22 ways technology could change the world by 2025

Ever since the works of Joseph Schumpeter in the 1930s and Robert Solow in the 1950s, economists have believed that most growth comes from technology, not labour and capital inputs. For them, it’s not so much about Earth’s resources but how we use them. 

This concept should excite business leaders. It means there is no limit to the potential growth of companies, profitability, or what they can achieve. Firms that leverage technology will see their margins explode, as is clear from the recent success of Microsoft, Google, Facebook, Amazon and other members of the “Magnificent Seven.”

At Click4Assistance, we expect technology to continue transforming businesses. By 2025, we hope to see broad technological breakthroughs that change industries and verticals forever. 

Furthermore, adopting these innovations isn’t optional. Firms must implement them as they emerge to remain competitive, updating their business models as required. 

The following are some ways technology could change the business world by 2025. 

AI-Optimised Manufacturing

AI-optimised manufacturing involves exploiting sensor information on production lines to improve performance and resource allocation. Rudimentary software crunches incoming data to determine whether operatives should make process adjustments. Meanwhile, more advanced systems perform wider integrations and account for inventory levels, sales data, and market trends, allowing them to forecast demand fluctuations, streamline logistics, and reduce inventory costs. 

Robotic systems can integrate into AI-optimised manufacturing, adjusting their work rate according to incoming data. For example, systems can lower their output in response to changes in other inputs, demand, or supply chain situations. 

AI-optimised manufacturing is already being used in the real world and will only improve into 2025. For example, GE uses AI for preventive maintenance to reduce jet engine servicing costs. Sensors track various engine metrics, reducing the risk of costly in-flight failures and damage to ancillary equipment. BMW uses similar systems in a production setting. AI-vision inspects car bodies for defects, replacing the old system where employees would take photos of components from various angles to identify issues. 

What’s impressive about BMW’s implementation is that the AI vision works independently of angle and lighting. Cameras can inspect vehicle parts and component placements from multiple positions and still provide reliable insights. 

Going into 2025, the future applications of AI-optimised manufacturing are also exciting. Commentators expect a shift away from cost-minimisation to personalisation and closed-loop applications. For example, vendors may deploy AI to facilitate more bespoke product creation, based on users’ requirements. Patio door companies could take customer measurements online and feed these into their factory systems. 

Likewise, closed-loop manufacturing could take waste products from existing manufactured items and reinsert them into the system for the next round of production. This approach would reduce waste from off-cuts (a significant problem in many conventional manufacturing firms). 

In summary, embracing the AI-optimised manufacturing revolution could change the world in the following ways: 

• 1. Efficiency gains, allowing firms to optimise their processes and reduce downtime
• 2. Make more data-driven decisions based on the best available information relating to production planning and resource allocation
• 3. Improving the quality of output by detecting errors that might lead to customer complaints and recalls

Energy Transformation

Despite the technologies' newness, virtual and augmented reality are already

Hot on the heels of AI-optimised manufacturing is energy transformation – something we expect to take off in 2025. The price of renewable energy sources is collapsing, with new and exciting technologies on the horizon, such as deep-well geothermal, pocket-sized nuclear reactors, and fusion energy proof-of-concept. 

The near-term effect of the energy transformation will be mainly in the power generation industry. Investment in coal and gas electricity production will likely fall further, setting up future price action to support more renewable buildouts. However, manufacturing firms will also feel the effects. Companies will begin fitting solar panels to their premises’ roofs as standards to reduce electricity demand during the day and overall costs paid to utility suppliers. 

The EV industry could also see transformations before 2025 depending on government policy and the speed of new rollouts. The advent of solid-state batteries could reduce the cost and increase the range of vehicles significantly. The Lucid Air already has a range of 410 miles, with the Mercedes-Benz EQS just behind at 400. 

The evidence that an energy transformation is already underway is all around us. Hybrid and electric car manufacturers already comprise 16.9% of all new car registrations (April 2024), an unthinkable figure just a few years ago. And 1.28 million British households have solar panels – 4.5% of the total.

Before 2025, we could see further developments. For instance, the UK could expand fuels derived from plant and animal materials, increasing the supply of green hydrocarbons for powering legacy equipment and machinery. More exciting projects could also get underway, including some to harness energy from the Earth’s core. Various startups want to drill into the magma to access superheated rocks to make steam to drive turbines from electricity. Researchers already have drill technology they believe is up to the task in an exciting development. 

