Welcome to the first installment of ZDNET’s weekly poll on the world’s leading trends in innovation.this innovation index You can always find the latest version at that link.
Sports has a top 25 ranking of teams, but we’re going to be even more selective and narrow it down to this week’s top four trends. Every week, we look for the most innovative things happening in tech and the trends that will have the biggest impact on work and life.
Similar to college sports rankings voted on by sportswriters, the ZDNET Innovation Index is voted on by a panel of journalists and industry analysts. Because we have such a diverse range of voices and perspectives, we stuck with the ZDNET staff network of journalists and contributors for our initial vote. However, we intend to expand the panel to include outside voices. The way the poll is conducted is that ZDNET’s editorial leadership narrows down the top 10 trends of the week, sends that list to a committee, and votes to rank the top four.
With that out of the way, let’s look at the results of the first public opinion poll.
Here are the key trends over the past week:
- OpenAI is currently working on AI models for humanoid robots
- A rollable phone could be the next mobile innovation
- Telcos are preparing to deploy 5.5G (also known as 5G Advanced)
- Wearables take the lead at Mobile World Congress 2024
Generative AI has dominated the tech industry narrative since November 2022, when ChatGPT was first unveiled to the world, so it should come as no surprise to anyone that AI is at the top of the list. And while ChatGPT-powered humanoids may have scary sci-fi sounds — Full Metal hallucinations? — the truth is a little more mundane. OpenAI is partnering with a startup called Figure, which relies on Microsoft and his OpenAI for industrial applications for the automotive industry that handle tasks that are unsafe, tedious, or difficult for human workers. We support software to develop robots for use.
The other three trends on this week’s list all have something to do with this year’s world’s biggest event for smartphones, wearables, and mobile connectivity, Mobile World Congress, which is back in full swing this year in Barcelona, Spain. ZDNET’s Kelly Wang highlighted the fact that rollable phones at MWC seemed to be a step behind the flip phones they’ve been testing for the past few years. We also learned that the next phase of 5G, better known as 5G Advanced or 5.5G, is gearing up for deployment and the biggest impact is likely to be on organizations. And the biggest surprise at MWC was the fact that wearables may actually be overshadowing mobile phones, led by new details revealed about the upcoming Samsung Galaxy Ring.
Check out our Innovation Index page for more links to related articles on all four topics. Also, check back next Thursday for the latest edition of our top trends.