AI Dominates Gartner's Technology Outlook for 2026
With ten central tech trends, market researchers from Gartner aim to provide corporate IT with direction for the coming years. Once again at the forefront: AI.
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In its usual tradition, market researchers from Gartner used the IT Symposium/XPO in Orlando to publish an update to their list of the ten most significant technology trends. From the perspective of the market research firm, these will bring considerable upheaval and opportunities for companies in the next five years. That AI plays a dominant role was both obvious and predictable. From AI supercomputing to multi-agent systems and domain-specific language models to AI security platforms, AI-native development platforms, and physical AI – the leading trends it felt like no area was left untouched.
1. AI Supercomputing Platforms: By 2028, over 40 percent of leading companies are expected to use platforms that include specific components such as GPUs or AI ASICs for critical business operations.
2. Multi-agent Systems: Through the orchestration of interacting agents, complex business process structures are to be automated.
3. Domain-Specific Language Models: Compared to general models, domain-specific language models (DSLM) – trained with special data for a specific industry – are expected to score with higher reliability. By 2028, over half of the GenAI models used in companies are expected to be domain-specific.
4. AI Security Platforms: As a central instance for all AI applications, security platforms ensure transparency and protection against AI-specific risks such as prompt injection or unauthorized agent actions. They are expected to be found in more than every second company by 2028.
5. AI-Native Development Platforms: GenAI allows software to be created faster and easier. The platforms enable developers to work directly in teams with experts from the business departments. According to forecasts, by 2030, around eighty percent of companies will replace their large programming teams with smaller, more agile teams.
6. Confidential Computing: By isolating workloads in hardware-based trusted execution environments (TEE), content remains protected from access. By 2029, more than 75 percent of operations currently processed in untrusted infrastructures are expected to be secured accordingly during use.
7. Physical AI: Physical AI combines artificial intelligence with the real world by equipping machines and devices such as robots or drones with the ability to act largely autonomously.
8. Preventive Cyber Security: Techniques such as AI-powered SecOps help companies to act before attackers strike. By 2030, half of all investments in security software will flow into preventive solutions.
9. Digital Provenance: Tools and techniques such as SBoM (Software Bills of Materials), attestation databases, or digital watermarks provide information about the origin, ownership, and integrity of code and content. Without this verification, high sanction risks threaten.
10. Geo-Patriotism: The desire for greater digital sovereignty to switch from global public clouds to regional or local infrastructures. Gartner predicts that by 2030, over three-quarters of companies in Europe and the Middle East will relocate their data and workloads to reduce geopolitical risks.
"The strategic technology trends identified for 2026 are closely intertwined," explained Gene Alvarez at the presentation. For the Gartner analyst, they simply reflect "the reality of an AI-driven, hyper-connected world" that companies must face. "These trends are far more than mere technological developments – they are catalysts for profound transformations in companies. What makes this year special is the pace," his colleague Tori Paulman described the market researchers' view of development. "Companies that act today will not only survive the current volatility but will shape their industries for decades to come," Paulman added.
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That new technologies must be used "responsibly" was repeatedly stated at the event, which continues until Thursday. At the very beginning, analysts Daryl Plummer and VP Analyst Alicia Mullery discussed the "golden path" for companies to achieve added value through AI. They recommend that those responsible avoid extremes such as disbelief or exaggerated enthusiasm regarding AI in any case.
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