The energy transformation could change the world in the following ways by 2025: 

• 4. Reduced operational costs because of energy-efficient practices
• 5. Allow firms to appeal to eco-conscious audiences and consumers
• 6. Improve compliance with regulations and ESG mandates

Quantum Computing

As the energy transformation gains momentum, some commentators also believe quantum computing’s time is now. 2025 may be the year when commercial applications take off.

Quantum computing is exciting because it changes how computation is done. Instead of using the usual bits, quantum computers use indeterminate qubits, allowing the machines to perform a subset of calculations infinitely faster than conventional Turing-based machines. 

Companies that embrace quantum computing in the run-up to 2025 and beyond will experience considerable benefits, including the ability to solve problems previously beyond their reach. Firms could streamline their operations to boost margins or fix issues preventing them from providing customers with optimal services. 

Numerous companies are already using quantum computing in their operations. For example, Daimler (the parent company of Mercedes-Benz) recently collaborated with IBM to create a quantum computer to simulate materials for the next EV battery. The firm believes it can identify structures that will let it overcome the limitations of existing lithium-ion technology.

JP Morgan Chase is also exploring the advantages of quantum computing for its investment clients. The world’s largest bank believes it can use the technology to improve hedging across financial markets. 

Finally, Boehringer Ingelheim is partnering with Google’s quantum computing lab to discover drugs. The technology enables it to test almost unlimited molecular combinations to determine potential medicine candidates for in-silico modelling. 

If quantum computing takes off in 2025, the economic and social consequences could be groundbreaking. Financial institutions might better manage risk, while logistics companies could make more efficient deliveries. Even energy companies could benefit if quantum technology enables improved battery chemistries. 

In summary, the advent of quantum computers could impact the world in the following ways by 2025:

• 7. Allow manufacturers, logistics firms and supply chain enterprises to perform superior route optimisation by assessing all possible routes simultaneously (instead of searching them one by one, like a conventional computer)
• 8. Unveil more complex patterns in financial systems, enhancing trading algorithms for hedge funds and money managers
• 9. Playing with various molecular interactions in biological settings to enhance drug discovery and predict compounds offering the most promise
• 10. Finding new materials with desirable properties (including optimal atomic arrangements for room-temperature superconductors)

Artificial Intelligence

Artificial intelligence is the big daddy of technological innovation and perhaps humanity’s greatest innovation thus far. In the fullness of time, AI may replace the requirement for human cognition in economic processes, offering surging economic gains. 

In light of this, chatbots could provide customer support twenty-four-seven, answering questions and personalising product recommendations. Live chat software for website owners could be operational around the clock, boosting customer service and helping to utilise existing staff better. 

AI could also help businesses make more data-driven decisions. Tools may assist in predicting customer behaviour and optimising marketing campaigns, reducing reliance on intuition and gut feeling (which can be unreliable). 

Finally, AI could improve production through physical channels (as discussed in a manufacturing context above), and through cognitive ones. Higher output could feed on itself as systems become better at self-regulating and managing operations. 

Industries are already leveraging AI in numerous settings. For example, ecommerce enterprises like Amazon and eBay already use product recommendation engines showing customers items that may interest them. Going forward, this technology may evolve to where AI can tailor shopping experiences in real-time, based on user inputs and mood.

Similarly, AI is already proving useful in medical systems. Machine vision models can identify calcifications in breast tissues and enlarged lymph nodes on MRI scans. 

We’re even seeing companies use AI in fraud prevention. Financial institutions are increasingly tracking money movements to determine whether they are legitimate. The same is true of IT desks for cybersecurity.

Here’s a quick rundown of how AI will impact the world in the near term:

• 11. Improve customer service while lowering the price by offering full-functional chatbots capable of responding in natural language
• 12. Enable companies to make more data-driven decisions about their products, services, and operations

Biotechnology And Genomics

Biotechnology and genomics could also lead to sudden and unexpected improvements in business outlook in the coming years. Laboratories gaining control over the fundamental elements of life processes could steer them in directions that serve humanity more. 

Companies should consider jumping on the genomics train because of the enormous benefits researchers expect it to bring. A proper understanding of biotechnology promises the development of new product classes from the ground up. 

For example, companies might genetically engineer microbes to break down plastic in landfills and the ocean or generate hydrocarbons for use as fuel. Some microbes may also convert water into hydrogen and oxygen more efficiently than existing species, kickstarting the hydrogen economy. 

Already, some companies are using microbes for so-called “bioremediation.” Engineering the genetics of some species lets them clear oil spills faster and remove other toxins. Other companies are using biotech to personalise nutrition. These use genetic inputs to determine an individual’s optimal dietary pattern. 

