We track the rapidly changing world of technology with a focus on what leaders need to know to improve decision-making. Gain insights into the future of tech in a way that enables optimized action.
We expect IT spending to pick up in 2024. Gartner projects it will grow by almost 9%. Spending on hardware should climb with PC shipments and servers both up. In the EU, regulations are the watchword, which may slow their IT growth.
Already a subscriber? Sign In.
Want our most exclusive content? Subscribers receive:
- Exclusive Content Access: Research and expert driven analysis to inform your decision-making. Over ten thousand articles on disruptive technologies, cybersecurity, geo-political risk, and national security technology issues available only to subscribers. Our Daily Global Pulse will let you know what premium content has been recently published as well as hand-curate the top stories of the day with executive level summaries.
- The OODA Network Dispatch: Our weekly newsletter keeps you apprised of emerging trends and upcoming events so you can stay informed and aware of issues that could impact you or your organization.
- Community Engagement: Engage in our dynamic Slack Workspace which serves as a hub for professionals and experts to exchange ideas, strategies, insights, and opportunities.
- Premium Content
- Slack Community
- Weekly Newsletter
- OODAcon Invite
- Premium Content
- Slack Community
- Weekly Newsletter
- 10% OODAcon Discount
- All subscriber Benefits
- Monthly Meetings
- In-person Network Events
- Network Slack Channels
- 50% OODAcon Discount
Expect headlines on the continuing shift away from PRC dominance in IT manufacturing.
The rapidly advancing pace of technology is reflected in the dramatically changing capabilities available in the marketplace today. This is changing the competitive landscape, changing the potential capabilities of your internal architecture, and changing the expectations of your potential clients/customers. In this age of dramatic advancements all should ensure appropriate measures are being put in place to understanding these potential market disruptions and changes to the competitive landscape. The best way to model out potential future disruptions is to examine drivers of tech, which should include assessments of future user/customer demands.
Although still early in the S-Curve, the growing capabilities of automation, including those provided by Artificial Intelligence, Robotics and Robotic Process Automation, are providing positive business benefits and shifting how organizations operate. These efficiencies are needed now more than ever and this will likely accelerate their growth.
New sensors, including new sensors leveraging quantum effects, are changing healthcare and the national security sector and will soon become more widespread and impact wider swaths of the economy.
The benefits of advanced WiFi and Cellular communications and space based communications will improve the ability of organizations to disperse and further support distributed workforces. WiFI and Cellular advancements in particular are also enabling direct device to device communications in ways that will help optimize deployed robotics and advanced manufacturing.
The applications and compute foundation which has enabled knowledge workers to work from anywhere is now an important component of the nation’s infrastructure with impacts discussed further below.
This page captures some of our most impactful research and reporting on disruptive and exponential technologies. For additional context also see latest OODA research reports on Cybersecurity Tech, Artificial Intelligence, Space Technologies, Quantum Technologies, Global Supply Chain, Federal Tech Needs.
Artificial Intelligence:
Using AI for Competitive Advantage in Business
OODA principles and analysts have years of real world practitioner experience in fielding AI capabilities including the foundational infrastructure required for successful AI. We capture lessons learned and best practices in our C-Suite guide to AI for competitive advantage. Explore Using AI for Competitive Advantage
Robotics and Automation
The Future of Automation In All Its Forms
Automation, as a subject for OODA Loop research and analysis, cuts a broad swath across many industry verticals. As we attempt to further scope our coverage, specific areas of interest have emerged that we thought would be of interest to the OODA Loop membership: Security Automation; Automation and the Workforce; Automation – or Augmentation – of the workforce; Autonomous Vehicles as Automation; Automation of AI/Machine Learning Training Models; Automation Case Studies; and Industry Standardization. Please reach out to us if there are any industry sectors, government agencies, robotics sub-disciplines, or robotics subsectors you would like us to explore in our research and analysis.
