安永-2024年科技公司十大机遇 Top 10 Opportunities for Technology Companies in 2024

Top10OpportunitiesforTechnology

Companiesin2024

Reshaping,repositioningandinnovating

forsuccessinaGenAI-ledworld

Top10OpportunitiesforTechnologyCompaniesin2024

Overview

TheEYTop10OpportunitiesforTechnologyCompaniesin2024

#1InjectGenAIintodigitaltransformationstrategiesandestablishacontroltower

#2ExperimentwithGenAIintargetedfront-officeandback-officeusecases

#3Investinnewformsofdigitalinfrastructureintheburgeoning“edgeeconomy”

#4Establishadditionalsupplylinesinemergingmarkets

#5ShapecorporateinvestmentstrategyaroundtheAIroadmap

#6Harnessplatformbusinessmodelstoindustrializeandscaleadvancingtechnologies

#7Establishproactiveandholisticresponsestonewandforthcomingtaxburdens

#8Prioritizeenergyefficiencyofdatacentersinenvironmentalefforts

#9Investinadvancedrisktoolsandrevisittrade-offsbetweencosts,risks,resiliencyandagility

#10Deployadvancedtechnologytoreducecurrentandfuturecyberrisks

2

Top10OpportunitiesforTechnologyCompaniesin2024

TheriseofgenerativeAI(GenAI)andrenewed

growthpotentialheraldabrighterfuture

Asthesectorturnsthespotlightontoartificialintelligence…

Technologycompaniesworldwideareembarkingon2024followingayearinwhichtheirsectormanagedto

elevateitsfuturetrajectory.During2023,theindustrysuccessfullynavigatedglobaleconomicheadwinds

andrisinggeopoliticaltensionswhilealsogeneratingwidespreadoptimism,excitementandexpectation

aroundthepotentialofemergingtechnology,especiallyartificialintelligence(AI).Althoughbynomeans

offeringapanaceaforallills,advanceslikeGenAI,largelanguagemodels(LLMs)andindustry-specificco-

pilotsarerapidlyrewritingthenarrative.

Nasdaqindexrelativeone-yearperformance

40%

30%

20%

10%

0%

-10%

Nov2022Jan2023Mar2023May2023Jul2023Sep2023Nov2023

Source:Refinitiv,accessedNovember2023

3

Top10OpportunitiesforTechnologyCompaniesin2024

There’sarenewedfocusongrowth

despiteincreasedrisks.

Theresultisanoutlookthat’sfarbrighterthan12monthsbefore.Earlyin2023,whenvaluationsinthe

sectorwereunderpressurefrommacroeconomicweaknesses[seechart],techcompaniesturnedtocost

savingsandrightsizingtohelpshoreupmargins.Aswellasachievingtheirprimarygoal,thesemeasures

alsofreedupfundstoinvestinnewtechnologiestofuelfuturegrowth.CompaniessawAIasthemost

promisingofthesetechnologies,offeringgrowthprospectsacrosstheentiresector,includinghardware,

softwareandservices.

Techcompanies’newAI-centeredstrategiestriggeredareboundininvestorconfidence,despitearange

ofmacrochallengesthatarecontinuingtoaffecttheindustry.Economicheadwindsareweighingdown

onsales.Thehighnumberofgeopoliticalconflictsandtradedisputesisthreateningcompanies’accessto

variousmarkets,technologies,rawmaterialsandcomponents.Changestodataprotectionruleswillalso

alterhowcompaniescanmonetizedata,whiledigitaltaxationandantitrustregulationsmaychangethe

competitivedynamicsovernight.

Mappingouttheopportunitiesfor2024

It’sagainstthisbackgroundthatwe’veexploredtheopportunitiesfortechcompaniesin2024.

Ouroverarchingfinding?AItoolscanbeappliedtovirtuallyeveryoperationalactivity,including

supplychainoptimization,automation,riskmanagement,customeralignmentandnewbusiness

development.

Incompilingourlistofthetop10opportunities,we’velookedtoprovideabalancedviewofthe

potentialactionsfortechcompaniesacrossvariousoperationalprocessesanddifferentsubsectors.

