Five Key Tech Trends for 2023: Insights from DE-CIX

The fast-paced realm of digitalization continues to evolve across industries, with even non-digital products requiring digital processes and value chains. Dr. Thomas King, CTO at DE-CIX, highlights five pivotal trends shaping the interconnected business world, technological progress, and the interconnection industry in 2023.

1. Enabling Cloud-to-Cloud Communication

Cloud services have become integral to modern businesses. However, the growing concern over “cloud concentration” has led to an increase in multi-cloud adoption. In response, cloud routers on interconnection platforms are expected to facilitate cloud-to-cloud communication. These routers will reduce latency, maximize available bandwidth, and enable seamless interactions between applications across different cloud environments. This trend enhances interoperability, simplifies multi-cloud management, and bolsters data synchronization.

2. Scaling 5G Use Cases

Unlike previous mobile network generations, 5G is a multi-layered technology stack designed for diverse applications. As the deployment of 5G matures, it is set to revolutionize industries with peak data rates of up to 20 Gbit/s, ultra-low latency, and support for up to one million devices per square kilometer. Companies will leverage 5G for IoT at scale and realize increasingly complex use cases in the coming years, transforming products and services.

3. Emphasizing Connectivity Resilience

For digital businesses, trust in connectivity infrastructure’s reliability is paramount. Ensuring resilience amid external disruptions is a growing concern. A Multi-X strategy, encompassing multiple technologies, locations, and providers, is key to reducing single points of failure. This approach incorporates redundancy in technology, geographic data center distribution, non-overlapping fiber pathways, and collaboration with various digital infrastructure providers to mitigate vendor lock-in.

4. Network as Code – Gaia-X Project Tellus

The concept of “Network as Code” is gaining traction in connectivity infrastructure. It enables programmable network components and architecture development as software, offering repeatability, versioning, and automation. Project Tellus, part of the Gaia-X initiative, goes further by unifying various interconnection providers. It deploys software-based network elements with homogeneous interfaces to enable secure, high-performance, and automated connections, eliminating configuration efforts. TellusX is anticipated to be operational in 2024, enhancing Gaia-X’s infrastructure.

5. Building the Foundation for the Immersive Tactile Internet (Metaverse)

The “metaverse,” an immersive tactile Internet, is emerging as a digital 3D space where physical and virtual realms blend. As this vision becomes reality, users will require sophisticated gadgetry powered by VR and AI. High-performance networks are vital for seamless data transfer to and from physical locations. Digital infrastructure providers are building the foundation for the metaverse, emphasizing low latency and infrastructure expansion. Collaboration among various infrastructure providers is essential to support the immersive Internet’s use cases and applications.

In summary, businesses are navigating increasing demand for better digital product performance. They require support from a range of digital infrastructure partners, from data centers and cloud service providers to interconnection specialists. These providers aim to deliver the fundamental requirements of our digital age: flexibility, security, resilience, and speed.