Quantum Computing and Quantum Security
Quantum Computing and Quantum Security Sensemaking
This page serves as a dynamic resource for OODA Network members looking for Quantum Computing, Quantum Security and Quantum Sensing insights to drive their decision-making process.
Blockchain Technologies
Bitcoin, Ethereum and Cryptocurrencies
OODA Loop began reporting on Bitcoin just two years after Bitcoin’s Genesis block was mined with a summary of a Wired Magazine article discussing a new (at the time) type of malware that took over computers to mine Bitcoin. At the time, the price of Bitcoin had been rocketing to new highs and was just passing $9.50, on the way to $15.00 before crashing back down to end the year at $3.00 per coin. Since then millions of people and many businesses and even governments have recognized the powerful intrinsic value of a widely accepted, mathematically provable way to provide a distributed ledger that proves no coin can be spent twice. This method of mitigating the double spend problem, coupled with an approach that provides transparency and confirmation of transactions, kicked off a revolution that has generated a $1.6T market cap worth of cryptocurrencies. All indications are that this revolution has just begun. Flowing from the initial features of Bitcoin, a new blockchain and an ability to program a distributed ledger to enable smart contracts was created in Ethereum, kicking off another new wave of innovation. Our tracking of these developments focuses on the insights needed by operational decision-makers regardless of business sector of government, since these trends will be impacting all of us eventually.
What CEOs Need To Know About Bitcoin: Including potential new business models to consider
Bitcoin is the most famous crypto currency, with good reason. It was the first to leverage the new concept of a blockchain to enable a distributed, but trusted ledger, which for the first time in history allowed a cryptocurrency where double spending was impossible. Since its founding on 3 January 2009 the system has worked and proven it can scale with extreme accuracy. But what might this new store of value and distributed means of safe and secure transactions mean for your business? The models listed here can fuel your decision-making in that domain.
Michael Saylor Ignites CEO Interest in Bitcoin: Expect an acceleration of the inevitable
During MicroStrategy World, Michael Saylor lead a focused discussion on the mega trends of finance he believes make the transition to Bitcoin as a global store of value inevitable. One of the most informative sessions was a discussion with a leading Bitcoin expert, Ross Stevens. Ross is CEO and founder of the New York Digital Investment Group (NYDIG), which enables institutional clients like Microstrategy to smartly buy and hold Bitcoin. NYDIG expects to hold $25B in Bitcoin for institutional clients by year end. So Ross speaks with authority and experience.
What To Know And Do About The Coming Metaverse
In the early 1990’s SciFi fans were introduced to a concept called the Metaverse in Neal Stephenson’s book SnowCrash. In the book this described a future virtual reality beyond the universe that was populated by user-controlled avatars as well as AI and bots. Now decades later the age of the Metaverse is upon us. This post captures insights into this new world in ways meant to help leaders understand what is most relevant to your strategic planning. We provide an operational definition of the Metaverse, a description of the current market of metaverse players, and a list of recommendations for how this information should inform your business strategy. For more see: What To Know And Do About The Coming Metaverse
National Security and Technology
Russians and Chinese using human targeting – amongst other tools- to achieve security advantage in key emerging technologies by 2030
In late October, The National Counterintelligence and Security Center (NCSC) issued a report warning of China’s goal to achieve a technological advantage over the U.S. in certain key emerging technologies. Beijing’s long-term goal is a strategic advantage over the U.S. and its security interests by 2030 in areas such as biotechnology, genomic technology, artificial intelligence, and semiconductors. Russia is making strides in this direction as well, but is constrained by resources and has not made the level of commitment as the Chinese. Human targeting is highlighted as a tool used prolifically by the Chinese.
Four National Security Experts Discuss Critical Technologies at OODAcon
This panel of experts at OODAcon lead a thoughtful discussion on industrial policy that resulted in insights that can inform broad action in improving American innovation while protecting it for the use of open societies. Topics discussed will also be informative to any technology company seeking to do business with the US government.
