2018 IT Trends: Immersive UX Gets Down to Business

Five years ago, terms like machine learning, artificial intelligence, and virtual reality seemed more science fiction than actual science. Today, companies are poised to introduce them into day-to-day operations. According to a survey by the IT networking site Spiceworks, currently 29 percent of organizations have adopted automated office devices, 18 percent have implemented virtual reality, and 13 percent have adopted some form of artificial intelligence--and these numbers will increase in 2018.

Convergence of these newly-adopted technologies will set the tone moving into 2018. The past two years have witnessed their mainstreaming in the consumer space. Now, experts have high hope for business applications that incorporate elements of ML, AI, and VR in the user experience.

The business side of Pokémon Go

From a development perspective, one area where companies are investing heavily again this year is in immersion UX. The immersive experience comprises of three similar but distinct technologies: virtual reality (VR), augmented reality (AR), and mixed (MR). What’s mixed reality? It’s industry-speak for the best of AR and VR: the viewer sees a ‘data-added’ augmented reality, and interacts with virtual objects in that same context. In consumer apps, Pokémon Go! is a great illustration of how AR and VR come together for a so-called MR experience.

In terms of career opportunities, VR-AR-MR developers have advanced computer vision skills, experience in 3D modeling—-texturing, shading and rendering—-for web or mobile. Preferred programming languages are platform-specific, but a familiarity with standardized languages C++ and C# is desired. Note that many prevalent advances in the space start in university-based R&D projects; experience in an academic dev setting gives candidates a leg up in some instances.

The next great ERP will be immersive

In the business sphere, experts see blending immersive UX with artificial intelligence as the impetus for ushering in the next generation of “intelligent” ERPs. The enterprise software space is ripe for disruption; start-ups hoping their product will be the one to shake market share from the Oracles and SAPs with the latest from the consumer space. “Organizations must learn from innovative consumer apps to truly transform enterprise apps for maximum success," says Gartner research director Jason Wong.

The next great ERPs will be as contextual as Pokémon Go! Or Waze is; will be pervasive across an ecosystem of other compatible applications to further augment the experience; all while being responsive to the preferences of individual users—-that’s the machine learning component.

Business app creation lies in the realm of UI/UX web development, namely interface design. Interface design director is among the most in demand job titles in the field, a career that is always evolving. As expected, there’s currently a  pronounced emphasis on 3D UX.  We are seeing salaries for visual UI design and software engineering positions exceed $150K in New York City and West Coast tech hubs.

Big data, digital twin, and blockchain

For data scientists, digital twin is a business-specific emergent technology that poses exciting opportunities. It combines MR and AI programming elements, and its name refers to the creation of a digital replica of a real-world system—-a graphical representation of physical assets, workflows, and processes that’s used for scientific modeling. The scope of the technology is virtually limitless; think of digital twin as the maturation of all the smart sensors and internet of things (IoT) devices that blossomed in recent years.

Full stack developers that specialize in relational database work will find lucrative opportunities connected to digital twin. If this is your wheelhouse, keep your JavaScript current: Angular.js, React.js, Node.js should be in your toolbox. Professionals in QA and hardware supply chain and material solutions will find growth in IoT R&D and product development as well.

Blockchain and encryption technology, best known for its manifestation as the anonymous ledger system driving cryptocurrency, has relevant application for healthcare, digital content distribution, supply chain management, and public sector administration. Naturally, blockchain engineer jobs are popping up in several industry verticals.

It is the finance space has the most urgent need for tech pros. We’re seeing high demand for personnel with familiarity in industry-specific languages like Rust, Golang, Scala when combined with command of C/C++ or Python - these skills will put you at the forefront of R&D happening right now. That’s the foundation candidates should possess for the creation of bitcoin mining hardware, or developing the backend for a new exchange or currency.