2025 Predictions to Ponder

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Dec 23, 2024

“The penalties for incorrect predictions are negligible. You can make predictions, and a year later people won't remember them” Daniel Kahneman

As we head toward the end of the year, we thought it would be a good idea (and as Daniel Kahneman says … risk free), to review some of the many AI predictions for 2025 swirling about, focusing on five of the more interesting rather than many of the more esoteric!

The predictions cover trust (or the lack thereof), robots, agents, wearables and scientific breakthroughs. These are in no particular order and we do not necessarily agree with them all … but remember Niels Bohr’s* aphorism that “it is difficult to make predictions, especially about the future!”

*Or possibly Yogi Berra, Samuel Goldwyn or Mark Twain!

ONE: RISING MISTRUST

The first of our top 2025 predictions comes from Clem Delangue, CEO of Hugging Face courtesy of Inc Magazine[1]. He believes that 2025 will see the first major public protest related to AI, maybe directed toward AI stealing jobs en-masse—perhaps in the style of the Occupy Wall St protests—or to inappropriate use of AI tech by police, government bodies or health care systems.

Grace Yee, senior director of ethical innovation at Adobe, in a recent Verdict Magazine article argued that “heightened public awareness and growing distrust will bring critical questions to the forefront” and that to get ahead of the hemorrhaging of trust that Delangue alludes to, high ethical standards become a non-negotiable for companies developing and deploying artificial intelligence.

There are signs of disquiet already emerging. In an article ‘‘Human Intelligence’ Art Movement Takes Defiant Stand Against AI’ Forbes highlighted how some in the arts were already pushing back. An article in The Guardian in 2024 focused “exciting AI projects” that have been met with fury by the people they’re meant to excite including The Prince Charles Cinema in Soho, London, cancelled a screening of an AI-written film; Lego removing AI-generated images it published on its website; and the TV show Doctor Who ending its dabbling with AI after a wave of complaints

Some members of the anti-AI movement have reclaimed the name “Luddites”. Brian Merchant, author of Blood in the Machine, points out, the original luddites did not immediately turn to rebellion. They sought dialogue and compromise first. But the inexorable march of technology then led to more direct action. So, will 2025 see the first large scale protects … a sort of ‘Gilets Jaunes’ movement for the AI era?

TWO: YOUR OWN AI ROBOT

Clem Delangue also predicts that “at least 100,000 personal AI robots will be ordered” (see Elon Musk’s Optimus[2]) for use in healthcare, disaster response, agriculture, home assistance and manufacturing (among others).

Dr Jason Corso professor of robotics, electrical engineering, and computer science, at the University of Michigan also predicts that the fusion of advanced AI with robotics will drive unprecedented capabilities in physical AI, with robots increasingly tackling intricate, human-like tasks[3]. High expectations for breakthrough results are driven by the hundreds of millions of dollars invested in physical AI, putting pressure on the field to deliver transformative results.”

In a recent report (‘The Rise of Robots. Physical AI is coming for you’)[4] Citi Group suggested “Billions of AI-robots and humanoids will soon be among us” The report suggests there will be 1.3bn AI-robots by 2035 and 4bn by 2050 and that AI has dramatically changed the outlook for robots.

“The payback period for capable robots looks increasingly attractive versus humans. Labor accounts for over 50% of GDP globally, underlining the potential size of the opportunity. AI robots can now see, learn, move, talk, take instruction into code and then act. Robots are on the move, from theory to reality and from useless to useful”

This may be another catalyst for the for rising mistrust OR on the upside, AI-robots will offer people access to robotic cleaners, butlers, chauffeurs, assistants, and carers. Is this just another personal jetpack moment? We are still waiting for ours

https://www.facebook.com/BBCArchive/videos/1969-news-jet-belt/166567398818043/

THREE: AGENTIC AI

“AI agents have become the newest front in the battle between tech companies as they look to drive revenues from the fast-developing technology. OpenAI is betting that artificial intelligence-powered assistants will “hit the mainstream” [in 2025] as tech groups, including Google and Apple, race to bring so-called AI agents to consumers” [5]

In a recent post, we talked about the rise of agentic AI[6] and Verdict Magazine cites the predictions of Neil Thacker (CISO EMEA, Netskope) and Ed Thomas (research director strategic intelligence, GlobalData) that in 2025 agentic AI will become a ‘game-changer’ for business.