Bymovingdecisivelytoseizetheseopportunities,techcompanieswillenablethemselvestofocus

onwhattheydobest:innovating,developingbreakthroughtechnologiesandbringingnewservice

offeringstomarket.

4

Top10OpportunitiesforTechnologyCompaniesin2024

90%

oforganizationsarestillin

theearlieststagesofAI

maturity—runningproof

ofconceptsordeveloping

capabilitiesinpockets.*

1

InjectGenAIintodigital

transformationstrategiesand

establishacontroltower

Facedwiththisbalanceofrisksandopportunities,techcompaniesthatarelookingtoretainorachieveindustryleadershipindigitaltransformation

GenAIisusheringinaneweraofdigitaltransformation.Fortechcompanies,

theeffectisdouble-edged.Manyarealreadyfaralongintheirdigital

transformationjourneys,andtheleaderswillneedtoreassessandpivottheirongoingdigitalstrategiestoensurethatAItakesacentralrole.Transformation

effortsthatweredesignedandimplementedbeforeGenAI’semergence

arerapidlybecomingoutdated,andtheearlyleaderscouldlosegroundtocompetitorswhoprioritizenewcapabilities.

Bycontrast,techcompaniesthatfellbehindinearlierstagesofdigital

transformationhaveaclearopportunity:byputtingAIatthecenteroftheir

strategies,theycouldleapfrogcompetitorswhowerepreviouslywellahead.AIwillenablethemtonotonlyspeeduptheirtransformationjourneys,butalsotorepositiontheiroperationstocapitalizeonrapidlyemergingtechnologiesandbusinessmodels.

shouldestablishanAIcontroltower—adedicatedsteeringgroupcomprisingamixofbusinessunitheadsandotherkeyexecutivessuchaschiefdigital

ordataofficers.Thisgroupcanformulateanoverarchingvisionforthe

business’sGenAI-infuseddigitaltransformation,identifyandstrategizeforkeyopportunities,optimizetalentstrategiesandensurethatAIisdeployedina

responsiblemanner.

Crucially,anAIcontroltowerwillensurethathumansremainatthecenterofdigitaltransformation.Itwillalsopositionleaderstosupportsafe,trusted

andethicalAIdeploymentsbydrivingappropriatepoliciesandprocedures,governanceandaccountabilitystrategies,andtrainingandawareness

campaigns.

GenAIisnottheonlyemergingtechnologydrivingnewinnovationfortech

companies.Edge,cloudandquantumcomputing,amongothers,canalso

playkeyrolesindigitaltransformation.RatherthantreatingGenAIasan

isolatedtechnology,companiesthatintegrateGenAIintoabroadertechnologytransformationwillbebetterplacedtocreatesustainedvalue.

*EY,InnovationRealizedExecutivePulseSurvey,2023

5

Top10OpportunitiesforTechnologyCompaniesin2024

2

ExperimentwithGenAIin

targetedfront-officeandback-

officeusecases

Overthepastyear,theexplosiveemergenceofGenAIhascapturedthepublic’sattentionandimagination,andthetechnology’sgroundbreakingcapabilities

haveinspiredtechcompaniestoexploreopportunitiestoinjectitintoaslew

offront-andback-officefunctions.Theexcitingearlywinsfromtheseefforts

aredemonstratinghow—whenappliedeffectively—GenAIcanhelpcompaniestobothimprovetheirproductsandservicesandruntheirbusinessesmore

efficiently.

65%

oftechCEOsrecognizethat

theirorganizationmustact

nowonGenAItoavoid

givingtheircompetitorsa

strategicadvantage.*

However,GenAItoolsdobringsome

challenges,includingthattheycanbe

cost-andresource-intensive.Whileit

mightbetemptingtoleverageGenAIfor

allpotentialusecases,companiesare

likelytobebetterservedbyspecifically

targetinghigh-impact,high-valueuse

casesandtransformationopportunities,

andbycarefullyconsideringwhere

tochanneltheirearlyinvestments,

staffingandresources.Agoodwayto

startcanbetodevelopaportfolioof

potentialopportunitiestoleverageGenAI

orincorporateitintocurrentefforts.

