25 Crucial Information Technology Statistics & Facts to Know

To maximize the benefits that every piece of new tech has to offer, you must stay up-to-date on the latest industry news and developments. To help you out, we have compiled some of the most essential technology statistics of 2020/2021.

In the coming years, we can expect more advanced technologies to stir up the market like IoT, 5G networks, and augmented reality, to name a few. With that said, there will be significant changes when it comes to industry requirements and customer expectations.

In this article, we will be discussing everything from internet adoption and new communications strategies to IT industry changes and emerging technology. This way, you can get a bigger picture of how technology will be affecting your business in the near future, as well as what you can do to keep up with the times.

key technology statistics

General Technology Statistics

Spending on technology is projected to grow even more in the future, but that is not to say that we don’t have enough gadgets at home and work. We can attribute this to the rapid development of new tech and the innate need of individuals and businesses to keep up with what’s new. After all, why would you use outdated gadgets when there are newer ones that can help you handle your current tasks more efficiently?

Also, plenty of emerging tech such as 5G networks, AI, IoT, and augmented reality are poised to change the overall business landscape. So you can expect more C-level executives to be more hands-on when it comes to researching and analyzing potential tech investments.

The global technology industry is forecast to reach $5 trillion in 2021. If this prediction comes true, then it would represent a 4.2% growth rate. (CompTIA, 2020)
Hardware, software, and services make up 56% of the technology industry followed by telecom services at 26%, and emerging technologies like IoT and drones at 19%. (CompTIA, 2020)
Though the US is the largest tech market (33%), most of the tech spending occurs outside of it (67%). (CompTIA, 2020)
Positive factors that could drive tech growth in 2021 are the pick up in existing customer business (59%), successful outreach to new customer segments (47%), improvement of internal operations (45%), selling new goods or services (44%), improved sales and marketing (43%), return to normal commerce (37%), positive action by the government (30%). (CompTIA, 2020)
Tech growth may be inhibited due to the continuing effects of the Covid-19 pandemic (-77%), expected shock in the market (-67%), customer postponement of purchases (-65%), decreasing margins or profitability (-255), trade tariffs and disturbances (-22%), labor costs and skill availability (-17%), and market disruption and new competition (-16%). (CompTIA, 2020)
Because of Covid-19, businesses are changing their business plans: 44% are increasing the pace of their digital transformation, 33% are tightening their security and risk and governance management, 30% are developing additional training resources for remote workers, 36% are working on improving their IT operations and systems performance, 32% are planning to connect with employees through standardized, secure, and intuitive tools, and 27% are polishing their current disaster recovery setup. (Spiceworks Ziff Davis, 2020)
The breakout of the pandemic pushed 76% of businesses to strategize for long-term changes with their IT. And though IT budgets are expected to decrease in 2021, 80% believe tech spending will remain the same or go up. (Spiceworks Ziff Davis, 2020)

Alongside this demand for new tech is the need for trained individuals to handle them. Since 2018, there has been a significant increase in the demand for tech professionals—particularly those with knowledge of new technologies. However, it is best to note that the hiring field can be quite competitive, so securing the best employees can prove difficult if you don’t offer good compensation and a solid career growth path.

There were 4.6 million job postings related to tech in 2019, with around 822,000 for emerging tech. (Cyberstates, 2020)
There are 557,000 tech firms in the US, including the 13,400 startups and new business units launched in 2019. (Cyberstates, 2020)
The estimated median tech wage is $84,284, placing it in the 90th percentile. (Cyberstates, 2020)

Factors that Affect IT Budgets

Source: Spiceworks Ziff Davis, 2020

Internet Statistics

The internet is one of the core pillars of the digital age; everyone needs it to access information on any given topic. What’s more, it serves as a portal through which individuals can monitor their work, finish schoolwork, purchase items available exclusively online, or even watch their favorite shows. It also keeps everyone connected 24/7, so it is not unusual that internet users are now relying on their mobile devices for surfing the net.

As of October 2020, there were 4.66 billion Internet users around the world. (DataReportal, 2020)
The latest 2020 global online penetration rate is 60%. (DataReportal, 2020)
There are more than 875,000 new users on the internet each day. (DataReportal, 2020)
As of 2019, there are 10,049, 584 secure internet servers per 1 million people across the globe. (World Bank, 2020)
The typical internet user spends an average of 6 hours and 55 minutes on the internet daily. (DataReportal, 2020)
The world’s most visited websites are Google.com with 1.05 billion visits, Youtube.com with 36.4 billion visits, and Facebook.com with 25.3 billion visits by October 2020. (DataReportal, 2020)
When they are online, people like to watch online videos (90%), watch vlogs (53%), listen to music on streaming platforms (73%), listen to online radio stations (47%), and listen to podcasts (43%). (DataReportal, 2020)
50.2% of internet users spend use their mobile devices to browse the web while 47.1% prefer to do their internet activities on laptops and desktops. (DataReportal, 2020)
There are approximately 4.28 billion active mobile internet users worldwide. (DataReportal, 2020)

internet by the numbers

Social Media

While the world wide web is often used for various tasks in our day-to-day routines, social media is one of its most used facets. Having existed not so long ago, social media has rapidly gained popularity over the past few years with the emergence of sites such as Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, Pinterest, and Twitter.

