ISLAMABAD: 2020 will be the year of 5G launches across the globe and its combination with Internet of Things (IoT) and Artificial Intelligence (AI), said Telenor Research Head Bjørn Taale Sandberg.

Speaking at the unveil of Telenor’s ‘Tech Trends 2020’ report here on Monday, the executive said the industry will be driven by 5G launches and widespread usage of AI this year.

The report states that the green innovations will eventually go beyond the hype by combining Big Data, AI, and IoT to significantly contribute towards protecting the environment.

“At the same time, other trends suggest we are having a common technological growth, a kind of digital realisation, people are waking up and examining how and where technologies, including AI, Machine Learning, IoT, and new network innovations will best and most securely connect them with the people and things that matter most,” he said.

The document says that so far the use of IoT has mostly been industrial but in 2020, the technology will get closer to people to become ‘Internet of Bodies’ with connected health, medical, and communications devices attached to human bodies.

Sandberg said many trends are forecasting earlier, show innovation faster than ever, enabled by more access and demand, as well as by revolutionary new tech platforms and socio-political forces.

He announced that like the previous year, technology trends projected by the company’s research wing will take a prominent lead in developing the global digital ecosystem supported by cellular service providers, device makers and internet companies.

At the same time, the head of research said with more people realising that companies make their money from user data by selling tailored advertisements, 2020 will be the year when users start to become more cautious about sharing their personal information on digital platforms.

Published in Dawn, January 14th, 2020