Possibleusecasescanthenbeassessed

andprioritizedbasedonmetrics,suchas

alignmentwithexistingbusinessimperativesandscalability.

TechcompanieslookingtoinitiateorrampuptheirGenAIinvestmentsmay

targetaselectnumberoffront-officeusecasesthatcansupportprofitable

growthwithoutdisruptingcapitalallocationstrategies.ExamplesmightincludeleveragingGenAIinsoftwarecodingandusinghuman-machineinterfacesto

acceleratethegenerationofcontentwithadirectlinetoprofitability.

Back-officeGenAIusecasescanalsohelptoboostproductivityandcut

costs.Intandemwithfront-officeefforts,companiescanuseGenAI-poweredcontentcreationtogeneratevaluerapidlyinareaslikeinformationretrievalandsummarization,aswellasconversationalcapabilities.Functionsthatarewell-suitedtothisapproachincludelegal,compliance,taxfunctionalityandcustomersuccess.FurtheropportunitiesincludeoptimizingrecruitmentbydeployingAItoolstoattract,onboard,retainandupskilltalent.

*EY,CEOOutlookPulseSurvey,2023

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Top10OpportunitiesforTechnologyCompaniesin2024

3

Investinnewformsofdigital

infrastructureintheburgeoning

“edgeeconomy”

Emergingtechnologies’transformativecapabilitiesrelyheavilyonultra-fastdatacollectionandcomputation.InlightoftherapidadvanceofAI,the

proliferationofusecasesrequiringultra-fastprocessing“attheedge”and

continualshiftsinregulation,it’simperativethattechcompaniesoptimize

theirinvestmentsindigitalinfrastructuretosupportreliableconnectivityandrapidcomputecapabilities.

Newtypesofdigitalinfrastructure—especiallyubiquitous,high-speed

connectivityandlow-latencycomputing—arefoundationalrequirementsforawiderangeofnewopportunities.Whiletechcompaniescanbenefitfrom

harnessingthesecapabilities,theymustbecarefultoavoidoverspendingoninfrastructurethat’snotfit-for-purpose.Asthe“edgeeconomy”gains

paceandscale,companiesthatmanagetobalancethecompetingobjectives

ofactivatingnext-generationdigitalinfrastructureandstayingwithin

increasinglytightcapitalconstraintswillstandtowinout.

*EY,ReimaginingIndustryFutures,2023

75%

ofexecutivessurveyedbelievethat

theirorganizationrequiresgreater

understandingofedgecomputinguse

casesandconcepts.*

7

Top10OpportunitiesforTechnologyCompaniesin2024

Establishadditionalsupply

linesinemergingmarkets

4

Geopoliticaleventsandsupplychaindisruptionareidentifiedastwoofthethreemostprominent

risksontheagendaofcompanyboards.*

Theriskofsupplychaindecouplingisstillveryrealforthemorehardware-

focusedtechcompanies.Asaresult,araceisunderwayinsubsectorssuch

assemiconductorstorealignsupplychainsinwaysthatavoidtheimpacts

ofgeopoliticaldisruptions.Anexampleisbuildingadvancedmanufacturing

capabilitiesintheUS,whichcouldmitigatesomeoftherisksrelatedtoTaiwan.However,advancedmanufacturingisonlyonestepinanextendedecosystemofinterrelatedactivitiesthatareallessentialinbuildingaworkingchip.Andwhileothercountriesarealsobuildinguptheirmanufacturingcapabilities,tensions

couldflareuparoundmanyotheractivities,rangingfromkeycommodities,likegalliumandgermanium,tomission-criticalmanufacturingtools,designsoftware,orpackagingandtestingservices.