“Agentic AI will be a top priority for tech companies in 2025 and holds the promise of improving operational efficiency and enhancing customer experience. Intelligent autonomous AI agents which carry out complex, multi-step reasoning, adapt to environmental changes, understand context, and take action to pursue objectives are being developed for a wide range of consumer, enterprise, and industrial purposes. Early adopters include healthcare, banking, travel and tourism, scientific research, and energy and utilities.” Ed Thomas

“In 2025, agentic AI will significantly impact businesses” throwing up many challenges vis-à-vis securing data, reasoning engines, and outputs, “ensuring innovation and security go hand in hand as agentic AI reshapes operational landscapes” Neil Thacker

Helen Hawthorn, head of solutions engineering EMEA, Zoom argued that in 2025 AI agents will move beyond task automation and focus on identifying inefficiencies, optimizing workflows, and ensuring that critical actions are prioritized in real-time. “As AI assistants get smarter, they will become our first stop in starting new endeavours or brainstorming ideas. These AI agents will evolve beyond simply automating tasks and will perform more complex work for us, offering personalised, emotionally intelligent guidance and strengthening our interactions with others.”

A company called Artisan, which sells customer service and sales workflow software, recently launched a provocative billboard campaign in San Francisco, featuring the slogans "Stop Hiring Humans", "Artisans won't complain about work-life balance" and "The era of AI employees is here." The company markets its software products as "AI Employees" or "Artisans”.

The reaction to the ads has been largely negative. In an interview with SFGate, the company’s CEO, Jaspar Carmichael-Jack, defended his company’s decision to advertise its product by promoting the end of the human labor force. “They are somewhat dystopian, but so is AI. The way the world works is changing. We wanted something that would draw eyes — you don’t draw eyes with boring messaging.”[7]

FOUR: MORE WEARABLE TECH

Luke Alvarez, founder of Hiro Capital, predicts that 2025 will see the fusion of wearables with AI

“We will see mass market usage of AI at scale in wearable devices – people asking verbal questions of their AI assistant and getting voice responses in real time, using devices like Meta Ray Bans, Apple’s Airpods, your Galaxy Watch etc. This is primitively available now in a few devices but it’s barely used today. By the end of 2025, it will be slick and ubiquitous”

Chatting to your personal AI seems to be a whole area for exploration in itself, but sticking with wearables … in the area of health and wellness. AI-empowered wearables are expected to undergo significant advancements driven by improvements in technology and user demand.

AI algorithms will analyze health tracking data in real-time, providing users with actionable insights about their health and potentially predicting medical conditions before they become severe. AI wearables may also incorporate features to monitor mental well-being. By analyzing physiological data and user interactions, these devices could help identify stress levels, anxiety, and other mental health indicators, providing insights and suggesting interventions when needed. Future wearables may adjust their functionality based on the user's environment, offering features like UV exposure tracking or air quality monitoring, helping users make better health choices in real-time.

AI will enhance the ability of wearables to analyze complex data patterns over time, providing deeper insights into long-term health trends and helping users make informed decisions about their lifestyle. AI wearables will likely include features that can detect falls, irregular heart rhythms, or other emergencies and automatically alert emergency contacts or services, providing peace of mind for users and their families.

AI wearables will likely integrate more seamlessly with other smart devices and ecosystems (like smartphones and home automation systems), allowing for a more connected and unified user experience.

As technology advances, wearables will become more energy-efficient with longer battery life and more comfortable designs. This will encourage more users to adopt them as part of their daily lives.

And heath-care and wellness isn’t the only game in town, wearables may offer new functionality in many other areas but our personal favorite is ‘Smart Clothing for Body Mechanics’ - smart clothing embedded with AI-powered sensors will provide real-time feedback on your posture and body movements. Whether you’re an athlete looking to optimize performance or someone interested in correcting their posture, these intelligent garments will guide you towards your goals. They can alert you when you're slouching and provide insights into your biomechanics, helping prevent injuries and improve physical health.[8]

Did your mother ever tell you to sit up and stop slouching? Well now your sweater will do that too!