This makes it one of the best marketing and sales channels for businesses. There’s a long list of social media management tools available on the market to help you manage several accounts in one platform.

However, simply having social media accounts is not enough. According to the statistics we’ve culled, you must pick the platform most of your target audience will use and provide them with content they will most likely want to see.

Social media has a penetration rate of 53%, as of October 2020. (DataReportal, 2020)
At the end of Q3 2020, there were 4.14 billion active social media users worldwide. (Statista, 2021)
4.08 billion active social media users are on mobile. (Statista, 2021)
The average time internet users spend on social media per day is 144 minutes. (Statista, 2021)
Social media users in the Philippines spend the most time on social media per day, clocking 3 hours and 50 minutes on average. (Statista, 2020)
The top social media platforms are Facebook (2,740 million monthly active users), YouTube (2,291 million monthly active users), and WhatsApp (2,000 million monthly active users). (We are Social, 2021)
Visual content is 40 times more likely to be shared on social media than any other type of content. (HubSpot, 2021)
Facebook posts with photos attached to them get 2.3x more engagement compared to posts without images. (HubSpot, 2021)
Individuals are 80% more likely to read content with colored visuals. (HubSpot, 2021)
Infographics are 3x more likely to be shared by internet users than any other type of social media content. (HubSpot, 2021)

AdBlockers

Of course, while the Internet may be opening up new opportunities for businesses, certain developments might hinder you from capitalizing on it. One such obstacle would be adblockers.

It is no secret that many internet users find advertisements annoying, so it only makes sense that they use applications that can block these. The problem here is that you might be spending on ads that your target audience won’t even see. That’s why you must come up with ways to boost your online visibility sans advertisements, such as posting on social media regularly and creating better website content.

There are more than 763 million devices equipped with adblockers globally. (Blockthrough, 2020)
80% of Americans utilize at least one ad-blocking method. (Deloitte, 2017)
In North America, 50% of the adult population use at least two adblockers for their devices. (Deloitte, 2017)
At the end of 2019, there were 527 million people who used adblockers on mobile. This growth is driven by UC Browser, which blocks ads by default. It has around 405 million users worldwide. (Blockthrough, 2020)
In 2020, adblocking penetration rate in the US went up to 27.5% from 26.4% in 2019. (eMarketer, 2018)
The top reason for using ad blockers is that there are too many annoying or irrelevant ads. (Statista, 2021)
Adblocking was projected to cost businesses a whopping $75 billion per year in 2020. (Statista, 2021)

Cyber Security

In addition to adblockers, cybersecurity is another factor to consider. More people using the internet means increasing cyber threats, and they’re becoming more sophisticated by the day.

Recovering from cyber-attacks can cost businesses millions of dollars. Not only that, once your data is compromised, it will be harder to earn and maintain customer trust. With that said, cybercrime may well be one of the biggest threats to any company.

This only means that you have to improve your business’ online security, especially when it comes to your servers and cloud storage. By doing so, you can maintain the integrity of your customer information and confidential company data.

More than 90,000 websites are hacked daily. (WebsiteSetup, 2021)
WordPress is the most hacked CMS, with 83% of the compromised websites being hosted on their platform. (WebsiteSetup, 2021)
31% of companies have had their operational technology infrastructure compromised. (Cisco, 2018)
There’s an average of 24,000 malicious mobile apps blocked per day. (Symantec, 2018)
A company falls victim to a ransomware attack every 14 seconds. (Cybercrime Magazine, 2020)
53% of companies have more than 1,000 sensitive documents that employees can freely access. (Varonis, 2019)
50% of the cybersecurity risks that modern companies face include having multiple security vendors.
43% of cyberattacks are aimed towards small businesses. (CNBC, 2019)
Only 14% of small businesses are equipped to deal with cyberattacks. (CNBC, 2019)
These cyberattacks cost all businesses, regardless of size, an average of $200,000. (CNBC, 2019)

Communications Statistics

VoIP

Business communications used to be ruled by on-premise telephony. However, with the emergence and increasing use of the internet, we’ll see more companies opting for Voice Over Internet Protocol or VoIP instead of on-premise communication tools.

Through VoIP, businesses can accommodate calls on any device; it also paved the way for BYOD policies which allow agents to work remotely, increasing productivity. What’s more, it is much cheaper to maintain compared to traditional systems. There are VoIP systems for small businesses and big enterprises alike, so finding one that suits your budget and business size shouldn’t be a problem.

