The Sentinel Report is one of Globant’s initiatives to help our clients stay relevant through the observation of market trends, insights, and industry behavior from all over the world.

This information is meant to inspire new thoughts and initiate new conversations about products, services, ideas, and opportunities in an effort to help us be more creative and innovative in our solutions.Observation and action are at the core of any sustainable strategy, and we believe that this is a great way to create a positive trend.We encourage you to share this information with your colleagues and deepen your understanding of the concepts and ideas we present here.

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Being aware of new technologies and their potential impact is not just a useful conversation starter, is the behavior of a smart professional who is committed to the constant transformation imposed by our digital world.

To lead a transformation requires constant insight and a hunger for staying relevant.At Globant we strive to stay relevant and to help our customers stay relevant through actionable insights.

In this edition of our Sentinel Report we want to make you aware of groundbreaking technologies that are making an impact in the world and that can potentially impact your industry even though they may seem outlandish at the moment.

Stay relevant, stay aware and anticipate the changes will help you lead the way.

Come with us to discover some of the technologies and advancements that will change the world as we see it now...

HYPERCONNECTIVITY Is the use of many systems and devices so that you are always connected to social networks and other sources of information.

COLLINS DICTIONARY

Source: https://www.collinsdictionary.com/dictionary/english/hyperconnectivity

A Hyperconnected society is not yet a reality, but it could be by 2020 thanks to the introduction of one more piece needed to complete the big puzzle of technologies: An infrastructure that enables the implementation of 5G networks. In fact, 5G is not the simple evolution of 4G, as 4G was the evolution of 3G. 5G will completely change the Internet as we know it.

5G will provoke radical changes in our lives, because its stability, wide coverage, speed and latency will allow e-objects to increase their functionalities, allowing us to be connected to different devices, at the same time, regardless our location. Even domestic appliances, public lights, and crops will be connected to the internet. Imagine, millions of objects connected to the internet in the same location, at the same time!

This is the most challenging and greatest 5G goal to be accomplished, and it is imperative to the proliferation of complementary computing techniques like Fog and Edge. Such architectures will create a bridge between the Cloud, and the smart devices bringing computing power and storage services closer to where the data is produced, reducing response times and latency.

But, what kind of developments will we be using when 5G is widespread? What will be the changes in our daily lives? Let’s travel to the future...

HYPERCONNECTIVITY

It is the next major evolution of mobile communication technology with performance improvements of several orders of magnitude over today's networks.

Source: https://www.qorvo.com/design-hub/blog/getting-to-5g-comparing-4g-and-5g-system-requirements

Latency < 1ms

Data Traffic50 Exabytes/Month (2021)

Peak Data Rates20Gb/s

Available spectrum30GHz

Connection Density1 Million Connections/km2

Connection Density100 thousand

Connections/km2

Available spectrum3GHz

Peak Data Rates1Gb/s

Data Traffic7.2 Exabytes/Month

Latency10ms

4G 5G

HYPERCONNECTIVITY

With the introduction of 5G, 8K video with a resolution of 7680 x 4320 will be the standard quality. Nowadays, even though in many areas 4G is the standard, consuming 4K video content is not common due to latency and bandwidth limitations. 5G is aiming to facilitate the reproduction of 4K / 8K video and even videos of higher resolutions, benefiting a variety of industries such as advertising, marketing, streaming and entertainment. These industries will be able to think and implement new and innovative ways to connect with customers due to the wide-availability of 5G. The broadcasting and consumption of high quality video anywhere will be common thanks to this technology.

Niche communities like gaming on the cloud (Gloud) are becoming more popular, high demands of GPU computing power and more complex games require high capabilities of communication network. 5G will enable massification of such services, among other intensive graphic applications like CAD, hence advanced graphics processing will be the norm.

HYPERCONNECTIVITY

Autonomous Vehicles

Autonomous vehicles will produce a flood of data of around 4000 Gb per day. Nowadays, latency is one of the major limitations that the vehicle industry is facing, as security features require low latencies to prevent accidents and emergencies while driving. 5G will improve latency, so self-driving cars may be a reality everywhere.

Source https://datacenterfrontier.com/autonomous-cars-could-drive-a-deluge-of-data-center-demand/

Growth in the importance of Edge and Fog Technologies

As the amount of data produced by different devices and vehicles grow, the cloud could get saturated by too many service and storage requests. Here is when complementary technologies like Mobile Edge Computing and Fog start being more relevant in the big picture. Those technologies provide computing power, request generation and storage of the data in a given area, while the cloud provides regional coverage.

