When looking to the future of the economy, much of the narrative focusses on artificial intelligence, robotics, and the importance of the data in the ‘new normal. Digging a bit deeper some of the numbers are hard to comprehend. For example, a 6G phone can download the entire New York library in 20 seconds whilst autonomous vehicles will create up to 40 terabytes of data every hour – which is the same as using an iPhone for 3,000 years. The scale of data creation is staggering, in 2020 alone it is estimated that 64 ‘zettabytes’ of data was created, and this will double every three years. A Zettabyte? That has 21 zeros…

 

There’s also an interesting overlap with another key theme for the next decade: climate change. We have experienced domestically here in Ireland the arguments for and against large data centres and the debate looks set to rumble on. As the move to a zero carbon economy gathers pace, companies will be required to report on their greenhouse gas emissions which fall into various categories (Scope 1,2, & 3). How and where companies report the emissions created by data along their supply chains is a complex area. And ultimately, one where we don’t even have all the questions let alone the answers. CLICK HERE