, voice recognition in music players, cars and assistants (Amazon Echo dot) are simple examples around you. The Internet of things is fast becoming an integral part of our lives with doorbell cameras, smart light switches, robotic cleaners and we are becoming used to it. It has the ability to transfer data over a network without requiring human to human or human to computer interaction. IoT can make very effective use of AI and machine learning for collecting required data and processing it. Again, Big Data comes into play to process these large sets of data and provide logical analysis.
Top demand IoT skills are Machine learning & AI, Python & JavaScript, Big Data and Node.js.
#5 Big Data and Business Analytics
As per Statista (Business data website), the global big data and business analytics (BDA) is forecasted to grow to 274.3 billion U.S. dollars by end of 2022.
Future being of artificial intelligence and IoT services, data will only increase and will get more complex. With very high volumes, velocity and variety, traditional data processing will not be able to keep up.
This is where newer tools/concepts like big data come in picture. Things like self-driving cars would not be possible without processing complex data.
As a broad definition, big data is very large sets of data which contain greater variety, arriving in increasing volumes and with more velocity. Tools like Hadoop, MapReduce, HBase and Hive are few tools which can be used to process data.
Learning the tools to collect and process Big Data is a very futuristic field and can give your career a great boost if you are interested in analytics.
There are many more technologies which might be missed like 5G and networking but looking at the trend and observation of the tech market, this could be a great point to start.
Everyone who is on a learning path has to follow and grab market trends to be successful and to participate in the future. Start learning and you will be amazed by what the future holds for us and how technology is transforming our lives.
Article by:- 
Zubin Malik
