Tech Trends 2021: an industry view on the next 12 months

For many of us, 2021 can’t come soon enough. The events of the past year have stretched almost every area of the economy to breaking point. And whilst it’s certainly true that we’re not quite out of the woods yet, recent vaccine breakthroughs are now driving genuine optimism that the world’s ravaged economies will now be able to begin the rebuilding process in earnest.

Engineering and manufacturing will - of course - be at the heart of this recovery. And in this year's Tech Trends supplement, some of The Engineer's key commercial partners look at some of the technology areas – from sustainable mobility to AI and robotics – that will play a starring role in this rebuilding process.

This year’s supplement kicks off with the findings of our first ever business confidence survey, in which we asked readers of The Engineer how they’re feeling about the months ahead and what technology areas they expect to come to the fore. Unsurprisingly, the impact of COVID-19 looms large. Although the implications of a no-deal Brexit – which at the time of writing was hanging in the balance – are perhaps the biggest cause for concern as manufacturers consider the months ahead.