The World Economic Forum has published the list of the the top 10 most promising technologies for 2016. The forum selection criteria takes into consideration technologies with the power to improve lives, transform industries and safeguard the planet. Within the selected breakthroughs are:
- Nanosensors for the internet of things, capable of being embedded in the human body and construction materials. Once connected, this Internet of Nanothings could sense important parameters at crucial points and produce a huge impact on the future of medicine, architecture, agriculture and drug manufacture.
- Next generation batteries, employing sodium, aluminium and zinc makes posible the construction of mini-grids that can provide clean, reliable, round the clock energy sources to entire villages.
- 2D materials, such as graphene, are very promising in a wide range of applications, from air and water filters to new generations of wearable devices and batteries. Some of these 2D materials are now reaching the market due to the significant reduction achieved in their production costs.
- Perovskite solar cells, easier to make than silicon based cells and with a continuous increase in their efficiency are very promising for generating power more efficiently from the sun.
All these technologies offer solutions to important problems of our society and hence could make an important impact on the economic market. To see the whole list and a brief summary of the importance of each technology, click here.