Moving into 2025, we could see further developments. For example, startups and research firms may begin using biotechnology to engineer superior materials for construction and aerospace. These could reduce the requirement for mineral extraction (and CO2 emissions), leaving more of the heavy lifting to nature itself.

Companies could also see the growth of longevity-related solutions as individuals attempt to maximise their healthspan. Small molecules or gene editing tools could pave the way to disease reduction and greater human flourishing.

Getting started on biotech ventures is challenging because of the costs and regulatory hurdles. Therefore, startups should partner with existing biotech companies. Gaining access to collaborative development and ideas could drive innovation. 

In summary, here’s how advances in biotech could change the world in profound ways by 2025:

• 13. Improve the reach of personalised medicine, allowing pharmacists to develop drugs for specific individuals based on their biomarkers and genetics
• 14. Personalising nutrition to reduce the development of chronic disease
• 15. Create drugs using CRISPR technology with fewer side effects
• 16. Develop crop varieties more resistant to pests and harsh weather while increasing yields

Cybersecurity

As business becomes increasingly digital, the value of cybersecurity is also increasing. Companies harnessing it successfully can protect their operations and customers. 

Cybersecurity is already playing an essential role in several industries, including finance. Banking institutions are leveraging it to safeguard sensitive financial data and prevent fraud. 

Most of these changes are AI-driven. Intelligent software can crunch network data and flag anomalies, taking immediate action before human review becomes available. Instantaneous encirclement prevents more serious damage, reducing the risk of fraud. 

Real-world applications in healthcare, retail, and energy are coming to the fore. For example, many ecommerce stores are now enabling multi-factor authentication in transactions. Users must provide additional verification to access accounts beyond a password (such as a code sent to their phone). 

Some healthcare providers also put sensitive patient medical history documents on the blockchain, using companies like BurstIQ. It enables a decentralised environment, allowing individuals to determine whom they hand details, when, and for how long. Data remains immutable and tamper-proof, and only available to the person with permission to view it via blockchain technology.

Lastly, cybersecurity is essential in the energy sector due to the worsening geopolitical situation. Siemens, E.ON, Duke Energy, Iberdrola, and General Electric invest considerably in the protective technology. For example, Duke Energy is investing in company experts to provide essential backup systems to secure the U.S. power grid while Spanish firm Iberdrola is partnering with the European Network for Cyber Security to make its defences more robust.

By 2025, AI-powered threat detection will likely be more effective. Systems will learn from existing data sets and possibly reason themselves about hackers’ next move. 

Cybersecurity mesh architecture may also grow in importance. Using holistic approaches across device ecosystems may provide more value than relying on software alone. 

Putting it all together, embracing new cybersecurity technologies could enhance businesses in several ways by 2025, including:

• 17. Reducing the risks of litigation and devastating financial loss (including via hacking and ransomware-based attacks)
• 18. Improving competitive advantage by proving to investors and customers that business systems are secure 
• 19. Boosting trust and demonstrating a commitment to data integrity to win sales

5G

Finally, 5G is likely to reach maturity in 2025 in most developed countries, enabling new levels of business. The technology facilitates high-bandwidth communications using a different protocol from 4G and previous iterations.

The main benefit for businesses is the enhanced mobile broadband. 5G promises to let users download large files in seconds, stream high-definition videos, and use VR/AR without a fixed broadband connection. 

The protocol is also ultra-low latency, meaning the delay between sending and receiving information is negligible. This makes it an excellent option for time-sensitive applications, like autonomous cars and robot surgeries. 

Already, companies in the real world are using 5G. According to data from Huawei, 7,000 factories across China now use 5G networks for their operations. 

Surgeons are also using the mobile data standard for remote surgeries. This development means doctors can provide physical services without being present in the operating room. 

Finally, automakers want to use 5G in connected cars. High-frequency communication systems provide important location information for real-time control.

In summary, 5G could change the world by 2025 by: 

• 20. Providing smart grids for more efficient and effective power distribution
• 21. Improving the customer experience by enabling more brand interactions at a lower cost
• 22. Boosting the performance of the IoT and sensor-dependent supply chains

2025: A Big Year For Tech

Many business leaders found the 2010s a disappointing decade for tech. We got mobile apps, and that was about it. However, the 2020s are shaping up to be far more transformative, offering everything from artificial intelligence to the power of mature gene editing. As such, firms falling behind the trend risk being left behind.