What The Business Strategist Should Know About Congress’s Latest Report On Future Threats and Defense
The House Armed Services Committee (HASC) chartered a special task force to assess what the nation should know about the dynamic national security environment and produce a report to guide future action. The report was just issued. It evaluates strategic priorities of the US DoD to seek better matches of national resources to next-generation threats and sets goals for the entire national security community to achieve to ensure success in the coming decades. The report was not meant to inform action in corporate America, but there are some considerations that may be of critical importance to strategic planning. This report provides our cut on what this report means for business strategists and suggestions on what actions to consider because of the shifting national security environment discussed in this report.
Cybersecurity and Technology
The New Enterprise Architecture Is Zero Trust
Enterprise technologists use the term “Zero Trust” to describe an evolving set of cybersecurity approaches that move defenses from static attempts to block adversaries to more comprehensive measures that improve enterprise performance while improving security. When the approaches of Zero Trust are applied to an enterprise infrastructure and workflows, the cost of security can be better managed and the delivery of functionality to end users increased. Security resources are matched to risk. Functionality, security and productivity all go up. Also see: Zero Trust Will Yield Zero Results Without A Risk Analysis
Expert Practitioner Junaid Islam Discusses 5G Security and Functionality at OODAcon
Junaid Islam has 30 years of experience in secure communications. His protocols, algorithms and architectures have been incorporated into a broad range of commercial and national security systems. In the 90s he developed the first implementation of Multi-Level Precedence and Preemption (MLPP) for US Department of Defense C2 applications. He developed the first working Mobile IPv6 client to enable fast hand-off as well as IPv6 address scrambling for high side networks for the DoD’s Netcentric Warfare program. He developed the first network-based Zero Trust Architecture using Software Defined Perimeter (SDP) which was adopted by NIST for their Zero Trust specification 800-207. In this video Junaid highlights some of the most important use cases for 5G and also discusses what CEOs, business leaders and government experts should know about the security and functionality of 5G. For more see: The Executive’s Guide to 5G: Here is what you need to know for your strategic planning. Also see: The 5G Supply Chain Blind Spot
Space Technologies
The Executive’s Guide to Space:
The rapid pace of innovation in space is producing real capabilities which can be leveraged for businesses in every sector of the economy. There is a growing excitement over the many developments in the space industry, giving rise to many questions about how these developments will impact markets overall. This guide is meant to assist strategic planners in assessing developments in the space sector. For more see: The Executive’s Guide To Commercial Use of Space
Security In Space and Security of Space:
The last decade has seen an incredible increase in the commercial use of space. Businesses and individual consumers now leverage space solutions that are so integrated into our systems that they seem invisible. Some of these services include: Communications, including very high-speed low latency communications to distant and mobile users. Learn more at: OODA Research Report: What Business Needs To Know About Security In Space Also see: Is Space Critical Infrastructure, and the special report on Cyber Threats to Project Artemis, and Mitigating Threats To Commercial Space Satellites
Biology and Bio-Science
The Revolution in Bio-Science:
This post provides an overview of key thrusts of the transformation underway in biology and offers seven topics business leaders should consider when updating business strategy to optimize opportunity because of these changes. For more see: The Executive’s Guide To The Revolution in Biology
Energy and Power
What You Need To Know About Nuclear Energy
This post provides a high level overview of nuclear energy issues we recommend as part of the baseline fluency of executives across all industries. It includes an overview of issues holding nuclear power back, big innovations being brought to market and recommendations that can help inform strategic planning. See: What you need to know about nuclear energy.
Business Technology
Data As A Weapon System:
Are you making the most of your data holdings? If you want to leverage your data to the better of your business you need to treat it like a weapon and use it to gain advantage over others. This is not just about your technical architecture, this is about your attitude and the approach you take to being proactive. For our best practices on how to do so see the OODA Guide to Using Your Data As A Weapon.