61% of companies plan to switch to VoIP phone systems as soon as their current contract expires. (Blueface, 2018)
The VoIP market is expected to hit $145 billion by 2024, with Asia-Pacific being the leading market. (Statista, 2017)
50% of IT leaders have stopped using on-premise communications tools in 2018. Statistics reveal that this will increase to 90% by 2021. (GetVoIP, 2020)
The hosted IP PBX segment is anticipated to be the fastest-growing area of PBX. It is predicted to grow by 15% from 2019 to 2025. (Global Market Insights, 2019)
Computer-to-phone VoIP is predicted to experience its highest growth between 2017 and 2024. (Persistence Market Research, 2018)
By 2024, Android OS is predicted to dominate mobile VoIP. (Grand View Research, 2016)
The biggest driver of VoIP growth in America is the increasing popularity of Bring-Your-Own-Device (BYOD) strategies. (Grand View Research, 2016)
Companies that have BYOD policies can save $350 per year per employee. (Forbes, 2019)
Companies using VoIP enjoy up to 75% of savings on their communication efforts. (BullsEye Telecom, 2019)

Unified Communications

However, it is important to note that while there are plenty of people who prefer talking over the phone, there are also those who want to converse using different channels such as email, instant messaging, and social media—channels that aren’t normally supported by VoIP solutions. This is where Unified Communications systems come in handy.

These tools are capable of bringing together your VoIP tool with other communication management solutions, so it comes as no surprise that the UC market is projected to increase exponentially in a few years. Similar to cloud telephony and VoIP, these tools are often deployed online, so you also won’t have to worry about storage and maintenance issues.

The preferred everyday communication tool of millennials are email (58%), instant messaging (31%), phone (29%), face-to-face meetings (20%), and social media (13%). (The Economist, 2018)
The unified communications market can grow to $48.3 billion by 2023. (IDC, 2020)
By the year 2022, PCs will only make up 19% of IP traffic, while smartphones will account for 44%. (Cisco, 2020)
The market size of unified communications systems is predicted to hit $143.49 billion by 2024. (Grand View Research, 2019)
67% of companies are transferring a significant part of their unified communications to the cloud (GetVoIP, 2020).

5G Network

Aside from shifting communication channel preferences, an emerging technology that can reshape current UC systems and internet usage is the Fifth Generation Network or 5G.

While 5G is yet to hit the market, there are plenty of service providers that are already testing it out. It is expected to be 100 times faster than 4G tech and can support millions of devices per square mile, making it great for connectivity. However, it does not come cheap, and it might take a lot of preparation before it is rolled out on a large scale. So it might be best to start researching and analyzing how you can integrate this into your operations.

By 2023, 5G subscriptions are forecast to reach 1.3 billion worldwide. (Statista, 2021)
Global spending on 5G infrastructure is expected to hit $2.3 billion. (Statista, 2021)
The top 5 use cases of 5G are: video detection and alerts (83%), video surveillance (83%), eMBB (78%), remote-controlled machinery (77%), and connected cars (75%). (Nokia, 2020)
The priority use cases for 5G deployment are enhanced mobile broadband (74%), massive IoT (21%), and ultra-reliable communications such as AR/VR (5%). (GSMA Intelligence, 2017)
By 2024, 5G networks are poised to cover 40% of the globe and handle 25% of mobile traffic. (Networkworld, 2019)
The 5G latency is expected to range between 1 and 4 milliseconds—a far cry from 4G’s 50 to 100 milliseconds. (Networkworld, 2019)
5G network implementation in the US alone is expected to cost roughly $130 to $150 billion due to the need to deploy fiber optic cabling. (Deloitte, 2018)

Top Use Cases of 5G Technology

Source: Nokia, 2020

Information Technology Statistics

More sophisticated software solutions and technologies require equally advanced devices and infrastructures to run on. So it only makes sense that in the near future, we can expect organizations to roll out more digital transformation initiatives. This means increased IT budgets, higher demand for tech professionals, and more investments in newer hardware and software.

The information technology industry is projected to grow to $5 trillion in 2021, which represents a growth of 4%. (CompTIA, 2020)
The traditional categories of IT, which are hardware, software, and services, make up 56% of the market. The core category of telecom services takes up 26% and emerging technologies are 19%. (CompTIA, 2020)
IT spending is expected to decrease year-on-year but 80% of companies believe their expenditure will stay the same or even increase. (Spiceworks Ziff Davis, 2020)
Because of Covid-19, 76% of businesses are planning long-term changes. The pandemic is also expected to influence a third of budget increases in 2021. (Spiceworks Ziff Davis, 2020)
The top three drivers of budget increases are the need to change outdated infrastructure (56%), higher priority of IT projects (45%), and heightened security concerns (39%). (Spiceworks Ziff Davis, 2020)
Most companies’ budgets are going towards hardware (31%), software (29%), and hosted or cloud-based services (24%). (Spiceworks Ziff Davis, 2020)
11% of a company’s managed services budget are for hosting. It is the same percentage for backup and 10% for hardware support and maintenance. (Spiceworks Ziff Davis, 2020)
When it comes to hosted or cloud services, companies are most concerned about online backup/restore/recovery (13%), productivity solutions (12%), and email hosting (9%). (Spiceworks Ziff Davis, 2020)

In addition to updating infrastructures, curbing security concerns, and remaining compliant with industry regulations, another reason why companies focus on IT is survival. The modern business landscape is cutthroat, and companies need a proactive approach to information technology if they want to keep up with the competition. With that said, expect more businesses are looking into new IT developments such as macro technology, AI-fueled processes, serverless computing, and more.