Source: https://disruptive.asia/fog-computing-future-cloud-5giot-world/

Massification of IoT

The 5G will be used widely in transport and logistics in fleet management and goods tracking; the utilities sector will use 5G for smart metering and grid management; agriculture may use it to monitor weather and livestock; parking sensors, waste management and smart lightning will be some of the uses of 5G in smart cities. This technology will also allow other industrial, environmental, utilities and general consumer uses.

Source: https://www.iotsolutionprovider.com/industrial/connect-the-dots-massive-5g-readies-to-take-low-latency-iot-mainstream

HYPERCONNECTIVITY

5G networks, still under development, will be functioning in some of the major cities of the world by 2020. This standard plus the fast adoption of IoT, AI and robotics are revolutionizing the way we communicate.

High speed internet networks have enabled the advance in the implementation of remote work. Teams can now collaborate no matter the distance, as long as there is a good internet connection, hence people are able to collaborate with one another in geographically distributed teams. But, is this approach suitable for all jobs? At first you can say remote work is not for everyone. Today some jobs need that the person performing the activity is physically present in a given place. However, the connection speed and very low latency of 5G networks will make it possible for those types of jobs to be performed remotely.

For example, an expert in aircraft mechanics needs to be physically in the same place as the equipment, the team and the aircraft. What about surgeons? To conduct a surgery, they need to be in the surgery room with the patient, the medical team and the right equipment in order to perform their job in the best way possible. Well, maybe for these specialized skilled workers remote work could be a reality thanks to virtual reality and 5G speed.

PROFESSIONAL OPINION

Let’s imagine a situation where a doctor needs to work remotely. For that to be feasible, it is fundamentally necessary to have a VR device. The device should have high quality video, such as 8K and above, without lagging, and to count on robotic equipment to perform the procedure with precision in the surgery room. Furthermore, he will need a great deal of sensors and electronic machines controlling the patient’s fluids, heart rate, oxygen and other indicators that enable health professionals to make fast decisions. This seems as something very futuristic, but the current technological scenario could make something like this happen in a matter of years. In fact, current research has demonstrated that it could be possible to perform surgery remotely with a robot arm and a high performance communication channel.

If something as complex as operating a human remotely becomes a reality over this cutting-edge network the possibilities and opportunities are limitless. This is how 5G will directly take us to a hyperconnected world.

HYPERCONNECTIVITY

Refers to the combination of real and virtual environments with human-machine interactions generated by specially designed devices. It is comprised of Virtual Reality (VR), Mixed Reality(MR) and Augmented Reality (AR), and may include other new immersive technologies.

Source: Forrester, How to know if extended reality has a place in your innovation strategy, JP Gownder, April 26 2017.

MIXED REALITYAn environment created by adding computer generated elements to the real world in a way that allows them to interact in real time.

Source: https://www.collinsdictionary.com/submission/17977/mixed+reality, https://www.collinsdictionary.com/dictionary/english/augmented-reality, https://www.collinsdictionary.com/dictionary/english/virtual-realit,, Image credit

AUGMENTED REALITYAn artificial environment created through the combination of real-world and computer-generated data.

VIRTUAL REALITY is an environment which is produced by a computer and seems very like reality to the person experiencing it.

COLLINS DICTIONARY

EXTENDED REALITY (XR)

1968Augmented Reality (AR) is born with Sketchpad, the first program used to create images directly on a display screen with a lightpen.

Source: https://vydia.com/evolution-augmented-reality/

EXTENDED REALITY (XR)

1990AR enters the business world. Something similar to what we know today was generated with graphics overlaid over a real object.

2009AR opens for consumers. Increased number of organizations started using ARToolkit when this technology was released as an open source project.

2017AR as we know it. Pokémon Go became a huge global success, was the first AR centric app to be downloaded millions of times, and can be named as the start of the mobile AR app movement.

2020The use and adoption of AR will pass the borders of entertainment to become an important part of many industries to make and optimize products and services.

TodayAR is mostly used for brand engagement, games and recreational apps.

The main challenge that Extended Reality solves, is how to translate information that is captured in two dimensions, i. e., a computer screen, mobile phone screen or even a piece of paper into a digital environment. An object is overlaid digitally into the real world in order to mix both worlds to help us solve a given problem. We can expect that in a near future different types of extended reality will be involved in every aspect of our daily lives. However, for this to be possible, hardware and app development will need to go further in order to push the industry forward.

EXTENDED REALITY (XR)

Thanks to the use of Extended Reality (XR) to help drivers access information to navigate, find places, status of the road, or even controlling the car metrics will completely change the way we drive. By using holographic processing and overlaid information in the windshield of the vehicle, drivers could be more focused on the road than on the electronic devices that help them in the driving experience, such as GPS or onboard computers.

