It is the start of a brand new yr, and I dearly hope 2023 works out higher than I presently assume it would. Economically, we’re in a little bit of bother, however some superb applied sciences are coming to market this yr that I’m wanting ahead to seeing.
CES, which kicks off shortly, would be the first large showcase of what’s coming — and from the pre-briefings I’ve seen, there can be a ton of cool stuff popping out this yr.
Let’s discover lots of that this week. We’ll get to my first Product of the Week for 2023 subsequent week as a result of I ran out of room on this column.
The 2023 Economy Looks Ugly
The previous couple of years haven’t been nice for a number of causes, however principally as a result of governments didn’t take care of the pandemic properly. Shutdowns crippled the provision chain, and when folks began coming again, they needed to purchase stuff, which created an imbalance between provide and demand that had authorities businesses doing horrible issues to rates of interest.
It appears to be like as if 2023 will see these chickens come residence to roost. We’ll have an inauspicious mixture of consumers with no cash however improved manufacturing capability resulting in extreme stock and, I anticipate, accelerating layoffs.

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This must be a time when distributors ramp up advertising for demand technology to seize as a lot of the shrinking market as potential. Still, most will ignore this Business 101 lesson and scale back demand technology as an alternative, permitting these corporations that did audit Business 101 to realize a major share in consequence, on the expense of those who minimize advertising throughout this time.
I feel 2023 will once more showcase that demand administration ought to have each a carrot and a stick, the stick being high-interest charges on borrowing and the carrot being high-interest charges on financial savings. More effort is required to shift perceptions so that purchasing conduct modifications quickly sufficient to mitigate the issue.
Communicating successfully with residents in order that they modify their conduct well timed would, along with rate of interest modifications, have a extra vital, sooner affect on this class of drawback which is especially behavior-based within the first place.
Wars
China will stay an issue largely as a result of its Covid responses are failing, and its authorities is unwilling to ask for assist. China’s vaccines seem ineffective, however as an alternative of in search of international vaccines that work, they wrestle with being overwhelmed by sick folks.
These circumstances could drive an ill-advised warfare with Taiwan to distract from the home points at residence. But the dearth of vaccine effectiveness factors to a extra vital drawback in China and lots of different international locations: the tendency to cowl up points moderately than tackle them. All this implies that China’s army, like Russia’s, could not be capable to carry out in addition to Chinese management expects.
While the dynamics of warfare with Taiwan could appear to be very completely different from the one in Ukraine, overlaying up issues is constant between Russia and China, probably creating the same stalemate between the international locations. However, whereas the battle continues, manufacturing in Taiwan and exports from China will crater and certain create a brand new and even larger provide chain drawback.
Companies are shifting aggressively to mitigate their publicity, however most packages I’ve seen, just like the CHIPS Act, received’t mature till nearer to 2025, leaving us uncovered in 2023. Ukraine is just not anticipated to have the ability to get well its manufacturing capability till two to 5 years after the warfare there ends. Since that has but to happen, there’ll probably proceed to be shortages tied to Ukrainian manufacturing by 2023 — akin to ASIC chips which stay a crucial a part of most electronics, together with vehicles.
Electric Cars
2023 would be the yr that electrical charging capabilities will enhance dramatically, and we’ll start to see the second-generation battery and engine expertise hit the market with elevated vary and efficiency. However, we nonetheless can be wanting making electrical vehicles a correct substitute for fuel automobiles in the case of distance.
Nonetheless, we are going to start to see the discharge of next-generation electrical vehicles and extra enhancements to driver help and in-car leisure capabilities. However, it nonetheless appears to be like like probably the most vital modifications will probably happen in 2024 for the 2025 line of vehicles on account of launch that yr.

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Think of 2023 because the final yr of the present technology electrics and 2024 as the start wave of the subsequent technology electrical vehicles, most definitely to be launched as 2025 fashions.
As a outcome, in 2023, I’d favor shopping for used as an alternative of recent in anticipation of the extra appreciable modifications for the 2025 mannequin yr releases. The exception could be vehicles from distributors like Rivian and Lucid, that are already creating vehicles we may time period subsequent technology, recognizing there are distinctive dangers to purchasing cutting-edge expertise.
Personal Flying Vehicles
We ought to see a formidable variety of electrical flying private leisure automobiles hit the market. Some of those have already been displaying up.

Basically, they use drone expertise scaled as much as fly people, leading to some comparatively straightforward builds and nearly no abilities wanted to fly the issues underneath a leisure flying license. Where I reside, we get common complaints about people flying ultralight automobiles over homes which I’m positive will enhance with these new automobiles.
Still, they appear to be a ton of enjoyable. I’m tempted to select one up myself as a toy that might work each in summer season and, assuming I can deal with the chilly, winter because the near-perfect all-terrain automobile. Just don’t run out of electrical energy at altitude.
Personal Computers
PCs will bear display modifications, from a number of to rolling screens, all year long. Rolling screens had been teased throughout a number of bulletins not too long ago.
The concept of having the ability to magically lengthen your display vertically or horizontally (doing each on the identical time is past us now) might be a sport changer for these of us who bear display measurement envy with present laptops.
Expect extra environment friendly chargers, a a lot better give attention to sustainability general, and a continued effort to seek out that candy spot for PCs as a service (PCaaS).
Look for developments in recycling and customization this yr because the trade slogs by what’s prone to be a very comfortable gross sales interval because of the huge overbuying that occurred over the past a number of years.
Smartphones
A brand new Apple iPhone contender is due, however I’ll discuss that when it launches.
Expect to see rollable shows present up earlier than year-end and enhancements in digital camera software program targeted on making you look higher and serving to you create better-looking avatars to return bundled with the most recent telephones.

