The wave of emerging technologies has certainly left its footprint on many industries, financial services included.
Artificial intelligence and the Internet of Things, are top of mind for business and IT executives, according Digital IQ report released by PwC.
According to the report, almost 70% of 2,216 respondents said that they plan to invest in AI and IoT throughout the next three years. Blockchain, drones, and virtual reality solutions were less popular, all 15% or less votes. The total volume of investments in emerging technologies, however, remains stale over the last decade. From the report:
Despite the promise of these tools—and the risks of falling behind—spending on emerging technologies is not much greater today, relative to overall digital technology budgets, than it was 10 years ago. In 2007, the average investment in emerging technology was 16.8% of technology budgets (we remarked that it was robust). Today, the share of technology spend is consistent: 17.9%. Business leaders tell us they are more focused on digital priorities like implementing cloud-based platforms for workforce automation or investing in digital tools to improve operational performance, rather than exploring emerging technology. And we wonder if companies are over the fear of disruption so prevalent in the past few years. Just 7% of executives say that combating new industry entrants drove their digital investments.
Digital IQ surveyed 2,216 business and IT executives globally, including 322 from the financial services industry. Respondents were evenly divided between IT and business leaders, with 62% working in organizations with revenues of $1 billion or greater, and 38% between $500 million and $1 billion.
The full report is available here.