This year in tech, too much happened and very little of it made sense. It was like we were being controlled by a random number generator that would dictate the whims of the tech industry, leading to multiple “biggest news stories of the year” happening, all completely disconnected from one another.
As we approach the end of the year, it’s hard to deny that the events of the past 12 months have felt like something out of a simulation. From the rapid shift to remote work and online learning due to the COVID-19 pandemic, to the explosion of interest in cryptocurrency and non-fungible tokens (NFTs), it’s been a wild ride.
One of the biggest stories of the year has been the rapid adoption of remote work and online learning due to the COVID-19 pandemic. With lockdowns and social distancing measures in place, companies and educational institutions around the world were forced to find ways to continue operating remotely. This led to a surge in the use of video conferencing tools like Zoom and Microsoft Teams, as well as a proliferation of online learning platforms like Coursera and edX. One of the biggest story of the year is “Meta laid off 11000 people ” Normally, a social media giant laying off 13% of its workforce was a top story but at that moment FTX went bankrupt and everyone was impersonating corporations on Twitter because somehow Elon Musk didn’t think through how the things would go horribly wrong if anyone could buy a blue check.
now we are at the stage where in tech history nothing is possible. this is inspiring and horrifying for us. It’s possible for a team of Amazon fulfillment center workers in Staten Island to win a union election, successfully advocating for themselves in the face of tremendous adversity. It’s also possible for Elon Musk to buy Twitter for $44 billion.
Crypto collapses like FTX’s bankruptcy and the UST scandal have harmed actual people who invested significant sums of money into something that they believed to be a good investment. It’s funny to think about how you’d react ten years ago if someone told you that Meta (oh yeah, that’s what Facebook is called now) is losing billions of dollars every quarter to build virtual reality technology that no one seems to want. But those management decisions are not a joke for the employees who lost their jobs because of those choices.
Another major trend in tech this year has been the explosion of interest in cryptocurrency. Bitcoin, the most well-known cryptocurrency, saw its value soar to new heights, reaching an all-time high of over $64,000 in April. Other cryptocurrencies, such as Ethereum and Dogecoin, also saw significant gains. The hype around cryptocurrency has also led to the emergence of non-fungible tokens (NFTs), which are unique digital assets that can be bought and sold like traditional assets. NFTs have been used to sell everything from virtual real estate to digital art and even tweets, leading to some eye-popping sales figures.
In addition to these trends, we’ve also seen the continued growth of the gig economy, with more and more people turning to platforms like Uber and Airbnb to earn extra income. We’ve also seen the emergence of new technologies like electric and autonomous vehicles, as well as the growing popularity of streaming services like Netflix and Spotify.
Overall, it’s been a year full of surprises and unexpected developments in the tech world. As we move into the next year, it will be interesting to see how these trends continue to evolve and shape the way we live and work.
