Technology innovation after Covid-19

The coronavirus pandemic has had a huge impact on business across all industries, leading to rapid changes that will have lasting consequence. The past few months have already shown that technology and innovation will play a critical role in business recovery as the world emerges from the crisis.

Lux Research has identified five key trends that will shape technology and innovation in the post-Covid-19 future:

Each of these trends can have a positive or negative influence on an emerging technology. By considering the effects of these trends on technology, we can see how industries are being transformed. Here we take a look at some examples on how these trends can impact business and innovation across industries.

Due to the need for infection prevention and physical distancing, automation has emerged as a major focus in manufacturing and supply chain this year. As the industry assesses which processes can be fully automated in production and logistics, developers of robotics and AI will be able to capitalise on growing demand.

Lux predicts that increased resilience and agility will drive further investments in clean energy, spurring on the energy transition. Bio-based and synthetic fuels, however, will be hit hard by funding constraints and low oil prices.

With increased energy use in the home, due in part to remote working conditions, home energy management is predicted to see a positive medium-term impact.

Concerns over virus spread and sanitation are driving a surge in single-use plastics, meaning recycling solutions for plastic waste will be in high demand. However, plastic waste is a very abundant local feedstock in most areas, increasing resiliency and enabling agility for the long run.

Emerging technologies such as telemedicine will see accelerated adoption, due to the need for infection prevention and a dramatic increase in remote commerce.

The need for infection prevention will also have a positive short-term effect on wearable technologies, which can support tracing efforts and healthcare solutions.

The health sector will also see positive growth in omics, which are a powerful suite of technologies for fighting Covid-19.

Covid-19 has hit the meat supply chain particularly hard with many meat-producing factories being shut down due to outbreaks, driving a near-term boost in demand for alternative proteins. Positive consumer experiences of plant proteins and other alternatives should lead to an increase in demand.

In the longer term, concerns about resiliency will play into the sustainability issues that have helped drive the shift toward alternatives in the first place, continuing steady demand growth.