This, could be closer than we imagine as Nvidia has recently unveiled Xavier and Drive AR which are the autonomous machine processor and the SDK (Software Development Kit) that leverage AI (Artificial Intelligence) and AR (Augmented Reality) to improve the driving experience. This is a step forward to the final goal of a processing platform for production of autonomous vehicles. Another breakthrough, will be the use of XR in Education.

This is one of the fields that may take the most advantage of extended reality to boost its methods, and help students and teachers to facilitate the process of learning. There are many different applications in this field but, the one that is more relevant is in health care teaching. Leveraging this technology will enable students to understand the way a human body works by the implementation of holograms and graphic processed images that are close to reality.

Source:https://blogs.nvidia.com/blog/2018/01/07/drive-xavier-processor/

EXTENDED REALITY (XR)

WalgreensSimplified customers’ store visits

Walgreens is the first retailer in the US to have all the stores 3D mapped in an app. It helps customers to find where products are located, lists and offers while shopping down the aisle. This virtual mapping and navigation smartphone app was designed to save customers’ time and help them to find the right products.

Source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MN46r-IZk8o&t=2s

Microsoft Hololens Brings physical and digital world together

It is a holographic computer that enables the users to interact with holograms around and to engage with them. Useful to place information in the real context of their working environment. It features various sensors, advanced optics and a holographic processing unit that helps employees to interact with digital content beyond the screen. Through mixed reality it blends places, objects and people from the physical world with a digital world.

Source: https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/hololens

Vuforia Chalk Facilitating remote assistance with AR

It is an AR solution that facilitates remote problem-solving, enabling employees to collaborate and work together even if they are in different physical places. It combines audio and video with a tool to make live annotations in their shared view even if people are moving around.

Source https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b6DFbMoks-8

EXTENDED REALITY (XR)

Investors are craving this technology.Multiple devices are more powerful and affordable than before, and the development of apps is easier thanks to the availability of different platforms.

IDC: “Spending on AR/VR products and services is forecast to reach $27 billion in 2018, a 92% increase year over year.”

Source: IDC Press Release, Worldwide Spending on Augmented and Virtual Reality to Achieve a Five-Year CAGR of 71.6% by 2022,According to IDC, May 31st 2018.

EXTENDED REALITY (XR)

PROFESSIONAL OPINION

Extended Reality has evolved into a more stable niche. From a developer’s edition to a mix of two worlds. It combines the best of each environment, the physical and digital/virtual objects as they interact in real time.

In addition to Microsoft, many players with an industrial strategy are jumping into the head mounted display market to provide a wider set of options and configurations in terms of sensor technology and headsets. Augmented reality wearable technology products like Daqri, or those targeted to monitor and evaluation such as the Magic Leap (still a type of developer’s edition) are developed to interconnect digital content to reality in order to improve communication, boost productivity and streamline essential business processes. However, it's clear that massive adoption is not yet ready, though it seems to be on track as it proves to deliver better, practical and more enjoyable experiences.

On the software side, clearly the experience on video game development as well as motion capture and animated movies is the pipeline for content creation, and has bootstrapped the development, making it very similar to previous disciplines. Nevertheless, this technology is just at a starting point. There is still a lot to be discovered in terms of VR/AR UX/UI, audio, presence and other considerations to make the experience more enjoyable and memorable.

Companies with knowledge on the creation of multidisciplinary emotion-based experiences are a key asset for partnerships given that other organizations and industries will need to adapt in order to craft these unique experiences and get the attention of younger generations. At Globant we are looking at that trend, especially for process automation industry with the Rockwell investment on Vuforia, a very well known AR framework.

EXTENDED REALITY (XR)

ROBOTAny automated machine programmed to perform specific mechanical functions in the manner of a human.

COLLINS DICTIONARY

Source: https://www.collinsdictionary.com/dictionary/english/robot

Machine Learning (ML) and Artificial Intelligence (AI) are two associated areas and the evolution taking place is moving very fast, in fact, robots will increase their presence in business and other fields. For example, Boston Dynamics is making a huge progress in researching and developing robots that are able to perform tasks that require the ability to move and have strength as humans do. Seeing such development poses a big question...

Are we going to see these humanoids everywhere soon?

ROBOTS

The fast progress in the field of Robotics makes it difficult to predict where the technology is going to in the near future.

When we think about robots it’s inevitable to remember those famous machines we have seen on films or other visual media throughout the years. What they have in common is that they resemble human beings. Nowadays, it is also common to think about those smaller machines that help us in our daily routines like robot vacuum cleaners. However, what is not so easy to perceive is that we are increasingly interacting with robots we “don’t see”.

