When it comes to major Data Science trends to watch in 2019, the co-founder and CEO of Kaggle, Anthony Goldbloom, has predicted that very soon Data Centers will be replaced by departmental or business-specific Data Science teams.

As discussed in Data Science Trends in 2018, last year’s major trends continued from 2017 as the growth of Big Data, AI, Machine Learning (ML), Edge Computing, Blockchain, and Digital Twins all amplified. Big Data and Data Science, the two resounding themes of 2017, were drowned by the recurrent theme of 2018: “the meshing of the physical and digital world.” In 2019, this mesh will continue to become a mainstream reality in businesses.

What Does This Mean?

• The year 2019 will witness businesses across the globe implementing and exploring the “meshing of the physical and the virtual world.”
• The field of Data Science is currently in transitional mode, and 2019 may well set the stage for advanced data technologies to take over routine business processes for higher efficiency and productivity while the human data scientists tackle more complex challenges. The roles and responsibilities of data scientists will continue to evolve and the title “data scientist” will become too limiting for such diverse roles
• Increased business automation will not lead to the obsolescence of data scientists because smart tools will offer higher capabilities to the human experts. The data scientist is becoming a “reinvented” scientist with sufficient free time in the future to explore complex business problems, while advanced technologies take over the routine processes.
• Automated ML systems promise to take Predictive Analytics to the next level, but also come with steep learning curves.
• Chatbots, Virtual Reality (VR), and Augmented Reality (AR) will together revolutionize product and service marketing. AI-enabled technologies will deliver truly personalized customer experience through interactive demos, live simulations, and visualization of custom solutions.
• Blockchain will go mainstream, encompassing diverse industry sectors from banking and finance to health insurance. Blockchain not only promises data protection and fraud detection but also smart contracts and automated governance in Data Management.
• According to The Future Impact of Data Science on Business Analytics, data scientists will play a leadership role in Business Analytics, leading the connected machines through unexplored paths. Augmented Analytics will revolutionize predictive intelligence.

Now, let’s see how the above trends unfold in 2019.

The Intelligent Digital Mesh

In Computer Business Review’s article, The Top 10 Tech Trends to Watch in 2019, Gartner’s VP David Cearley suggests the following upcoming trends:

• The complete transition from “stand-alone” intelligent components to a connected network of devices, apps, processes, and people working in unison — the Intelligent Digital Mesh.
• The meteoric growth of citizen data scientists by 2020, surpassing the growth of actual data scientists by at least five times.

Confusion over Data Science Job Roles

The title How Will Data Science Evolve Over The Next Decade? was borrowed for a Forbes blog post from Quora, where this question originally popped up.  Eric Mayefsky, Head of Data Science at Quora, offered an answer.

According to Mayefsy, the division between Data Science and product management is gradually disappearing, though the limiting term “data scientist” does not reflect the actual work roles of experts employed as data scientists. There is a lot of confusion about the scope of this job title, resulting in diverse roles and responsibilities in workplaces today.

The Future Job Market in Data Science

In KDnuggets’ post on job-market trends in Data Science, the future market indicators of Data Science are currently a double-edged sword. On one hand, advanced technologies and tools will probably erase the need for human data scientists. On the other hand, mainstream business users will not be able to utilize the machine-guided solutions without the help of human experts. It is clear that the field is evolving and currently in a state of flux,and will continue to evolve through next year, bringing some major changes to the profession.

Increased Robotization of Service Sectors

The article As an AI Fellow, Where I see Data Science Trending in 2019? explains a future AI-powered Subway where robots will prepare and deliver sandwiches through a cashless dispenser. This idea is still under testing, but could become a reality as early as 2020.

Edge Computing Will Gain Steam in 2019

Though Edge Computing is currently driven by sensors, very soon Edge Computing will take over mainstream Cloud systems. While Big Data and Cloud storage solutions come with huge costs, Edge Computing makes it possible to store streaming data close to the data source for real-time analytics. This trend will gain traction in 2019.

Edge Computing also provides a smart alternative to Big Data Analytics requiring high-end storage devices and costly network bandwith. Top 7 Big Data Analytics Trends for 2019 offers a deeper understanding of Edge Computing.

This trend will also give a boost to IoT Analytics, which might receive increased investments. Industrial IoT should help reduce operational costs with higher productivity gains, as suggested in Four Technology Trends to Watch Out for in 2019.

AR and VR Have Strong Growth Potentials in 2019

Gartner has noted that at the rate AR and VR are being adopted for manufacturing shop floor, and marketing and consumer care functions across industry sectors, it will be only a few months before these technologies become mainstream trends. 

Does Automated Decision-making Imply Embarrassing Risks?

While 2017 witnessed significant push for AI-powered decision-making, governance regulations like the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) left a lot of unanswered questions surrounding the limits of automation in business decisions. In May 2018, GDPR enforced the right to question the presence of “biases” in machine-aided results such as in court verdicts or consumer profiling. The impact of GDPR will be widely felt across global industries. Role of Data Science in Cyber Security discusses how this field of science is committed to enhancing cyber security through Advanced Analytics systems.

Though Big Data has taken Data Science forward by leaps and bounds, the advanced AI technologies may still have to combat many logistic hurdles going forward. Top 5 Data Science Trends in 2018 gives the inside scoop on automated decision-making in businesses.

Data Analytics Trends for 2019

Gartner has predicted that automated or semi-automated tools will deliver more analytics than human data scientists by 2019. Also, Augmented Analytics will enhance Data Preparation, extracting insights, and delivering predictive intelligence. In fact, the growth and prosperity of self-service BI rests on the assumption that intelligent machines will deliver superior and more reliable analytics solutions than do human experts. Are Data Scientists Needed in the Self-Service Analytics World? discusses this matter.

Digital Marketing Will Undergo Complete Transformation in 2019

Though not strictly Data Science, Digital Marketing is an offshoot of Data Science and a force to reckon with in the ecommerce world. Top 6 Digital Marketing Trends to Look Out for in 2019 has listed the following trends to watch in 2019:

• Trend 1: Markets will rely heavily on AI to follow and understand customer behavior, as evident in social and mobile channels. According to Lisa Matherly, VP of Content Marketing at McAfee, this understanding should create more opportunities for personalized customer experiences.
• Trend 2: AR and VR together will revolutionize marketing and customer care as more and more businesses satisfy queries via live demos, simulations, and virtual service experience before customers make purchasing decisions. For example, take a look at IKEA’s Virtual Reality Kitchen.
• Trend 3: According to Comscore, 50 percent of all search queries will become voice based by 2020. Thus voice-based search tool vendors will prosper.
• Trend 4: While 2018 made promises about automated business solutions, 2019 will surely deliver those promises. Many businesses will implement and experiment with Chatbots, VR, AR, and automated processes for improved efficiency and increased customer satisfaction.
• Trend 5: Videos will dominate in attracting the highest volumes of net traffic. A 2015  Washington Post article claimed that by 2019, videos would account for 80 percent of all internet traffic — and that prediction is about to become a reality. Vlogs are already taking over traditional blogs.

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