12 Rapidly Expanding Industries That Most Investors are Watching Right Now
Whether you’re getting ready to choose your college major or are trying to decide which niche you should launch a start-up in, knowing about the most popular industries can give you a significant head start in earning more and discovering better income opportunities.
If you’ve been paying attention to investment and career-related news lately, you’ve probably noticed that some of the biggest industries revolve around disruptive technologies.
Even if you’re not getting ready to begin your first business endeavour, becoming familiar with the most lucrative fields will keep you from choosing a career path that won’t pay as much or provide as many employment and investment opportunities.
Ultimately, when a lot of investors are throwing their money at something, you know there are going to be new jobs, contracts, sales, and other forms of economic stimulus surrounding those industries.
There are dozens of quickly expanding sectors in technology, but none are more in-demand and spotlighted than the 12 burgeoning markets mentioned below. In this guide, we’ll consider the opinions of investors, business professionals, and academics to discuss 2020’s most optimal industries in which to build a company or a career:
1. Big Data and Analytics
Investors have an almost obsessive fascination with big data right now, and ironically many of them don’t even really know what any of it means. With news about projects like IBM’s Watson and Google’s DeepMind conjuring up all sorts of imaginative thoughts about what big data can do for companies today and in the near future, it’s easy to see why the super-rich are lined up to throw their money at the most data-savvy tech start-ups.
Due to the ever-growing number of applications and databases, big data is a continually growing field. Check out this list of the most in-demand analytics careers from Aston University Online to learn about some of the career opportunities that are available in this blossoming field of technology.
2. Artificial Intelligence
Artificial intelligence might seem like it’s many years off, but it would not be far-fetched to say that a fully-fledged general AI could be coming within the next 50 years, and many advanced narrow and multi-purpose AIs already exist.
“Inside every investor and professional is a kid who is fascinated with the realm of science fiction and what they would could become with the advent of next-gen AI-powered technology,” said Sherry Allistair, an AI enthusiast and neural network programmer.
Interestingly, while there are many companies making actual breakthroughs in AI, one report suggested that up to 40% of European start-ups who raised money for “AI-based” businesses have no actual AI to demonstrate and therefore might not have one at all.
In other words, out of all the start-ups and professionals who claim to use an AI, only about 60% of them can prove that they actually do.
photo/Gerd Altmannl intell
3. Mobile Apps
The mobile app sphere grows exponentially every year, with millions of new apps being developed at this very moment, that keeping up with every noteworthy app that hits the market would either be an impossible task, or you’d need to be completely devoted to doing that to even come close to discovering a small portion of the apps available.
Here are three reasons why mobile apps represent an evergreen investment and career opportunity:
- Every company wants an app and will pay to have one developed. There are also numerous ways to monetise or profit from an app, so there’s an incentive for everyone from the advertisers to the publishers, and even app users themselves to benefit from the enhanced convenience that app functionality provides.
- Some of the biggest business acquisitions of the past decade have been mobile apps. For example, WhatsApp was bought for $19 billion back in 2014. Of course, every app doesn’t get bought by Facebook for an absurd amount of money, but that just goes to show how much people are willing to invest in a great app that has a lot of users.
- More than half of all internet use now occurs through app interfaces. Experts estimate that figure could approach 60% during the next decade.
As you can see, building an app or investing in the app development industry is a wise move for almost any investor, even those who aren’t tech-savvy.
4. Cybersecurity
Cybersecurity is a massive market because most of the services and software that exist in this industry are billed as a subscription.
Not having a professional antivirus simply isn’t an option for any serious business owner, so not paying the subscription is also out of the question.
Even beyond the huge antivirus software companies like Kaspersky, Avast!, and Malwarebytes, there are so many smaller players who are making an excellent living in the cybersecurity industry.
Some of the better-paying jobs in cybersecurity can have you earning as much as $160,000 or more per year.
5. Biotech
Biotechnology is an interesting field because it’s pushing the limit of what human beings are capable of, and some would even argue that it’s accelerating our evolution.
“Aside from the obvious ‘science fiction becomes reality’ implications that biotech carries, it also offers the promise of some very interesting cures,” said biotech specialist Holly James. Medtech is an entire field in and of itself, and there are millions of people who are waiting for this technology to reach its potential so they can lead normal lives again.
6. Cryptocurrencies
Cryptocurrencies represent a new age of online financial management, accounting, and even just the concept of money in general. There are so many new cryptocurrencies being built every year and some of them have been able to gain a fair amount of traction very quickly.
In the case of the original cryptocurrency – Bitcoin – the value rose by a factor of thousands and made many people extremely rich.
Ever since the crypto-rush kicked off in the early 2010s, investors and tech nerds worldwide have been trying to emulate the success of Bitcoin.
“There will never be another Bitcoin, but after enough time passes, there could be an even bigger currency, as the new wave of cryptocurrencies are starting to associate themselves with proprietary platforms,” said Allen Sneider, avid crypto collector, and experienced trader.
7. Robotics
The movie iRobot seemed like it was so long ago, and now the reality of actual humanoid robots walking the streets doesn’t seem too far away. Companies like Boston Robotics are making strides in convincing investors and future professionals to take this field seriously.
8. Commercial Real Estate
Commercial real estate is nothing new, but it still qualifies to make this list because of how rapidly the market is expanding.
“Despite commonly overplayed concerns about the world being overpopulated, there are still countless rural areas waiting to be developed. As those areas continue to incorporate and build, the number of opportunities in commercial real estate will also continue to rise,” noted Bob Manfield, a veteran commercial real estate agent, and investor.
9. Transportation & Trucking
The trucking industry is commonly overlooked by the typical working crowd, but anyone with a chunk of money to invest will quickly find out that putting trucks on the road is a sure-fire way to make a profit. Whether you take the lower approach of actually driving the truck, or you invest in the truck lease and let a designated driver take care of the roadwork, there will always be a hefty profit margin left over. Think about it this way: every package and purchase that flows through the world’s eCommerce portals has to eventually make its way onto a truck for delivery.
10. Autonomous Vehicles
Self-driving cars are coming, and they’re arriving much faster than most of us had anticipated, thanks to the collaborative efforts of tech and automotive giants like Google and Mercedes Benz, the latter of which is in the process of releasing the world’s first luxury self-driving car collection.
11. Luxury Fashion
Luxury fashion is only getting more expensive and more versatile in terms of design and social appeal. Starting a luxury clothing brand or launching an eCommerce site that sells these kinds of products can be very lucrative thanks to the high-profit margins involved.
12. Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) Platforms
Instead of letting the user download their software and have unlimited use after that, SaaS providers take the subscription-based approach to keep their users paying a small fee in order to keep using their service.
Following the Trends to Find the Money
Being a leader instead of a follower doesn’t always lead you to the money. In fact, sometimes just the opposite can be true – following all the latest trends can help you tap into the best opportunities. It’s a simple equation: when there are a lot of people interested in one topic, that subject is more likely to attract the interest of wealthy individuals.
Every brand leader or investor wants to grow their outreach capabilities, and being part of a trend is the fastest and easiest way to do that. By staying on top of the 12 industries mentioned above, you can take advantage of free chances to gain new publicity for your website, CV, or anything else you’re trying to promote.
Author: Carol Trehearn
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