For years the gaming industry has faced humans against virtual opponents that are intended to beat the player. On the massive consumer electronics industry, we have started to interact with Siri, Cortana or Alexa that help us on some our daily routines like online shopping, playing music or finding relevant information for us. All these are samples of different degrees of intelligent automation that perform some kind of tasks and each has its own name.

The software that can perform a task like a human is known as a bot (first example), while those that present a conversational interaction are known as chatbots. These “invisible” robots have started to occupy a larger place in our daily life...

ROBOTS

New technologies are increasingly being used to support users of different platforms without any human interaction, making it possible to manage a larger number of cases simultaneously. For example, in the educational industry, some e-learning companies are implementing chatbots in some scenarios in order to support a larger quantity of students without the need of a teacher.

These chatbots allow teachers to be more focused in different tasks and add more value to their activity. At the same time, technologies like RPA (Robotic Process Automation) are enabling the automated execution of business processes and workflows without the "5 year process reengineering plan" through the usage of bots. These bots usually know how to perform a specific and well defined task but advances on AI are allowing them to become more autonomous.

ROBOTS

Robot: Savioke’s Relay

It is an autonomous delivery robot used in hospitality, high-rise buildings and logistics. Used to deliver food, amenities, parcels, manufacturing materials and tools in busy environments such as hotels and factories.

Source: http://www.savioke.com/

Intelligent RPA: Standard Bank AI–powered RPA

Workfusion helped Standard Bank to cut customer onboarding process from twenty days to five minutes, digitizing Africa’s largest bank operations combining simpler RPA and AI.

Source: http://bit.ly/2Pirpes

ROBOTS

Chatbot: Globant’s Solution for Major Education Management Company

Globant’s solution helped a U.S.A. education company to communicate better with students developing a chatbot that is able to scale, and differentiate something as unique as a teacher guiding a student to find answers to different problems. This artificial intelligence-powered assistant helps the organization to process conversations faster and guide students through their learning process in a human-like way.

Source: http://bit.ly/AI-CaseStudy

Since late 19th century, robots have become a source of great interest for humans, especially when we realized that we could build machines stronger and faster than men, and that we could enhance our productivity and improve our lifestyle. Since then, we’ve never stopped dreaming about the future of humans and human-like machines.

The development in technologies such as Internet of Things (IoT), Artificial Intelligence (AI), and mechanical and electronic miniaturization put us on the verge of the robotization of our daily life. Actually, it has already started with voice-controlled devices flooding our homes and the army of smart peripheral devices they bring with them, like vacuum cleaners, dishwashers, curtains, and kids’ toys.

Comfort and leisure are not the only applications for the robotic industry, robots can be used to enhance people’s capabilities. With the attempts of further advancing the human race, governments, universities, and the private sector are developing robots and various machines to help us leap forward in fields where otherwise we wouldn’t be able to access.

PROFESSIONAL OPINION

ROBOTS

We will be able to reach outer space and Mars colonization with NASA’s Valkyrie; or explore the deep ocean thanks to Stanford’s Ocean One and Harvard’s Soft Robot. These applications are developed to go where humans aren’t able, and to do what humans can’t.

In the last few years the Consumer Electronic Show (CES) - an annual event that gathers industry leaders since 1957 - we have seen a clear upward trend of Robots and AI projects. We can infer that there is still a lot more to come in the near future, therefore our lives will be greatly improved and enhanced. For the last decade, Tesla has revolutionized the automotive industry with their luxury electric cars. For instance, Tesla’s self-driving car, is in fact a car-shaped robot that, thanks to its technology, promises a much safer commute for billions of people. Robots will be an integral part of our lives and will make it easier, more comfortable and safer. Could we be talking about a future without car accidents?

Source: https://www.ted.com/talks/david_autor_why_are_there_still_so_many_jobs#t-1105408

Actually not, quite the opposite. These invisible robots are enabling people to dedicate their time to more interesting tasks on their jobs, making possible a better usage of human capabilities. Of course there is no easy way of understanding what the jobs of the future will look like, but so far it looks shiny.

We currently live in an ecosystem where bots are a peer population. If we embrace the concept, we open ourselves to find a more beneficial and mutual relationship, whether that relationship is just cooperation, or full scale symbiosis as the futurists would have it. In any case, we will evolve the place and role we believe is "ours" in that ecosystem.

In the end, bots can be understood as things that let us shift the burden of the least fulfilling activities away from ourselves, while retaining the value they give. Fish don’t “see” water. We’ll be “seeing” bots even less.

ROBOTS

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