27% of companies believe that implementing digital transformation initiatives is a matter of survival in their respective industries. (Advance2000, 2018)
Only 19% of US companies consider their operational tech as advanced. (Advance2000, 2018)
57% of companies say that leveraging key digital technologies is critical to their operations. (Advance2000, 2018)
One of the top CIO goals is to redirect assets from operations to innovations. This is why there are businesses looking to create automated and abstracted NoOps IT environments to create serverless computing. (Deloitte, 2019)
The number of AI pioneers is expected to increase in the next 18 to 24 months. (Deloitte, 2019)

However, it seems that many businesses are failing to improve their IT infrastructure through digital transformation. This is due to the lack of knowledge in creating plans and guidance from experts. Some businesses skip vital aspects of the process to speed up their initiatives, which often prove to be counterproductive.

82% of executives are not reviewing their internal business processes before setting KPIs for their digital transformation. (Celonis, 2019)
4 in 10 business analysts mentioned that they are not consulted regarding digital transformation initiatives. (Celonis, 2019)
45% of C-level managers say that they don’t know where to start when it comes to creating digital transformation strategies. (Celonis, 2019)

tech spending and budget

AI and Automation Statistics

Many businesses see value in the utilization of AI and automation and deem them critical factors in keeping up with competitors and improving overall operational procedures. This is why today’s c-level executives are willing to spend more on the implementation of these technologies.

86% of companies say that AI will be a mainstream technology at their firms in 2021. (PwC, 2021)
73% of senior executives want to increase their investment in AI/machine learning and automation. (Celonis, 2019)
63% of executives believe that AI initiatives are required to catch up with their competitors. (Deloitte, 2020)
58% of firms increased their spending in AI for workforce planning. (PwC, 2021)
83% of organizations have observed moderate to substantial benefits upon implementing cognitive technologies. (Deloitte, 2020)
The top uses for AI include IT automation (47%), quality control (46%), cybersecurity (41%), predictive analytics (38%), and customer service (37%). (Deloitte, 2020)

In fact, as of last year, there has already been an increase in the number of businesses that leverage AI tech such as machine learning, deep learning, and natural language processing. Studies show that more companies will be rolling out automation and AI initiatives by implementing AI-powered software, co-development, and other methods.

58% of companies say they have undertaken at least six full AI implementations over the past year. (Deloitte, 2020)
The level of machine learning adoption to date is 63%. (Deloitte, 2020)
50% of companies now use deep-learning. This is 16 points higher than the previous year. (Deloitte, 2020)
62% of companies have adopted Natural Language Processing. (Deloitte, 2020)
Regarding the skills gap in AI and machine learning, 68% of executives said that it is moderate to extreme while 27% said that it is major or extreme. (Deloitte, 2021)
59% of companies are planning and implementing strategies to equip their workforce with the necessary skills for handling AI. (PwC, 2021)
58% of firms increased their spending in AI for workforce planning. (PwC, 2021)
25% of enterprises are optimistic about growth with the help of AI despite the pandemic. (PwC, 2021)
Though the pandemic has caused experts to reevaluate global AI software outlooks, AI-based revenues are still anticipated to hit $100 billion by 2025. (Deloitte, 2021)
Some of the easiest ways to leverage AI is by implementing enterprise software with AI (59%), codevelopment with partners (53%), cloud-based AI (49%), open-source development tools (49%), automated machine learning (46%), data science modeling (44%), and crowdsourced development (39%). (Deloitte, 2020)

As with any tech, AI and automation have their fair share of challenges. For instance, many people worry that these new technologies may take away jobs. However, contrary to popular belief, many companies say that they will generate demand for professionals.

They are more worried about not having employees who can help them with their AI initiatives. This is why many executives are going through great lengths when building a more AI-ready workforce.

61% of internet users believe AI may affect the availability of work. (BCG, 2019)
58% of people say that governments should take measures to regulate AI and protect jobs. (BCG, 2019)
The most common struggles of AI adopters involve data issues (16%), integrating AI into existing workflows (14%), implementation (13%), cost (13%), and lack of skills (11%). (Deloitte, 2020)
75% of companies that have implemented AI fully experienced an improvement in their decision-making. (PwC, 2021)
Companies are focusing on hiring professionals with specific skill sets to boost AI initiatives. Among those they are looking for are AI researchers (30%), AI software developers (28%), data scientists (24%), user experience designers (23%), and change management experts (22%). (Deloitte, 2020)
43% of businesses are upskilling and are putting into action learning strategies for employees, with AI as part of the agenda. (PwC, 2021)
50% of firms are working to ensure that they can interpret well the decisions put forth by AI. (PwC, 2021)
Although over 50% of AI adopters have major concerns regarding the potential risks of their AI plans, only four in 10 reported that their organizations are prepared to address them. (Deloitte, 2021)
Apart from cybersecurity concerns, AI adopters are worried about new and changing regulations that could affect their plans (57%). (Deloitte, 2021)
62% of survey respondents voiced their concerns regarding government regulations that may hamper their ability to become more innovative in the future. (Deloitte, 2021)

Companies and AI: Where They Are

Source: PwC, 2021

Big Data and Analytics Statistics

While the term “big data” was coined only in 2005, the practice has actually been around since the 1990s. There just wasn’t enough data to analyze at that time, and not everyone had the means to collect and organize what little data was available.