Againstthisbackdrop,we’reseeingagrowingmovebychipcompaniesto

createoperationsinemergingmarkets,includingIndiaandASEANcountries,suchasSingapore,Vietnam,MalaysiaandthePhilippines.Thisreflectsaclearopportunitytodiversifyandexpandtheiroperationsawayfromgeographies

exposedtotradeconflicts,usuallystartingwithactivitieslikepackagingand

testing,withmoreadvancedprocessesfollowinglater,includingwaferfabsandadvancedpackaging.Forcompaniesthatservecustomersaroundtheglobe,

inbothMainlandChinaandtheWest,diversifyingorestablishingasecondarysupplychainisagoodwaytoreducefuturerisksoftradedisruptions.And

whileinvestmentsinIndiaandASEANcountriesarecurrentlyontherise,otherregionswillalsotrytogetinontheactbyattractingtechcompanies’operations.

*EYGlobalBoardRiskSurvey,2023

8

Top10OpportunitiesforTechnologyCompaniesin2024

ofCEOsareplanningsomeformoftransactionoverthenext12months,buttherehasbeen

asharpcontractioninintentionstoactivelypursueacquisitionswithmorefocusnowonjointventuresandstrategicalliances.*

Shapecorporateinvestment

strategyaroundtheAIroadmap

5

89%

UsageofAIandLLMsistakingoffrapidly,butjoiningthisracemaynotbe

straightforward.Why?Foronething,demandforhardwareisoutpacingsupply,

leadingtohighpricesandlimitedavailability.Foranother,trainingLLMsistime-

consumingandexpensive,andrequiresverylargedatasetsthatmaynotbe

easilyaccessible.What’smore,customizinganddeployingtheseservicesrequirescarceskillsandtalent.Alloftheseissuesarisewhenatechcompanyfacesabuy-or-builddecisionaroundnewservicedevelopmentandspeedtomarket.

Pastexperienceshowsthatacquisitionsanddealscanhelptospeedup

development.However,theregulatoryhurdlesfordealsinAIarerelativelyhigh

fortworeasons.First,thegeneralclampdownonanti-competitivebehaviorin

thesectormeansthatdeals—especiallylargeones—willattractgreaterscrutiny.

Second,geopoliticaltensionsandinternationaltradedisputesarecreating

barrierstodealmaking,notablyinsubsectorslikesemiconductorsandAI.Cross-borderAIdealsthatrequirereviewandapprovalfromtheCommitteeonForeignInvestmentintheUnitedStates(CFIUS),theEuropeanParliamentCommittee

onInternationalTrade(INTA)orsimilarbodieswillbehardertobringtoaclose.Thatsaid,thepotentialfordealswillstillexist,giventhattheplatformnature

ofmoderntechbusinessesmeansthattherewillbemanynimble,attractivecompanieswithbusinessmodelsbasedonexistingAIecosystems.

Therefore,webelievethattheoptimalwaytoexpandinAIisthroughamixof

small-tomedium-sizedacquisitions,corporateinvestmentsandpartnerships.

Theacquisitionswillhelpcompaniesaccessintellectualpropertyandthetalent

andskillsneededtodevelopnewpropositionsquickly.Thecorporateinvestmentswillhelpwith“longshots”innewtechnologies,developingdifferentroadmapstofutureapplicationsthatmaynotseemfeasibletoday,andthepartnershipswill

deliverimmediateaccesstodatasets,servicesandmarketsneededtopursuenewopportunities.

*EY,CEOOutlookPulseSurvey,2023

9

Top10OpportunitiesforTechnologyCompaniesin2024

6

Harnessplatformbusiness

modelstoindustrializeandscale

advancingtechnologies

Platformbusinessmodelshavebecomethestandardoperatingprocedure

acrossthetechsector.Byusingplatformstrategiestoengagewithcustomers

andselltheirproductsandservices,companiesacrossallsubsectorshave

foundthattheycanincreasescale,tapintoexternalcapacityandnetworks,andcapitalizeonemergingmarketopportunities.Atthesametime,themultiparty

ecosystemsatthecoreofplatformstrategiessupportmoreeffectivevaluecreationandmutuallybeneficialcollaborationbetweencompanies,even

competitors.

