New research from global communications agency ClearStory International has analysed the rapid surge in interest in the most popular tech trends across media since coronavirus first emerged.
The COVID-19 Tech Trend Report was compiled to help businesses, industry stakeholders, journalists and others gain insight into the historic speed and scale of interest that catapulted previously obscured tech trends into public prominence.
The report identified 77,451 articles across UK media that featured mentions of tech trends which emerged under the spotlight as COVID-19 took hold. It assesses the surge in interest in the weeks coming up to the height of the pandemic. Globally, on average, there was a 17,500% increase in interest in video calling while there was an upsurge in interest in remote working by 14,000%.
From their low point in December 2019 to their highest point in the last week of March 2020, the report identifies 7 key tech trends and tracks the percentage increase in interest over that period on a topic by topic basis. In the UK, the highest surges of interest were recorded as:
1. Virtual Events/Conferencing (increased by 100,000% from low point)
2. Video Conferencing (increased by 42,625% from low point)
3. Remote Working (increased by 19,307% from low point)
4. E-learning/Edtech (increased by 3,766% from low point)
5. Gig economy (increased by 3,305% from low point)
6. Health/med/biotech (increased by 758% from low point)
7. E-commerce (increased by 224% from low point)
(For full analysis please see the COVID Tech Trend Report)
Recent research from Statista has revealed the British events sector is worth £1.2 billion , hence the increase in media interest within the virtual events/conferencing sector. In addition to this, interest in e-commerce has more than doubled. According to Internet Retailing, UK, e-commerce accounts for 19% of total retail, a figure that this report indicates is set to increase.
Speaking about the COVID-19 Tech Trend Report, CEO and Founder of ClearStory International, James McCann said:
“The COVID-19 pandemic has disrupted entire industries and created a significantly different dynamic for those in business and media globally. As governments, companies and societies scramble to adjust to a new reality, this report provides insight into a shift in most talked about sectors since coronavirus took hold. We hope this analysis will help businesses, stakeholders and journalists among others identify which areas are most of interest and likely to grow in these challenging times.”
The study was carried out from the 2nd December to the 5th of April 2020. ClearStory International is a global PR agency that works with emerging tech companies across the world.