Today, data has become the fuel of the future. With 2.5 quintillion bytes generated daily, companies will surely have all the resources they need to understand their industry, approach their target audience better, and make their processes more efficient.

There has been a growing number of businesses investing in big data and analytics in the past few years.

The big data market is projected to be worth $77 billion before the end of 2023. (Entrepreneur, 2019)
The revenue of big data and business analytics is believed to hit $274.3 billion by 2023. (Statista, 2020)
By 2024, global data would reach 149 zettabytes. (Statista, 2020)
Experts predict that each human will generate 1.7 megabytes of data per second by 2020. (Domo)
Organizations that are data-driven are 23 times more likely to convert leads and 6 times more like to retain them. (Advance2000, 2018)
By fostering data-driven processes, businesses are 19 times more likely to improve their ROI. (Advance2000, 2018)
90% of businesses say that data and analytics are central to their transformation plans. (Research and Markets, 2020)
95% of companies are looking to organize their unstructured data. (Forbes, 2019)
90% of Fortune 500 companies will have at least one data-related plan implemented within the year. (Kearney)
97.2% of companies are currently investing in big data. (TechJury, 2021)
In 2021, only 48.5% of companies are employing Big Data for innovation. (NewVantage Partners, 2021)
90% of IT professionals plan intend to up their spending on business intelligence tools to improve big data analysis. (Forbes, 2019)

Aside from analyzing the industry and improving operational processes, companies are also found to be using big data systems and data analytics software for other aspects of their business. Among these are data warehouse management, content analytics, and descriptive and predictive analytics.

96% of companies agree that Big Data are yielding results for them. (NewVantage Partners, 2021)
As of January 2019, descriptive and predictive analytics usage grew to the high 60th percentile. (Forbes, 2019)
IT professionals increased their content analytics usage by 54%. (Forbes, 2019)

big data adoption

eCommerce Statistics

eCommerce undoubtedly offers a handful of benefits to both businesses and consumers. More products and services are within reach, and transactions are simplified. In the coming years, we can expect an increase in both online stores and shoppers.

The number of eCommerce users is expected to rise to 4.913.9 million by 2025. (Statista, 2020)
Worldwide, eCommerce market will reach nearly $5 trillion in 2021. (eMarketer, 2021)
The average revenue per user (ARPU) in eCommerce is expected to amount to $714.11 this 2021. (Statista, 2020)
The global retail eCommerce CAGR is 8.1% from 2020 to 2024. (Statista, 2021)
Shopper conversion rate, globally, is 2.58%. (Monetate, 2019)
Digital interactions influence $0.56 of every dollar spent in a physical store. (We Are Social, 2019)
eCommerce’s largest segments are travel with a volume of $750.7 billion, fashion with $524.9 billion, and electronics with $392.6 billion. (We Are Social, 2019)
Retail eCommerce sales worldwide reached $3.535 trillion in 2019. (eMarketer, 2019)

Moreover, if you already have a brick-and-mortar shop, having an eCommerce store will allow your potential customers to get to know your brand well before they pay you a visit.

89% of consumers have visited an online retail store on various devices. (We Are Social, 2020)
74% of users have purchased a product online. (We Are Social, 2020)

Social Media eCommerce

However, keep in mind that simply having an eCommerce website is not enough to engage your leads. Nowadays, consumers use their mobile phones and social media accounts to scout for new brands. This means you need to have mobile-ready stores and active accounts on social networks to reach your target audience more effectively.

Social media influences 71% of purchasing decisions. (Search Engine Watch, 2020)
44% of social media users utilize such platforms to research brands. (We Are Social, 2020)
66% of buyers have used a shopping app either on mobile or tablet to complete a purchase. (DataReportal, 2020)
Ecommerce adoption is highest in Indonesia, at 81%. (DataReportal, 2020)

Financial Technology

Aside from the abovementioned, it is also a good idea to start investing in financial technology. This digitization of financial services allows you to automate certain processes related to money matters, reducing costs in the long run. With this, you can transact with your clients quickly using their preferred channels and payment methods.

