Collaborative Technologies Are a Growing Trend

Collaboration, a key strategy for supply chain organizations today, is also becoming a top technology component.

Collaborative sensing is one of the top 10 emerging technologies in 2025, a study from the World Economic Forum (WEF) in collaboration with Frontiers found. “As cities become more connected, collaborative sensing is enabling vehicles, traffic systems and emergency services to coordinate in real time — improving safety and easing congestion,” the Top 10 Emerging Technologies report states.

Collaborative sensing, it would seem, could be beneficial for logistics and last-mile delivery companies.

“Scientific and technological breakthroughs are advancing rapidly, even as the global environment for innovation grows more complex,” said Jeremy Jurgens, the WEF’s managing director, in the release. “The research provides top global leaders with a clear view of which technologies are approaching readiness, how they could solve the world’s pressing problems and what’s required to bring them to scale responsibly.”

The Top 10 Emerging Technologies report, the 13th edition, features technologies chosen for their novelty, maturity and innovation. They are expected to scale within five years and deliver wide societal benefits, the report states. They underwent a rigorous evaluation process that included peer assessment.

“This year’s edition highlights a trend towards technology convergence,” the press release stated. “For example, structural battery composites combine energy with storage design, while engineered living therapeutics merge synthetic biology and precision medicine. Such integration signals a shift away from standalone innovations to more integrated systems-based solutions, reshaping what is possible.”

Rounding out the top five emerging technologies:

• Generative watermarking. Invisible tags are put on artificial intelligence (AI)-generated content to help distinguish factual information from misinformation.
• Green nitrogen fixation. Electricity instead of fossil fuels is used to make fertilizer, thus cutting pollution and carbon emissions.
• “These lab-made materials act like natural enzymes, but are stronger, cheaper and easier to use,” the report stated. “They could improve medical tests, clean up pollution and support safer manufacturing.”
• Engineered living therapeutics, using helpful bacteria designed to deliver treatment from inside the body. With this technology, long-term care could become cheaper and more effective.

The remaining emerging technologies of note:

• GLP-1s for neurodegenerative diseases. “Drugs originally used for diabetes and weight loss are now showing promise in slowing diseases like Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s,” the press release states. “These treatments could offer new hope where few options exist today.”
• Autonomous biochemical sensing, in which small, smart sensors are used to monitor health or environmental changes. Results can include early detection of illness or pollution.
• Structural battery composites, which can make electric vehicles lighter and more efficient.
• Osmotic power systems, in which energy is captured where saltwater meets freshwater to produce clean electricity.
• Advanced nuclear technologies that offer safer and lower-cost clean energy. These can include smaller nuclear designs and alternative cooling systems and may be instrumental as energy demand increases, especially from AI usage.

The 300 experts participating in this year’s Top 10 Emerging Technologies report were from the WEF’s Global Future Councils, the University and Research Network and the Frontiers editorial network.

(Image credit: Getty Images/Amgun)