We live in an era where technology is developing at breakneck speed. The Digital Revolution has impacted all of our lives, completely changing the way we live and work. Here are 16 of the most remarkable facts and statistics related to the digital era.

The Internet

The Internet has made a bigger impact than any other innovation in the digital era. Have a look at these mind-blowing statistics about this global mega-technology.

  1. There were an estimated 58 billion Internet users globally in 2017. This means that more than half of the world’s adult population uses the Internet. It is only in the most isolated areas of the world where Internet is not readily available.
  2. Every single second, approximately 40 000 Google searches take place around the world. This equates to a staggering 1.2 trillion searches per year. This is one of the reasons why Search Engine Optimisation (SEO) has become such a highly demanded skill in the workplace.
  3. There are almost 2 billion websites on the Internet. It is difficult to gauge the real size of the Internet, but the four biggest IT companies (Google, Amazon, Microsoft and Facebook) alone store at least 1.2 million terabytes of data.
  4. According to the 2018 Communications Market Report by Ofcom, 64% of adults in the UK say that the Internet is an essential part of their lives. 20% of adults spend more than 40 hours online per week.

Smartphones

Smartphones have become an integral part of our lives. From organizing our daily routines, to taking photographs, updating our social media pages, watching videos and playing games, today’s smartphones have a truly extraordinary array or abilities.

  1. There are approximately 5 billion smartphones currently in use around the world. In 2017, a total of 1.5 billion smartphones were sold.
  2. Adults in the USA will spend an average of 3½ hours per day on their mobile devices in 2018. The leading activity is listening to audio, at an average of over 50 minutes per day. This is closely followed by social networking, mobile gaming, videos and messaging.
  3. Ofcom’s report shows that adults in the UK check their smartphones every 12 minutes of the day. 40% of people (and 65% of people under the age of 35) check their smartphones within five minutes of waking up.
  4. Smartphones are now so powerful that NASA currently has a fleet of them orbiting the earth as satellites. The PhoneSats are capable of taking high-resolution aerial photographs of any point on the planet.

Artificial intelligence

Previously something that was only seen in science fiction movies, artificial intelligence (AI) has become a reality. AI is increasingly being used at home and at work, and is expected to become a common part of our daily lives in the coming years.

  1. It has been predicted that, by 2020, the average person will have more conversations with intelligent bots than with their husband or wife.
  2. One of the most advanced AI systems in the world, Google’s DeepMind has superhuman intelligence. Amongst many other capabilities, it can beat the world’s best video game players, detect diseases and lipread better than any human.
  3. Vehicles created by Waymo, the company that operates driverless cars for Google parent company Alphabet, have so far driven 16 million kilometres on public roads in 25 US cities.
  4. Google’s virtual assistant is able to speak and respond to questions exactly like a human. In a presentation, the company demonstrated how the AI assistant was able to interact over the phone to reserve a table at a restaurant and make an appointment at a hair salon.
  5. AI company AIME has developed a platform that can predict dengue fever outbreaks three months in advance, with an 87% accuracy. It is hoped that the platform can also be used to target diseases such as Ebola.

Demand for technology professionals

As the digital era reaches new frontiers, the demand for technology professionals has skyrocketed.

  1. All 10 of the skills on LinkedIn’s most in-demand hard skills list are related to technology. Cloud and distributed computing skills occupy first place.
  2. On South African job site CareerJunction, as much as 24% of all vacancies are related to IT.
  3. Forbes lists experience with AI as the number one in-demand skill globally. Data analysis, mobile app development and cybersecurity also feature highly.

The vast majority of similar surveys and research into the top demanded skills all have similar findings to those listed above.

With digital technology expanding at a faster rate than ever, there is no better time than now to develop you’re your tech skills. Start by exploring IT courses with Oxbridge Academy.

Also Read:

10 Ways technology has changed the world in the last 10 years