FinTech’s largest segment is digital payments. 2021 transaction value is predicted to reach $6,685,102 million. (Statista, 2021)
By transaction volume, the top 3 payment methods in eCommerce are digital or mobile wallet (52.2%), credit card (18.8%), and debit card (8.8%). (Worldpay, 2020)

Increasingly Popular eCommerce Tools

Of course, as we move toward a more high-tech business landscape, you will need to keep up with the tools that other companies are using. For instance, many shoppers expect eCommerce businesses to provide them with self-service options such as chatbots. Moreover, consumers are now purchasing using voice searches. This only goes to show that if you do not equip your websites with voice search functions and SEO, there’s a good chance that you’re missing out on opportunities.

62% of consumers in the US like to use chatbots in engaging with businesses. (Forbes, 2019)
80% of businesses will use chatbots for their online sites by 2020. (Business Insider, 2016)
eCommerce sales using voice search are predicted to reach $40 billion in 2022. (Readwrite, 2020)
Around 85% of shoppers trust the recommendations of their voice assistants. (Readwrite, 2020)

In case you are wondering what else is new in the world of eCommerce, you can also check out our list of essential eCommerce statistics.

What US Shoppers Purchased Online 2020

Top 10 Items

Source: Statista, 2021

Emerging Technology Statistics

Aside from the different technologies we have tackled thus far, there are also plenty of emerging technologies worth noting. But before that, here are statistics that show a few blanket benefits of the use of future-forward innovations to companies:

In a survey, 80% of companies said that they use at least one emerging technology for finance and operations. (Oracle, 2020)
Firms that utilize emerging technologies have increased their annual revenue by 58%. (Oracle, 2020)
Companies that employ emerging innovations grow their annual net income 80% than their counterparts who do not. (Oracle, 2020)
Organizations are 2 to 3 times more likely to use prebuilt emerging techs than use one that they built from scratch. (Oracle, 2020)

Internet of Things

Internet of Things or IoT is something you’ve probably heard of. It is a system that interconnects various computing devices in a single network. This makes it possible to create smart cities, smart homes, connected cars, smart utilities, and wearable gadgets. As we dive deeper into a more high-tech business landscape, IoT is expected to dominate quite a few aspects of day-to-day life for both businesses and individuals in the near future.

However, it is important to note that it can be challenging to pull off IoT projects if you don’t have the expertise to handle them. Thus, you must learn the lay of the land first before using it for your operations.

Worldwide IoT spending in 2020 dropped to $742 billion, due largely to the Covid-19 pandemic. (IDC, 2020)
IoT expenditure, globally, is expected to return to double-digit growth in 2021, with a CAGR of 11.3% up to 2024. (IDC, 2020)
The industries that utilize IoT devices are business and manufacturing (40.2%), healthcare (30.3%), retail (8.3%), security (7.7%), and transportation (4.1%). (Intel, 2015)
There are 26.66 billion IoT devices in 2019. Experts say it will surpass 75 billion by 2025. (Forbes, 2016)
Consumer spending on smart home devices is expected to reach $157 billion in 2023. (Strategy Analytics, 2019)
The number of global autonomous driving sensor components will be worth $43 billion by 2030. (McKinsey & Company, 2019)
Experts predict that the market size for RFID tags will reach $24.5 billion by 2020. (Statista, 2020)
In 2022, the number of connected devices is anticipated to reach 1.1 billion. (Cisco, 2020)
73% of IoT projects are failing. This is due to limited internal expertise, budget overruns, and low-quality data. (Cisco, 2017)
54% of companies believe that IoT projects can succeed through close collaboration between IT and business admin, while 48% report that a significant factor for success was expertise in the matter. (Cisco, 2017)

Augmented Reality

Augmented reality is another game-changer across various industries. A concept initially introduced in 1968, this technology is slowly integrating itself into our daily lives through AR glasses, AR-enhanced training materials, or games like Pokemon Go. Some businesses are even making this technology more accessible to businesses and the masses. However, many still don’t quite know what it is or how to utilize it. So, studying it before leveraging it for your business might be best.

The AR market size is currently $12 billion. (Statista, 2021)
By 2023, AR users are estimated to reach 2.4 billion. (AR Insider, 2021)
67% of media planners intend to leverage AR/VR technology for their digital marketing campaigns. (Vibrant, 2017)
55% of consumers would love to enjoy music and concerts through AR. (IBM, 2019)
AR glasses sales will hit $22.8 million by 2022. (Business Wire, 2017)
70% of professionals say that AR has the potential to help them hone personal and professional skills. (ISACA, 2016)
65% of AR companies are developing industrial uses for the technology. (Forbes, 2020)
Almost 50% of Americans have used augmented reality without even realizing it. (GearBrain, 2017)

SaaS

Software-as-a-Solution or SaaS is one of the main categories of cloud computing. Thriving alongside Infrastructure-as-a-Service (IaaS) products and Platform-as-a-Service (PaaS) products, this technology has been known for simplifying the distribution, delivery, and maintenance of business systems.

It may not be an emerging technology, but we included it on this list primarily because many SaaS products have yet to reach their full potential. Software providers are still figuring out how to incorporate different types of tech, such as AI and analytics into their systems to make them better. Moreover, there are still quite a few companies that have not implemented SaaS solutions for their day-to-day operations despite the proliferation of SaaS productivity tools.

