There has never been a better time to make the future happen than right now. Interconnected technology trends like cloud and quantum computing, 5G and 6G wireless, IoT, AI, VR, and blockchain will transform our lives. How can product managers play a critical role in ensuring that their products make the future happen vs. missing the mark? In this webinar, DFINITY Product VP Brendan Foley gives an overview of the key product trends driving the future and how your product can succeed through a systematic, never-ending focus on value.
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We are truly in the Age of Product
If there’s anything a product manager needs to be constantly aware of, it’s the product trends that are priming the future of technology. While it’s impossible to accurately predict exactly which product will own the market 10 years down the line, key trends and indicators can shed light on what’s coming down the pipe. Even more, product managers are in a prime position to be the instigators of that change. Brendan Foley begins his presentation by expressing that we are clearly living in the golden Age of Product.
“There’s really never been a better time to be in product management than right now. We’re living in a time of incredible opportunity. When people in 50 years look back at our world, we’re going to look as foreign to them as the 1970s looks as foreign to us today.”
“We’re not going to notice these technology trends day-to-day, but these things are happening around us starting now. These product trends won’t all move forward at the same speed, depending on the infrastructure, investment that’s needed, the regulatory changes that are needed, etc. There will be varied adoption by countries, but they’ll eventually create a new normal for things that we didn’t know we wanted or that we would experience, but now suddenly do.”
On the interconnected product trends of the future
Computing as we know it is on the brink of an immense leap forward. With a new foundation defined, advances in technology and product will advance at a breathtaking rate. Brendan spotlights the 8 interconnected product trends that will create our new normal and transform daily life as we know it. Read through the highlights below and watch the entire video above to catch all the key product trends of the future.
“The first is more powerful computing. The great majority of enterprises today think cloud-first in terms of building out their infrastructure. More powerful computing is getting pushed farther and farther to the edge of the network, but what’s even more compelling is the advent of quantum computing. This ultimately enables computing at an exponential scale. With every additional logical qubit added, it doubles the power of computing.”
“5G is starting to roll out today, which will enable download speeds of up to one gigabyte, but it’s going to go way beyond that. What’s coming beyond 5g is 6G, where instead of being able to download one gigabyte, you’ll be able to download up to 1000 gigabytes, or one terabyte. There’s even talk about 6G being deployed through satellites to enable a world of wireless broadband everywhere.”
“That’s where we get into the next key product trend, which is next-generation devices and the Internet of Things. Truly freed from design constraints, everything will become smart, and everything will be connected, whether it’s clothing, wearables, appliances, drones, autonomous cars, and the list goes on.”
“Beyond the Internet of Things, we’re going to see tremendous improvements and advancements in gene therapy, enabling truly personalized medicine, truly personalized medicine, and enabling us to live longer and healthier lives.”
On the buzz word of the current decade
Blockchain; the product trend that evokes polarizing opinions and increasingly heated commentary. Regardless of public opinion, however, the technology itself is driving immense, and immediate, market change with its core principle of transparency. Before diving into a fantastic section of his presentation labeled “A Day in the Life of a Product Manager in 2031”, Brendan quickly breakdowns why every product manager should be paying attention to blockchain.
“If you’re not familiar with blockchain technology; blockchain basically enables counterparties, such as buyers and sellers, to interact through a distributed digital ledger. All parties that are interacting have a copy of the ledger which cannot be altered, and smart contracts can be set up to enable automatic direct payment once the conditions of a contract have been digitally verified.”
“The power of blockchain is that it removes the need for a middleman. This enables transactions to happen between buyers and sellers, as mentioned, whether they are companies or individuals, and between IoT devices, enabling things like microtransactions where devices can buy and sell data and provide information on the status of service delivery.”
About the speaker
Brendan Foley is a Vice President of Product at Dfinity, where he oversees product management and user experience for the Internet Computer, a blockchain-enabled computing platform. Over the past seventeen years, Brendan has held executive roles in product management, engineering, and related areas at Automation Anywhere, Atlassian, Sears e-commerce, and Microsoft. His industry experience covers a range of technology sectors, including enterprise software-as-a-service, software automation, e-commerce, advertising technology, security, and developer platforms. Brendan has a Bachelor of Arts from Brown University with concentrations in Engineering and English Literature, and an MBA from the Wharton School as a Palmer Scholar.