Enterprises are not limiting themselves when it comes to investing in the latest technology areas

Cybersecurity is the most important emerging technology for businesses globally, according to GlobalData, a leading data and analytics company.

The company’s latest report, Global Emerging Technology Trends Survey 2018, based on a survey of more than 1,500 companies, states that cybersecurity was identified as the most important emerging technology by more than half of all respondents, putting it ahead of areas such as cloud computing, artificial intelligence (AI) and the Internet of Things (IoT).

Ed Thomas, Technology Thematic analyst at GlobalData, says: “Cybersecurity is an investment priority for enterprises from all industries, highlighting its emergence as a critical business function in today’s digital economy.

“Any company not investing in cybersecurity runs a higher risk of being hacked and stands to fall behind the competition.”

GlobalData’s report also finds that companies worldwide are growing their emerging technology investments. The survey data suggests that businesses from across the world are planning to make major investments in areas like cybersecurity, AI, and IoT.

Thomas continues: "Our data demonstrates that the appetite for investment in emerging technologies is not limited to the more mature IT markets of North America and Europe, but is actually global. This represents a significant opportunity for technology vendors, as long as they have the capability to secure business in countries that may be outside their traditional marketplace.”

While cybersecurity was seen as the most important emerging technology, GlobalData’s survey revealed that enterprises are not limiting themselves when it comes to investing in the latest technology areas.

Thomas concludes, “Companies appear to be experimenting with a broad range of emerging technologies, with even relatively immature areas, such as virtual and augmented reality (VR/AR), scoring well in our survey.”