Lately, every year has been a dramatic year for personal tech. In 2025, expect focus to shift from AI to artificial general intelligence (AGI; scan the QR code above for a quick primer on the key differences). Also expect: AI-driven personal computers, greater intersections of tech and mobility, and updates in India’s digital payments ecosystem.
Rapid action
AI will evolve rapidly through 2025. Expect to hear about developments centred on AGI (which will be smarter than humans, if it comes to pass, and will apparently make ChatGPT seem rudimentary; really, scan the QR code — it’s quite fascinating).
Meanwhile, regular AI will make more indirect inroads into lives. It will seep more deeply into online shopping, for instance, to offer a more-customised experience. It will make inroads into search, navigation, logistics.
“We’re leveraging generative AI to create a unique homepage for every shopper,” said Balu Chaturvedula, senior vice-president and country head at Walmart Global Tech.
This leaves us with the question: Can users and businesses keep pace well enough to safely embrace this influx?
Intelligent PCs
How the chip battles play out between Qualcomm, Intel and AMD, with Apple’s own M-series setting new performance benchmarks too, will go a long way towards determining the shape of next-generation computing devices.
This could be the year Nvidia finally begins to roll out chips for personal devices, the thought of which is making existing chip-makers in this space fretful already.
More PCs will come with personalised chatbots, which will track your use of a computer and use what they learn to refine search results and better generate content.
We don’t yet know how they plan to gather their data. Microsoft’s Copilot Vision, due for launch this year, for instance, plans to use a Recall feature that will take screenshots of the desktop and everything on it at regular intervals.
Pay wave
As more people rely on India’s incredibly seamless unified payments interface (UPI), as well as on other forms of digital payment (credit cards, debit cards, etc), transactional security will need more attention.
Banks, payment gateways and networks such as Mastercard and American Express are leaning on generative AI to counter threats from nefarious actors. The scammers are often relying on similar or identical AI to find new pathways in.
“Recent advancements in AI, machine learning and real-time payment technologies have transformed modern-day transactions. Mastercard uses advanced AI solutions to detect fraud and predict and prevent potential threats in real time,” said Nitendra Rajput, senior vice-president and head of AI Garage at Mastercard.
Call sign
Even as it strides into our devices, AI will be something of a muted theme in Android phone sales pitches this year. A key reason is that manufacturers across the board have now met the performance baseline for AI-led capability in phones, and no one is yet looking to dramatically exceed it.
Expect the spotlight to return to camera performance. We will likely see more Hasselblad, Zeiss and Leica camera optimisations in flagship models.
At a crossroads
Cars are set to get a lot smarter. In the near term, expect better infotainment systems. In the longer term, expect autonomous driving to become more widespread.
Qualcomm and Google are already working together to integrate AI more directly into cars via the Snapdragon Digital Chassis and Android Automotive OS. The resultant “digital cockpit” could be rolled out this year, in new models by Mercedes-Benz. Nvidia’s parallel offering, the Drive Orin platform, aims to act as the “brain” of a car.
The looming threat of a semiconductor shortage may throw a spanner in the works.
Scarcities and evolving geopolitical situations between key players (US, China and India, among others) could have a bearing on the availability of raw materials and components for EVs too. Although, if tensions escalate on that front, cars will probably be the last things on our minds.
