Emerging Tech Trends For Business Leaders

Dustin Johnson is the CTO at Seeq, responsible for the advanced technology infrastructure, vision and roadmap of Seeq software solutions.

Technology leaders have long accepted the fact that as data volumes continue to skyrocket, the technology needed to harness and effectively leverage this data into actionable insights and competitive advantage continues to evolve at an unprecedented speed. This rapid pace presents both opportunities and challenges to organizations across industries. As we approach 2025, those organizations that proactively identify new opportunities and plan for risks will maintain their competitive edge.

To future-proof for 2025, here are three tech trends set to reshape industries, each with unique implications for business leaders aiming to strengthen strategy and operational resilience.

1. GenAI proliferation will lead to increased use of GenUI.

The spotlight on GenAI will likely dull in 2025, partly fueled by increasing cynicism around companies’ tendency to add poorly integrated chatbots to their apps as a minimal-effort solution. But as new innovations like generative user interface (GenUI) enter the scene, we’ll start to see GenAI integrate more effectively and sustainably into our tools and daily lives. Like the generative capabilities of GenAI, GenUI leverages GenAI to deliver personalized interfaces to provide software users with a highly customized experience that aligns with their specific goals.

One key area where I envision these dynamically generated user interfaces making an impact is in application or platform training. Today, courses are designed to satisfy a large group of users. With GenUI, the software can tailor the interface and learning experience based on each user’s mastery level, allowing a more natural progression of their skills. This approach could minimize the risk of providing training that is above or below their competency level, which can cause frustration and prohibit software adoption and change management initiatives.

GenUI is still in early development and facing challenges, like high processing power demands and expected user skepticism around differing interfaces. While tech innovators will need to re-imagine training and other practices in this new world through numerous iterations and customer feedback loops, we could see significant strides toward transformational GenUI experiences in 2025 and beyond.

2. Zero trust will become the norm.

GenAI cynicism doesn’t stop there. While the explosion of AI and GenAI has elevated efficiencies across nearly every industry and created value across organizations, we cannot ignore the security threats they continue to bring to our workplaces and personal lives.

According to CyberArk’s 2024 Identity Security Threat Landscape Report, 93% of organizations expect a negative impact on cybersecurity due to AI. Interestingly, the same report found that 70% of organizations are confident that their employees can identify deepfakes of their leaders. However, recent incidents, including one 2024 example where scammers used deepfakes to impersonate a CFO on a video call, duping an employee at an engineering firm into transferring $25 million to bank accounts in Hong Kong, suggest otherwise.

As increasingly sophisticated AI techniques emerge, including deepfakes, advanced phishing and digital spoofing, organizations can no longer trust internal or external personnel to manage their security systems. Instead, we will see an increased shift toward zero-trust security models that require individuals, devices and services to undergo strict authentication methods each time they request access.

A fundamental component of zero trust is the principle of least privilege, which ensures that users and systems are granted only the minimum permissions necessary to perform their job functions. This further reduces the attack surface for organizations. As of April 2024, Gartner reports that 63% of organizations worldwide have fully or partially implemented a zero-trust strategy, and I expect this number to rise throughout 2025.

3. Workforce optimization efforts will lead to more regulations.

When it comes to increasing data volumes, organizations, especially in manufacturing, have spent decades working to optimize machinery. Now, thanks to advancements in data access and analysis, the industry has made significant strides in this regard, enabling companies to look at the bigger picture. Initially focused on optimizing processes, the emphasis is now shifting toward enhancing the workforce—the people operating, analyzing and interacting with the machinery.

However, unlike consumer electronics that can easily collect personal data with the consumer’s consent in a single click—whether it be fitness, sleep or other information—collecting data on plant personnel requires navigating a complex landscape of regulations that vary by location. For example, organizations must comply with the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) when collecting personal information from employees in the European Union or European Economic Area or the California Privacy Rights Act (CPRA) in California.

While 91% of employees trust their employers to keep personal data private, nearly half are unaware of the data being collected about them. For organizations to maintain employee trust and obtain consent as they increase global workforce optimization efforts in 2025, we can expect to see the emergence of new regional regulatory frameworks in regions like North and South America, which currently lack such regulations.

Additionally, as regulations are established and organizations gain a clearer understanding of workforce optimization, we can also expect to see fewer people on plant floors and more in operating consoles, observing and controlling the process optimization remotely.

Preparing For Tomorrow’s Technology Landscape

Technological innovations and ongoing AI transformation are pushing organizations to constantly reassess technology investments and strategies. To ensure their businesses and employees are realizing the full potential of these innovations, business leaders must prepare now for these changes.

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