PlatformbusinessmodelsarealsocentraltotheGenAIrevolution.Tech

companiesarebothgoingtomarketwithGenAIplatformsandintegrating

externallydevelopedGenAIcapabilitiesintotheirinternaloperations.LLM

developersareusingplatformmodelstosupporttheirofferings’widespread

useandongoingimprovement.Hardwareandsemiconductormanufacturersareformingplatformpartnershipsandecosystemstobuildanddeploythe

infrastructureneededforwidescaleuseofGenAI.Andcompaniesatthe

forefrontofenterprises’useofGenAI,includinginternalintelligentassistants,arerevampingtheirplatformstrategiestodeliverthesecapabilitiessafelyandeffectivelytotheirusers.

*EY,PlatformEconomyTransformationStudy,2023

Morethanhalfoftechcompaniesbelievethattheirplatformmodelwillhelpthemincreaseproximityto,andengagementwith,theircustomersandincreasetheirrevenueandprofitsaccordingtothe

EYPlatform

EconomyTransformationStudy

,2023.*

Assuchexamplesunderline,thetechsectorisgoingthroughaperiodof

transitionandreinvention.Duringit,companiesthattakeapurpose-driven

approachtoacceleratingtheimplementationorevolutionoftheirplatform

businessmodel,includingtheirdatastrategy,willbebestpositionedtocapturevalue.Goingforward,asAItriggersnewupheavalsandopportunitiesacross

theindustryandcompaniesraceformarketshareandinfluence,theabilitytodeployarobustanddiversifiedplatformwillbeakeyattributedifferentiatingthewinners.

10

Techcompanieswithaglobalfootprint,cross-jurisdictionplatformstrategy,distributeduserbaseandcomplexsupplychainstandtobenefitparticularlyfromthoroughandthoughtfulpreparationforthechanges.Beingproactiveinassessingandrespondingtothenewrequirementswillbevitalinweathering

thestormandminimizingdisruptiontotheirbusiness.Thenewglobalminimumincometaxrateis15%,beginningin2024.Largetechnologycompanieshave

theopportunitytostructuretheirglobalsupplychainsandsupportoperationsinsuchawayastoachieve15%inthejurisdictionsinwhichtheyoperateand,asaresult,freeupworkingcapitaltoinvestintheirbusiness.

*EY,TaxandFinanceOperationsSurvey,2023

11

Top10OpportunitiesforTechnologyCompaniesin2024

7

Establishproactiveand

holisticresponsestonewand

forthcomingtaxburdens

91%

oftechcompanyleadersexpectthe

changeresultingfromenactment

ofBEPS2.0minimumtaxtobe

“moderatetosignificant.”*

Theglobaltaxsysteminplacefrom1January2023,willhavesignificantlayersofcomplexity—andtheimpactsfortechcompanieswillextendfarbeyondtheirtaxdepartments.Thoseplayerswhothinkproactivelyandactthoroughlyand

holisticallytodaytooptimizetheirtaxprofileswillgainaheadstartovertheircompetitorswhoareslowertorespond.

TheincomingtaxchangesaresignificantbecausetheOECD’sBEPS2.0Pillar2willimpacttechcompaniesinmultipleways.Theseinclude,butarenotlimitedto,anincreasedglobalcashtaxburden,colocationoftalentandfunctional

assetsinthesupplychain,ESGstrategiesacrossthesupplychain,andcostandresourcecommitmentsassociatedwithglobalminimumtaxcompliance.Indeed,theintroductionoftheminimumglobaltaxprovisionsrepresentsarguablythelargestandmostdisruptiveshiftintheregulatoryenvironmentforgenerations.

Top10OpportunitiesforTechnologyCompaniesin2024

12

8

Prioritizeenergy

efficiencyofdatacenters

inenvironmentalefforts

In2027,AIcouldneedasmuchelectricityasasmallcountry,liketheNetherlands.1

Theroadtonetzeroislongandwinding,withdifferentregionsandsectorstravelingitatdifferentspeeds.Andcompletingthisjourneyisespecially

vitalforthetechsector,given,firstly,thatithasasignificantenvironmentalfootprintinitsownright,andsecondly,thattheworldisrelyingonitto

providetoolsforcarbonreduction.Manytechcompanieshavealready

committedtocarbontargets.Butwithbudgetsconstrainedandmargins

underpressure,it’simportanttoconsiderwherecompaniesshouldstart—andwhattheyshouldprioritize.