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Real-time video streaming enhancements and options will enhance, and we must always get our first have a look at the subsequent technology of AI-based digital assistants earlier than yr’s finish.
Conversational AI has improved since Siri launched considerably, and we must always start seeing the ensuing advantages throughout most platforms subsequent yr.
Look for wi-fi charging enhancements in premium line telephones because the yr progresses.
Videoconferencing and Collaboration
The confusion surrounding whether or not folks will stay residence or return to the workplace actually tousled this phase, and I don’t see the sunshine on the finish of the tunnel but.
As a outcome, options can be numerous, with some targeted on enhancing the expertise in giant rooms and others within the residence.
Expect much better digital camera monitoring with cameras, higher noise isolation with microphones and audio system, and considerably stronger viewers monitoring instruments, which can probably get these enjoying video video games throughout Zoom calls in bother (sure, we all know you do that).
We’ll probably see at the very least one vendor develop a novel solution to clear up the digital camera placement drawback with built-in and aftermarket cameras.
Metaverse
The metaverse is a little bit of a multitude, thanks largely to Meta’s preliminary implementation of it. However, that is ironic as a result of as soon as it matures, the metaverse can have the power to convey a imaginative and prescient of the longer term higher than any prior expertise.
There’s an opportunity that Meta will lastly determine this out and, as an alternative of showcasing the place it’s, start to showcase what it is going to be. Nvidia has been doing this for a while within the business area which, whereas compelling, isn’t but touching most of us.
As a outcome, if Meta doesn’t step as much as speaking a imaginative and prescient, the patron facet of the metaverse will go into decline in 2023, ready for an organization to mix the ability of the metaverse into its skill to convey its advantages and the compelling nature of what it would turn out to be, moderately than the frustration of what it’s presently.
AI and Robotics
2023 can be an enormous yr for AI and robotics. I’m grouping these applied sciences as a result of this would be the yr when AI-driven private robotics expands properly past the preliminary wave of the robotic vacuum cleaner.
I’m anticipating robotic safety options, robotic snow blowers, and even growing numbers of robotic private assistants. We’ll additionally see extra robotic bartenders, french fry machines, and the primary life like prototypes of automated fast-food eating places.

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While we’ll nonetheless be on the very starting of the approaching robotic wave, by the tip of 2023, we must always have a a lot better concept of the place this expertise goes and the way rapidly it would overwhelm us with robotic decisions.
One space that may see an enormous enhance in using synthetic intelligence is the well being care trade. AI can be extra extensively used to create new cures and cures and supply conversational AI interfaces for sufferers needing assist extra rapidly than the ever-more restricted medical workers can present. I’m simply getting over the flu as I write this, so I’m notably wanting ahead to this medical AI enchancment.
Televisions
2023 would be the true emergence of 8K TVs, and we’ll see extra inexpensive rollable show TVs in restricted runs. We’ve had 8K and rollable TVs earlier than however principally in prototype kind. Both applied sciences at the moment are shifting into manufacturing, permitting them to return to market on the excessive finish.
We’ll have a lowered drawback with 8Ks in comparison with the 4K TVs that preceded them because of the enchancment in upscales. While these units will garner lots of consideration, gross sales will probably be hampered by value till costs turn out to be way more cheap than I anticipate in 2023. However, it’s potential that by the tip of the yr, at the very least considered one of these two applied sciences can have gone mainstream.
I feel it’s extra probably that 2025 would be the yr when 8K and rollable show TVs present their potential. It will take at the very least that lengthy to get to a crucial mass of content material and rollable display manufacturing capability to supply the convergence of content material and expertise as a price to the customer.
Wrapping Up
These predictions are removed from exhaustive. I didn’t point out the pivot from air to rail journey in Europe that may speed up subsequent yr, the potential failure of Twitter on account of what I personally foresee as Elon Musk’s deliberately unhealthy alternative for a brand new CEO, or advances in each broadcast energy and microgrids subsequent yr. We even have the renewed promise of fusion energy, although I anticipate that may wait till the second half of the last decade to maneuver into broad trials.
Until now, I didn’t point out advances in robotic people like robotic companions as a result of I nonetheless discover them creepy, autonomous automobiles as a result of they aren’t due in mass till 2025, or robotic pets, which additionally will turn out to be extra pronounced in future years. Farming developments with robotics and vertical farms, advances in illness detection, and the growing problem of protecting personal issues personal can even be ongoing tendencies.
Overall, I anticipate 2023 to be notably tough for corporations that both don’t perceive what market they’re in or pull again too arduous on demand technology funding, permitting their rivals to maneuver round them.
Think of the yr like musical chairs however with cash as an alternative of chairs. There can be a smaller pool of accessible spending {dollars}, and corporations that don’t combat for each penny will probably fail.
I want the very best for you and yours within the new yr, although simply getting by 2023 often is the realistically achievable aim for what might be a difficult yr for many.
The opinions expressed on this article are these of the writer and don’t essentially mirror the views of ECT News Network.