The SaaS market has a value of $116 billion worldwide, and experts predict it will reach $157 billion by 2020. (Tata Communications, 2019)
56% of small and medium businesses spend $120k to $600k in public cloud. (Flexera, 2020)
Meanwhile, SMEs that are willing to spend $600k to $1 million is only 12%. (Flexera, 2020)
The enterprise market size in 2019 was $101 billion. (Statista, 2020)
The largest SaaS vendor in 2019 was Microsoft, with a 16.1% market share. (ITCandor, 2019)
SaaS spending in 2020 dipped to $101.5 billion in 2020 compared to $102.1 billion in 2019. (Statista, 2020)
22.5% of companies reported that Covid-19 had no impact on their SaaS spending. (IDC, 2020)
But 20.5% said that they had to decrease their expenditure on SaaS by less than 10%. (IDC, 2020)
91% of respondents in a survey said that SaaS drove the adoption of emerging technologies in the finance and operations sectors. (Oracle, 2020)

saas-powered future

Finance and Operations

Some of the applications of new-fangled technologies can be found in the fields of finance and operations. Indeed, there are numerous organizations that broadly adopt such technologies to help them with their financial processes. Some of the technologies they are implementing or are looking into are the Internet of Things, blockchain, AI and machine learning, and smart voice assistants or chatbots.

Those who use AI in a financial capacity report an average improvement in productivity by 33% and a decrease in errors by 37%. (Oracle, 2020)
Companies that used AI for their monthly financial close process were able to complete the task 4 days faster. (Oracle, 2020)
By leveraging data from IoT, 88% of organizations are reaching or surpassing ROI expectations. (Oracle, 2020)
83% of firms that utilize blockchain in financial solutions are looking forward to significant returns within 12 months. (Oracle, 2020)
Users who employ smart assistants in conducting their financial reports noted that they had a 36% increase in productivity and had 38% faster analytic capabilities. (Oracle, 2020)
Users of emerging technologies are 9.5x more likely to have a market-leading accuracy in financial or operational metrics than those who are not. (Oracle, 2020)

Hardware Statistics

Now that we’ve discussed the various software solutions and online tech for businesses, we can now move on to hardware.

Workplace Hardware

Companies have different hardware needs, but it is evident that the majority of them rely on desktops and laptops. With the growing popularity of BYOD and the increasingly advanced mobile gadgets becoming available on the market, however, it seems that many are also using tablets and smartphones for their operations.

The top pieces of hardware that businesses use for their operations are desktops (68%), laptops (29%), and tablets (1%). The remaining 2% is the number of companies that use other types of hardware. (Spiceworks, 2018)
Most organizations prioritize desktops (22%), laptops (22%), and servers (12%) in their hardware budget while the least that’s paid attention to are peripherals, external storage, and telephony at 3% each. (Spiceworks, 2018)
75% of companies still utilize desk phones as their primary telecom device. Meanwhile, 16% use smartphones, and 7% use UC systems via their laptops/desktops. (Spiceworks, 2018)

Furthermore, it seems that companies are keen on making sure that all operational tech are up-to-date. They do this by decommissioning equipment after a certain period.

70% of companies use their desktops for over 5 years before decommissioning them, while 48% use their laptops for the same amount of time. (Spiceworks, 2018)
Companies use their large computing devices and peripherals for operations, with 75% using their servers and printers for over 5 years. (Spiceworks, 2018)
Companies often replace their hardware due to failure (84%), performance degradation (72%), physical damages (59%), end of support concerns (50%), maintenance costs of aging hardware (49%), hardware compatibility issues (45%), end-user complaints (42%), device loss/theft (33%), tech replacement policy (29%), and warranty expiration (26%). (Spiceworks, 2018)
59% of IT personnel believe that utilizing antiquated technology can cause a blow to employee morale, while 60% believe that it has a negative effect on productivity. (Spiceworks, 2018)

Smartphones

Smartphones are perhaps the most used device of all time. Everyone practically has their phone in hand no matter where they go. This way, they can answer calls, send text messages, browse through social media, surf the net—you name it. What’s more is that just when we thought phones couldn’t get any more popular, statistics show otherwise.

90.8% of users access the internet via their smartphones. (DataReportal, 2020)
There are 5.20 billion unique mobile phone users. (DataReportal, 2020)
People use smartphones for voice calls (57%), data usage (33.5%), standard SMS (6.5%), and softphones (1%). (Blueface, 2018)
App stores had a record-breaking 218 billion downloads in 2020, with consumer spending reach $143 billion. (TechCrunch, 2021)
To date, there are 104.40 mobile phone subscriptions for every 100 people. (Our World in Data, 2017)
1 in 5 American Adults is a smartphone-only user. They don’t have traditional home broadband services and only rely on their mobile phones. (Pew Research Center, 2019)

Top Reasons Why Companies Replace Their Office Hardware

Hardware Failure

84%

Performance Degradation

72%

Physical Damages

59%

End of Support Concerns

50%

Maintenance Costs of Aging Hardware

49%

Hardware Compatibility Issues

45%

End-User Complaints

42%

Device Loss/Theft

33%

Tech Replacement Policy

29%

Warranty Expiration

26%

Source: Lifespan of Computers and Other Tech in the Workplace

The Effect of the Pandemic on Technology Adoption

There has been a global shift in technology adoption and digitization because of the Covid-19 crisis. To surmount that challenge, many organizations around the world increased the rate of their adoption. Along the way, they also noted some issues that they needed to address when it comes to certain technologies.