Therearemanypotentialareasonwhichtofocus:reducingwaste,recycling,replacingtoxicchemicals,usingsustainableenergyandreducingwater

pollutioncanalldeliverbenefits.Butwithoutbelittlingtheseefforts,we

believethattechcompaniesthisyearshouldfocusparticularlyonimprovingdatacenterenergyefficiency.Todate,thegrowthinthenumberandsize

ofdatacentershasbeendrivenbytheever-increasingamountofdata

createdatacorporateandindividuallevel,fueledbyfactorsincludingdigital

transformations,cloudmigrations,andrisingusageofedgedevicesand

socialmedia.Thesedatacentersconsumeanincreasingamountofelectricity.However,anevenbiggeraccelerationindatacenters’energyusageisnow

imminent,triggeredbythemassivecomputeandstoragepowerneededto

trainLLMsorrunintelligentsystems.By2027,AIcouldbeconsumingasmuch

electricityasacountrythesizeoftheNetherlands.Andthedemandjustkeepsgrowing.

Nowisthetimefortechcompaniestoinvestinandcollaboratewithenergy

equipmentproviderstodevelopnewandinnovativewaystopowertheirdatacenters.Makingdatacentersmoreenergy-efficientwillreducetheimpactof

anyfutureenergycrisesandreduceproductioncostsfordigitalservicesintheshortterm.Andtheeffortswillalsopayoffinthelongerterm,as,ontheroadtonetzero,energythatisn’tuseddoesn’thavetobedecarbonized.

1.deVries,Thegrowingenergyfootprintofartificialintelligence,Joule,2023:

/joule/fulltext/S2542-4351

(23)00365-3

Top10OpportunitiesforTechnologyCompaniesin2024

9

Investinadvanced

risktoolsandrevisittrade-offs

betweencosts,risks,resiliency

andagility

Howhighlywouldyouvaluetheability

toanticipatethenextblackswanevent?Whatwillitbe,whenwillitstrike,and

howwillitimpactyourbusiness?Thesequestionsmaysoundhypothetical.ButtheCOVID-19pandemicshowedus

thatdisruptiveeventstriggerfurtherevents,thattheycreatebothrisks

andopportunities,andthatsometechcompaniesweremuchbetterplacedtocopethanothers.Beingwellprepared

andrespondingadequatelycanmakethedifferencebetweenacompanystruggling

quarterafterquartertostayafloatorexpandingrapidlyasnewmarkets

openup.

Withthisinmind,techcompaniesare

eagertoimprovetheirabilitytoaddress

60%

ofboardsagreethat

emergingrisksare

insufficientlyaddressed

inriskmanagement

frameworks.*

emergingrisks—ataskgivengreaterurgencybythelengtheningrollcall

ofemergingrisksfacingthesector.Tradedisputes,geopoliticalconflicts,

taxationandlegislativechanges,governmentinterventions,cybercrimeanddataprotectionregulationsallpresentrisksthatareespeciallyrelevantto

thesector,ontopofmoregeneralrisks,suchasclimateevents,financial

risks,thenextpandemicandkeepingpacewithinnovationbycompetitors.Also,theglobal,integratednatureoftechsupplychainsmeansthatasingledisruptioncanhaveknock-oneffectsacrosstheentirevaluechain.

Individually,theseriskscanbemonitoredandmanagedthroughdata

collectionandanalysis—andevenmoreeffectivelywhenenhancedwith

AI.However,anumberofriskscouldstrikesimultaneouslyorinfluence

eachother.Thispossibilitymeansthatadvancedriskassessmentand

scenarioplanningarevitalindeterminingatechcompany’sexposureto

combinationsof,say,tradesanctions,climateevents,regionalinstability,increasedregulationandsupplychainshortages.Equippedwithinsights

acrosstheseriskcategories,companiesshouldreviewtheirriskappetite

andrevisithowtheymanagethecomplextrade-offsbetweencosts,risks,resiliencyandagility.Whenthenextblackswanhits,companiesthatinvesttodayinadvancedrisktoolswillbegladtheydid.

