The Next Gen Big Trends & Ideas in 2024
From digital entertainment, Artificial Intelligence to the future of work… here’s what is coming up next.
Reimagining the way our next generation will live, learn, work and play for the year ahead
As venture investors, we’re always most interested in what’s to come. We recently completed our annual roundtable with our strategic advisors and investors to highlight some big ideas and trends that will shape our next generation in the year ahead.
TL;TR: We’re focused on AI’s impact on education, work and digital entertainment, across both B2B and B2C segments.
- Artificial Intelligence will bring new experiences, products and services.
The Key Number: 75%. AI training costs is estimated to continue to fall 75% per year, as the convergence of hardware and software drives cost efficiency. As a result, we are focused on breakthroughs under the AI umbrella across the following areas:
i. In general, niche AI solutions will be a key strategic driver to growth.
In 2024, we predict that narrow, more focused AI solutions will be developed. While the big, generic tools will be great general AI assistants, it is unlike to “win” for every task.
We expect to see AI platform purpose-built for architects, AI avatar companions, and a graphics generation and rendering specifically for game developers, to name just a few examples.
Startups and companies will be able to build their proprietary database and workflow for a new era of technology; most likely by capturing one niche at a time and then expanding. We believe initial focus is key.
ii. From Chatbots to Avatars: AI Companions Go 3D
We will be talking in real-time to 3D avatars a whole lot more in the upcoming year. AI companion apps such as Character AI are already achieving millions of monthly active users engage with chatbot avatars such as virtual Elon Musk.
Powered by text-to-speech advances, audio-driven facial animation and lower latency responses, AI companion conversations will be as seamless and as personalised as ever.
iii. Voice-first technology will be a core component to our lives
AI will finally unlock voice-first apps in the coming year, particularly in the companion and productivity categories.
Traditionally, voice-activation usage has been limited to simple tasks such as playing music or reporting the weather where no meaningful interactivity is generated.
Now, however, large language models have enabled virtual assistants to achieve human-level conversational capabilities. Yet voice capabilities require a different infrastructure build and most existing apps and platforms are not naturally equipped to construct these experiences. It’s inevitable that obvious AI email features will be incorporated into Gmail, for example, but it’s less likely that Gmail will introduce an AI voice interface in your inbox.
2. Gaming sector remains a prime battleground for frontier technologies to test initial product market fit.
AI, VR/AR, web 3 all connect with video games. These technologies will change gaming (eventually game development cost will be 1/1,000th of traditional budgets), but similarly these frontier technology will be changed by gaming.
VR and AR for instance have demonstrated initial product market fit in kids multiplayer gaming experiences. This seems to be the trend that the next generation of headsets will ride on, rather than as a low-usage, low-adaptable productivity tool. We also believe that the next wave of web 3 use case till be based on engaging gaming experiences from metaverse games to tokenomics-powered gaming ecosystems.
3. B2B AI products will be embedded into your daily workflow tools and platforms
There’s already a huge wave of AI-native products becoming more embedded into our workflows, from tasks such as email writing suggestions, updating records and proactively leaving social media comments.
We remain excited at transformational ideas and companies that look to make our world a better, more collaborative and purposeful place. If you are interested in any form of collaboration or looking for investment, please feel free to reach out.
Wing Lee (winglee@wnjventures.com)
