Cloudera forecasts tech trends shaping 2025 industry landscape

Cloudera has outlined five key predictions anticipated to shape the technology industry as the year 2025 approaches.

Emerging trends around data sovereignty and artificial intelligence (AI) are expected to influence business innovation efforts. Chris Royles, EMEA Field CTO, and Paul MacKay, Regional VP for Cloud EMEA, have shared their insights regarding the anticipated shifts in technology dynamics.

Chris Royles foresees a surge in on-premise investments as organisations prioritise data and intellectual property protection. "Next year, on-premise investments will surge as companies seek to protect their data and intellectual property. Companies are investing heavily in data and AI, developing their own IP that they want to keep secure. By keeping their data on-premise, businesses have more security and control, ensuring that proprietary code and project information remains within their own protected environments," he stated. He also noted a growing interest in sovereign cloud solutions, saying, "Hyperscalers like AWS and Microsoft have recognised that the repatriation of data will affect their business models, prompting them to offer more localized, regulatory-compliant cloud options."

Royles also highlighted quantum computing as the next major technological revolution, predicting it will ignite a "tech arms race." He remarked, "Quantum computing is set to overshadow AI as the next major technological revolution. Rapid development is underway, with organisations investing heavily in next-generation data centers equipped to provide ultra-cold temperatures, specialised infrastructure, and massive power requirements required to support quantum systems." He pointed out the broad potential value of quantum computing: "The potential value of quantum breakthroughs is immeasurable, from accelerating drug discovery and genetic reprogramming in healthcare to pushing energy closer to fusion, potentially rendering traditional power sources obsolete." Royles predicts that quantum computing will trigger a race among companies seeking to leverage its capabilities and gain a competitive edge.

The notion of AI Agents redefining business decision-making was another point raised by Royles. He explained the expected shift in AI's capabilities: "Currently AI still falls short of replicating human-level decision-making, but next year that is set to change with Agentic AI." He believes that "Agentic AI is set to drive a wave of innovation, transforming real-time problem-solving and decision-making... This will see businesses building event-driven architectures that allow AI to react instantly to real-life events, revolutionising industries like telecoms and logistics."

With AI anticipated to become 'always on,' Royles warned of renewed data management challenges. "In 2025, we'll start to see AI infused into nearly everything, with it switched on by default," he noted. He expressed concerns about data management amidst an increase in AI-generated data, commenting, "With AI everywhere, the amount of new data generated will skyrocket. This will reignite data management challenges as organisations strive to gain insight from a growing volume and variety of AI-generated data." Royles stressed the importance of robust data management strategies to unlock AI's full potential.

Paul MacKay provided insights into the realistic application of AI in 2025, suggesting that the year will be critical for companies to demonstrate their AI capabilities. "Companies will get real with AI next year or risk losing business. After the hyperbolic narrative around AI for the last 18 months, 2025 will be the year of realism, as customers look to make AI work for them," he said. MacKay emphasised the need for a defined focus in AI deployments, noting, "The companies that can walk the walk and prove their AI capabilities will rise to the top, but those that just talk the talk risk disappointing customers."