FIVE: SCIENTIFIC BREAKTHROUGHS

A number of commentators have made 2025 the year when AI makes historic breakthroughs in scientific research unlocking new capabilities in the natural sciences, sustainable materials, drug discovery and human health and underpins progress in addressing some of the world’s most pressing issues.

This progression may be aligned in part with advances in quantum computing. In the pharmaceutical industry, quantum computing could accelerate drug discovery by simulating molecular interactions at an unprecedented scale. This could lead to the development of new treatments for diseases that are currently considered incurable.

“By the end of 2025, autonomous research agents will independently design, execute, and analyse complex experiments, significantly accelerating drug discovery”. Leonard Wossnig, CTO, LabGenius

“We’ll start to see [AI] tools having a measurable impact on the throughput of the people and institutions who are working on these huge problems, such as designing sustainable materials and accelerating development of life-saving drugs,” Ashley Llorens, corporate vice president and managing director at Microsoft Research.

With AI features evolving at lightning speed, doctors and clinicians anticipate a wave of transformative changes in the near future. “AI has serious potential to improve the human condition by improving how we practice medicine and deliver health care” Zak Kohane, chair of biomedical informatics at Harvard Medical School.

“I think we are very close. I would say we are a couple of years away from having the first truly AI-designed drugs for a major disease, cardiovascular, cancer. We’ve just signed big deals with big pharma and on real drug programs. And I expect in the next couple of years, we’ll have AI-designed drugs in the clinic, in clinical testing” Demis Hassabis, Google DeepMind CEO[9]

Other predictions that caught our attention were …

CEO of Dubai Future Foundation, Khalfan Belhoul’s prediction that “A Fortune 500 company may be led by AI” He says that “we’ve already seen the emergence of AI in executive roles, and evolution will force us to rethink what it means to lead”.
And another from Clem Delangue that some traditional business models will be upended and a “big company will see its market cap divided by two or more because of AI”. This is analogous to the impact the internet and digital news has had on newspapers’ core print advertising revenue model and their print readership.

Finally, we thought it only fair to ask AI (in the form of ChatGPT) what it thought would be the big AI advances in 2025. If Amara’s Law suggest we humans tend to exaggerate or over-estimate short term impacts, maybe AI would better weight the likelihood of short-term, outcomes. This is ChatGPT’s top 10 …

More Human-Like Interactions : Advances in natural language processing will allow AI systems to understand context better and engage in conversations that feel more natural and intuitive for users.
Enhanced Decision-Making Capabilities : AI will likely be able to analyze complex datasets more efficiently, leading to improved insights and decision-making in various fields, including finance, healthcare, and logistics.
Greater Personalization : AI systems will provide more tailored experiences based on individual user preferences and behaviors, enhancing customer engagement in sectors like e-commerce, entertainment, and education.
Integration with IoT : The synergy between AI and the Internet of Things (IoT) will lead to smarter environments, allowing connected devices to communicate more effectively and autonomously adapt to users' needs.
Advancements in Computer Vision : Improved computer vision technology will facilitate better image and video analysis, enabling applications in security, agriculture, autonomous vehicles, and more.
Enhanced Learning Algorithms : Developments in machine learning techniques, including reinforcement learning and unsupervised learning, will allow AI systems to learn from less data and improve their performance over time.
Broader Applications in Healthcare : AI will increasingly be used for predictive analytics, drug discovery, and personalized medicine, improving patient outcomes and streamlining healthcare services.
Autonomous Systems : Progress in robotics and autonomous vehicles will lead to safer and more efficient operations in industries such as transportation, manufacturing, and delivery services.
Increased Focus on Ethics and Fairness : There will be a stronger emphasis on ensuring AI systems are fair, transparent, and accountable, with more organizations adopting ethical guidelines and compliance measures.
Collaboration between Humans and AI : AI tools will foster collaboration, acting as assistants in creative processes, research, and problem-solving, enhancing human capabilities rather than replacing them.

Finally, a word of caution from American Economist Edgar Fiedler. Predictions, more often than not, are wrong and “he (or she) who lives by the crystal ball soon learns to eat ground glass”.

Happy New Year

[1] https://www.inc.com/kit-eaton/here-are-the-big-2025-predictions-for-ai-from-a-ceo-who-was-right-about-this-years-developments/91034135

[2]