*EYGlobalBoardRiskSurvey,2023

13

33%

45%

Top10OpportunitiesforTechnologyCompaniesin2024

Onaverage,45%ofCTOswithdeclining

revenueand33%ofCTOswithgrowingrevenue

identifiedtechnicaldebtasthetopunsolved

challengefortheirR&Ddepartments.*

Deployadvancedtechnology

toreducecurrentandfuture

cyberrisks

Whileemergingtechnologies,likeGenAIandquantumcomputing,offermany

benefitstoenterprises,they’realsoradicallychangingthenatureofcyber

threatsandamplifyingtherisksthattheypose.Thefactthattechcompanies

tendtobedata-richandmaintainasubstantialandcomplexcollectionof

GenAIalsohasaroletoplay.Today,techcompaniescanuseGenAItoclarify

theirbusinessprocesses,betterunderstandtheiroperations,andaccurately

classifyandlabeltheirdataandsystems.Thisbenefitstheircyberdefenses

becauseunclassifieddatasystems,unlabeledenterprisedataandtechnical

debt—outdatedcodeandtechstacks—arethreekeyvulnerabilitiesthatcyberattackerscanexploit.Usingtraditionalmethodstoreducethecomplexity

andopaquenessofback-officedatasystemsandprocesseswouldbecostly

andtime-intensive.Tacklingthesedriversofcyberriskinanautomatedway

throughGenAIcanmitigatecyberrisksfaster,morecomprehensivelyandatalowercost.

technicalsystemsmakesthemespeciallyexposedtobothtraditionaland

emergentcyberthreats.

Foryears,techcompaniesthatinvestedinadvancedthreatdetectionand

responsecapabilitieshavebeenbetterabletorideoutcyberattacks.Justas

maliciousactorsusingquantumwillbeabletopenetrateoutdatedsecurity

systemsquicklyandeasily,socompaniesusingquantumtodefendthemselves

willbebetterabletofendoffattacks.

Byinvestinginpost-quantumcryptography—andtalentcapableofdeveloping

anddeployingthesetechnologies—companiescanprepareforanearfuturein

whichtraditionalencryptionisnolongerenough.

*EY-Parthenon,CTOSurvey,2023

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Top10OpportunitiesforTechnologyCompaniesin2024

Conclusion

It’sclearthattechnologycompaniesenter2024faced

withaseriesofsignificantchallenges.Macroeconomic

headwinds,capitalallocationconstraints,geopolitical

uncertainty,taxandregulatorycomplexity,

cybersecurityrisksandin-demandtalentshortageswill

allneedtobeaddressed.

Yet,thecomingyearisbrimmingwithopportunities.

Techcompaniesthattakeapurposefulratherthana

rushedorover-ambitiousapproachtotheirinvestments

innewbusinessmodels,transformationstrategies,

andemergingtechnologiesacrossthefront-andback-

officestandtoreapsignificantrewardsandoutpace

theircompetition.Whenthestoryof2024iswritten,

weexpectthecompanieswithafocusedandintentional

strategyforleveragingnewcapabilitiestooptimizekey

componentsoftheirvaluechainwillgodownas

thewinners.

15

Top10OpportunitiesforTechnologyCompaniesin2024

Methodology

Inordertogaindeeperinsightsandcreatethisyear’slistofopportunities,wesupplementedourinitial

researchwithadditionalinsightsandrecommendationsfromourglobalEYclient-servingteamsbasedontheirinteractionswiththeirclientsacrossthetechsector.

Thetop10rankingisdesignedtocoverawidearrayofareasofopportunityandabroadrangeoftechindustrysubsectors.Thismeansthatnoteveryopportunityis

applicabletoeverytechcompany,withthedegreeof

relevancepotentiallydependingonwhethera