As technology evolves and startups jump on these advancements, a few industries are fundamentally changing. And as these industries push forward, they create even greater advancements of their tech.
Curious what market sector is most likely to be disrupted in the next few years, we asked a group of startup founders the following question:
“What industry do you believe is going to have the biggest advancements in technology in the next five years, and why?”
Here’s what YEC community members had to say:
Big Data
“There’s no doubt in my mind given the trends we’ve already seen that big data will be huge in the future. What I mean is that companies will have better access to big data, instead of drowning in it with little options for accessing all that it has to offer. I’m confident we’ll see better ROI on enterprise datasets which will allow us to tackle entirely new business problems.” ~ Rob Fulton, Exponential Black
Healthcare
“Aging baby boomers, increased regulation and expanding access to healthcare — all of these factors mean that we’ll need to find new and better ways of managing medical systems. Healthcare will be one of the first industries to make full use of artificial intelligence, nanotechnology, virtual reality, predictive analytics and the Internet of things.” ~ Alexandra Levit, Inspiration at Work
3D Printing
“Some businesses won’t need to carry a single piece of sellable inventory. Everything will be manufactured “just-in-time” as it is ordered. I recently heard that Amazon was building 3D factories next to their distribution centers specifically for this purpose. It’s wonderful.” ~ Justin Boggs, ZeeBerry.com
Commercial Real Estate
“The commercial real estate industry is ripe for technology companies. Companies like Zillow have shown what technology can do for residential real estate. In the next five years, tech companies have big opportunities in CRE focus areas like commercial lending, commercial listing services and commercial real estate property management.” ~ Brett Farmiloe, Markitors
Virtual Reality
“Virtual reality is going to be bigger than mobile and apps. Many startups are already seeking magnificent traction. Our entire way of learning, communicating and how we experience our existence with one another is going to take 3D form with virtual reality. Also, people won’t care what model phone you have — it’ll be what goggles you wear.” ~ Beck Bamberger, BAM Communications
Batteries
“Batteries are something that every person uses on a daily basis. This is a technology that is ripe for innovation. Hundreds of companies, universities and individuals are working on this. In the next five years it will advance faster than any other technology.” ~ John Rampton, Due
Clothing Manufacturing
“With the advent of ‘victimless leather,’ which has grown out of immortalized cell lines cultured and formed into a living layer of tissue, advances in science will allow factories to grow leather goods. This will change how we cultivate leather (less cruelly) and allow us to revolutionize the entire clothing manufacture process; similar to how 3D printing has changed the game.” ~ Cody McLain, SupportNinja
Finance
“The finance industry — specifically banking, lending and investing — are going to change dramatically in the next five years. Companies like Wealthfront, Betterment, Lending Club and AngelList are starting to transform the way finance is conducted, and we will only see more dramatic change coming up.” ~Randy Rayess, VenturePact
Retail
“Retail is one of the industries that is going to benefit from major technology advancements over the coming years. From digital storefronts to shoppable windows, and from interactive fitting rooms to innovative new shopping apps, the way we buy products we love is transforming thanks to technology. Every step of the retail process is being made more efficient, fun or engaging due to technology.” ~Doreen Bloch, Poshly Inc.
Marketing
“Marketing is going to become even more powerful. As phones and social media become more ingrained in peoples’ lives, I can see marketing following suit. It might be common to find yourself buying ads for apps on phones based on peoples’ location — down to the storefront they’re near. This type of extreme targeting in advertising is going to revolutionize how people use their storefronts to compete.” ~ Kumar Arora, Aroridex, Ltd.
Education
“Technology has transformed education and will continue to do so (for example, Yale offering a legitimate online master’s degree). Students will be more likely to seek out services online that will help them get into college, like tutors or admissions counselors. Also, because of the government’s reduced funding in education, parents will be looking online for innovative homeschooling tools.” ~ Firas Kittaneh, AstraBeds
[“Source-smallbiztrends”]
