1. Inflation concerns will diminish as high prices will normalise with the public
This means that personal finances for ordinary working people will be budgeted more frugally and without extra spending. It’s tough for video streaming sites, especially as exclusivity is prevalent amongst studios wanting their platform to be the “ONE.” … Looking at you, Disney. This will lead to a rise in piracy, and more innovations in this space will occur. Many will dust off their hats and set for the high seas.
Apps that will see a lot of success will be those focused on solving a problem more cheaply, finding a bargain, and enabling side gigs for those with the time.
2. The AI hype train, specifically generative, will begin to slow
A gradual realisation of what generative AI can and can’t do will start to seep into the consciousness of the tech bubble. Has anyone else noticed how ChatGPT has started not really giving answers to questions? Have you seen the marginal improvement of GPT4? This will lead to AI not being the headline pitch by the end of the year.
Fundamentally, people like people, service will crop up that markets themselves as “human-powered,” and more community spaces will develop because of it.
3. More Politics in Tech
With both a UK and US election looming, we will see a fight online for voices to be heard. Organised campaigns for policy and politics will be on every platform, and they will not be ready for the torrent of ideology and misinformation. Generally, it will be a bad time for all.
4. X / Twitter will see a further decline
If you want a guide on how not to do Product Management, take a peek at Twitter. 2024 will see more features that no one wants or needs or asks for being pushed out, and as Elon battles with reality itself, the fall of Twitter will be a sad balloon slowly deflating.
This will allow other platforms to start to make their mark (not you, Threads), and there will be a focus on community ownership in social media. I could build a social network that is also cooperative 🤔
5. No, you won’t get gaming on a Mac
Every year … EVERY YEAR, is the year for gaming on Mac. And yes, Apple is pushing developer tools to make it easier to port games, but there isn’t the will from developers considering a lot of focus on making sure gaming on Linux is supported (thank you, Steam Deck). After all, Unity already compiles to MacOS, and you don’t see the numbers for anyone to commit that amount of work.
Also, as cloud gaming and game streaming become more available (RIP Stadia, though), people have much better options to “Game on their Mac”.
6. Virtual Reality will be … meh
Apple is entering the game, and the buzz has picked up a bit. While VR and AR are okay at gaming and pretty good for immersive video, productivity is the golden egg that is trying to be attained, and it won’t happen. I would love to put on a headset and have 3 virtual monitors to work from and pass through to use my keyboard. But the cost of doing that virtually at a level of fidelity that is acceptable is 3 times that of doing it physically … and you have a 1.5-hour battery to enjoy it; dunno about you, but my work day is longer than an hour and a half. It will continue to be used as it is today, but let’s go with Beat Saber and 360 videos for the most part.
7. Fintech will blow up, and no one is going to pay attention
Seriously, if I wanted to be employed again, I would go to Fintech in a second. Many people who got into banking to make serious coin realised that the tech industry was making more than them, and so jumped ship. Simultaneously, banks have not kept up the pace with other industries and their digital revolutions.
My message to many banks is to stop trying to figure out what Agile is and ship features for real people from real research; otherwise, Monzo will continue to eat your dinner at your table.
For every bank out there:
As a working person/banking customer experiencing the effects of a cost of living crisis, I need to keep a closer eye on my personal finances and budget more stringently as I find myself running out of money before I run out of months. But, my banking app only focuses on what I have spent and my paycheck coming in, along with the services they offer and actions I can take. Therefore, I have spent time and effort doing my personal accounting, which I may not be doing correctly.
If my bank offered features in their app that allowed me to automatically and easily look at my spending and do budgeting for me, then I would feel confident in the money I spend and save, and therefore set myself up for financial success.