Technology convergence is leading the way for the fifth industrial revolution

This decade, the convergence of digital, physical and biological fields has propelled new tools such as artificial intelligence (AI) into the mainstream and accelerated slow-growth industries such as biotech.

As we progress from witnessing the benefits of the fourth industrial revolution, we are heading towards the fifth industrial revolution, which results from technology convergence across major industrial domains.

With the fifth industrial revolution, we can look forward to a future where smart machines with cognitive intelligence perform tasks that match human ability while delivering machine-level efficiency.

Technology convergence is driving us closer to the benefits that the fifth industrial revolution will bring to people and the planet, as well as profitability. Sustainability will be a core element in technological development within existing industries such as battery manufacturing and in propelling data centres towards energy efficiency.

The World Economic Forum has previously championed the cause for the fourth industrial revolution and the world has foreseen technological development and their novel applications much before their hype cycles. For instance, publications such as the Top 10 Emerging Technologies of 2024 report have helped identify early breakthrough innovations and their impact on solving global challenges in technology, healthcare, environment, infrastructure and sustainability.

Major technology domains, including AI, quantum computing, bio-engineering, augmented reality and virtual reality, robotics, advanced materials and next-generation energy are witnessing a nexus in development, resulting in leaps in technological evolution today.

With the emerging technological field of bioprinting, an example of a successful technology convergence outcome has been the intersection in the technology domains of AI and additive manufacturing, where machine learning algorithms are leading the way in providing more autonomy to complex biomanufacturing processes.

Raw material developments are being accelerated by progress in advanced biomaterials identification. Complex biotech-focused human error-related processes are drastically reduced due to the use of robotic operating systems such as 3D printers.

These now perform tedious, repetitive tasks humans are unable to do with better speed, repeatability and accuracy.

Engineering tissues on demand, led by bioengineering, where biomanufacturing uses 3D printers and synthetic biology processes, has given rise to rapid developments, with bioprinting moving from the lab towards clinical translation.

The fourth industrial revolution gave impetus to making 3D printer machines smarter and better. New-age materials research moved from lab-bench to work desk computers, where in-silico algorithms used machine learning tools powered by historical big data sets collected over time.

The next evolution will see smart materials and smarter machines work with human inputs to create personalized patient-specific solutions, marching towards the era of personalized treatments and therapies.

The impact of technology convergence to enhance the bioeconomy-related economic output is worth exploring to understand the leaps that governments expect to see. Policies such as the Government of India’s BioE3 policy is aimed at propelling opportunities in bio-employment, accelerating national bioeconomy and assisting bioenvironmental solutions.

Similarly, Karnataka’s roadmap for biotech advancements sets a roadmap for assisting technologies that will advance the biotech industry and the wider bioeconomy.

Notable convergences across red (pharma), green (agri), white (industrial) and blue (ocean) biotechnology that will enable acceleration of the tech-driven bioeconomy advance the Forum’s vision to channel multi-stakeholder efforts towards a bioeconomy empowered through technological advances.

A multi-stakeholder effort would be critical to driving technological convergence to generate economic value for countries and benefit citizens' well-being.

A Technology Convergence Index to chart how these cross-functional technological areas evolve, like the Gartner Cycle during the fourth industrial revolution – could help break silos, foster data sharing, and track cross-functional technological evolution.

Long-term venture capital funding would allow technology convergence solutions time to transition from lab to market. Multi-stakeholder partnerships and alignment across borders would help remove barriers, such as supply chain bottlenecks caused by geopolitics or critical research and development data-sharing rules bound by national security laws.

If Governments regulate and support tech convergences, we could unlock opportunities like the bioeconomy, with biotech and other advanced tools driving the next industrial era.