Gartner Identifies seven major future IT issues and vaguely predicts human augmentation

Gartner has identified seven business and IT issues that CIOs should act on during the next three years

Beyond 2020, Gartner analysts forecast that two emerging trends will become $1 billion markets. First, human augmentation, a technology that focuses on creating cognitive and physical improvements as an integral part of the human body is slowly but steadily becoming a reality and enhancing peoples’ lives. The second trend is wireless power devices. By 2011, there will be more than 1 billion PCs and 5 billion mobile phones in use in the world, and based on the levels of demand Gartner foresees cumulative sales from wireless power products surpassing $1 billion by 2020.

Not sure what they mean by human augmention, since the steroids and human growth hormone businesses are already larger than billion markets. Also, the drugs for cognitive enhancement are more than a billion market. Is Gartner referring to some new genetic or stem cell therapies ?

ABI Research identified human augmentation technology (exoskeletons, Powered Prostheses and Optical Sensory Devices) to grow to $877 million by 2020

powered exoskeletons — robotic frameworks designed to enhance the strength of the wearer — will see a CAGR of 68% over the forecast period of 2010-2020, and will be used primarily in military and medical settings initially, due to their high cost of manufacture. Advanced powered upper-limb prostheses, which include myoelectric and nerve-controlled limbs with articulating digits, will post a CAGR of 28.5% over the forecast period, while ocular sensory-substitution devices for the blind, such as retinal implants and ocular prostheses, will see a CAGR of almost 75% this decade, with more than 16,000 units to be shipped in 2020.

1. Inadequate software management of operational technology (OT) systems will result in a major business failure of a top Global 100 company by 2013.

2. Through 2015, 80 percent of organizations will lack a coherent approach for dealing with information from the collective (social media)

3. Through 2015, pattern-seeking technology (a form of AI) will be the fastest-growing intelligence investment among the most successful Global 2000.

4. By 2016, all Global 2000 companies will use public cloud services.

5. By 2016, one-third of worldwide mobile consumer marketing will be context-awareness-based.

6. By 2016, sustainability will be the fastest-growing enterprise compliance expense worldwide.

7. Innovation accomplishments will be among the top-three selection criteria for new CIOs by 2016.

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