Globally, digital adoption has accelerated by at least three years, with an average of 58% of consumer interactions that are digital. (McKinsey & Company, 2020)
The Asia-Pacific region experienced the highest adoption leap, accelerating by four years. This translated to 53% of consumer interactions that are digital. (McKinsey & Company, 2020)
Consumer and business digital adoption have been fast-forwarded by five years in just the first eight weeks of lockdown. (McKinsey & Company, 2020)
Leaders reported a 5% increase in their IT spending because of Covid-19. That translates to a $15 billion rise in just the first three months of the pandemic. (KPMG, 2020)
The grocery industry showed the highest rate of digital adoption during the height of the pandemic at 31%. (McKinsey & Company, 2020)
Respondents in a survey said that their companies enacted changes due to the pandemic 20 to 25 times faster. (McKinsey & Company, 2020)
70% of executives reported that their public cloud adoption rate is slowing down due to cybersecurity concerns. (Deloitte, 2021)
Cost management is an issue that many companies are grappling with when it comes to cloud adoption; 56% are unaware of the cost implications of software licensing for the cloud. Because of that, they exceed their cloud spending by 23% (on average) and 30% said that their cloud expenditure was a waste. (Deloitte, 2021)
In a survey, 85% of CFOs indicated that they expect more of their workforce to work remotely after the pandemic. As a result, demand for hardware like laptops and other office products is increasing. (Deloitte, 2021)
From April 2020 to October 2020, Microsoft reported that Microsoft Teams grew by 50% because of the heightened use due to the pandemic. (Deloitte, 2021)
Similarly, Zoom reported a 345% year-on-year growth because of Covid-19. (Deloitte, 2021)
Companies actually moved 40 times faster to enable remote work because of Covid-19-related restrictions. (McKinsey & Company, 2020)
97% of survey participants noted that their organizations experienced disruptions due to Covid-19. Because of that, 73% said that their companies are planning new approaches to supply chain management and procurement. (Deloitte, 2021)
69% of asset managers said that the digitization of their operations accelerated by five months. (KPMG, 2020)

pandemic impact, technology adoption

With the rise of tech adoption, organizations worldwide are also experiencing challenges in the realm of compliance. This comes as no surprise, especially with the heightened cybersecurity risks. Case in point, companies that utilize Zoom for meetings do not realize that their recordings are potentially discoverable. As such, sensitive matters discussed could be exposed to the public.

47% of global compliance leaders said they were rarely consulted regarding compliance risks with regard to decision-making and acquisition of technologies. (Corporate Compliance Insights, 2021)
43% of compliance professionals are not included in technology acquisition decision-making processes. (Corporate Compliance Insights, 2021)

The Covid-19 pandemic has caused a seismic shift in the way that organizations adopt new technologies. One of the reasons that propelled their digitization and tech adoption forward is the change in the way that customers interacted with them. And of course, firms worldwide had to make changes in the workplace to ensure the continued operations of their companies despite the pandemic. While experts say that the changes in tech adoption that were seen during the height of the pandemic is a one-of-a-kind happening, there is no doubt that it has highlighted trends that could influence future adoption practices.

What Do These Technology Facts Mean for Your Business?

The data we’ve presented speaks for itself: technology will continue to evolve, and it’s changing the business landscape faster than companies can keep up.

Almost every year, we see new tech being replaced with even more advanced systems. For instance, VoIP, 4G LTE networks, basic automation are slowly being replaced by UCs, 5G networks, and AI. Consequently, consumers have increasingly high expectations from brands in terms of convenience, mobility, and reachability.

To truly succeed in leveraging technology to their advantage, companies will need to think ahead. There is no better time than now to study and test new methods of improving day-to-day operations. Moreover, companies should try to better integrate these technologies into their existing workflow and involve their workforce in building their digital transformation initiatives. After all, technology shouldn’t be treated as a way to replace your processes and your workforce. Instead, it is a means to reinforce operations and improve the efficiency of your staff members.

To sum up, while we understand that this compilation of technology statistics barely scratches the surface when it comes to the overall developments in the industry, we hope you were able to pick up a thing or two about leveraging tech to modernize your business. In case you aren’t sure where to start, we highly recommend that you try utilizing SaaS products that make use of the newest tech. Check out our guide to the different types of SaaS so you have a better idea about what you should invest in.

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