According to the 2019 KPMG Technology Industry Innovation Survey, 41% of business leaders in the technology industry said they’ll implement some form of blockchain solution in the next three years.
Of the 740 global leaders in the tech sector surveyed, 23% said improving business efficiency was the main benefit they associated with blockchain, compared to only 9% who are interested in cost reductions or deriving new business insights from incremental data.
“In my recent conversations with technology leaders, they’ve indicated that they want to continue doing what they’re doing – but better,” said Tegan Keele, US blockchain program lead at KPMG.”They’re examining ways to achieve core operational efficiency by improving current processes, while also saving on costs.
“Blockchain is increasingly being recognised as a way to drive those operational efficiencies, especially with broad, distributed processes that require exchanging data with multiple internal and external parties which have traditionally been some of the most challenging to optimise.”
Predictions for 2019: Blockchain, AI and AR technology, Transitioning from unfamiliar entities into targeted solutions
Respondents also said they were exploring the convergence of IoT, AI and blockchain to optimise the potential benefits these technologies provide. For example, blockchain can provide a reliable way to trace and verify how IoT-enabled routers, chips, and other technologies communicate internally and externally – blockchain can also offer a secure mechanism to protect the data exchanged, which will be increasingly important as 5G networks emerge.
Challenges
Enterprises will need to address multiple challenges to truly unlock blockchain’s potential.
According to KPMG, the three biggest barriers to adopting blockchain cited by respondents were:
- An unproven business case, 24%
- Technology complexity, 14%
- Lack of capital to fund new investments, 12%
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