Future Tech … 10 emerging technologies every business leader needs to watch … a roadmap to where value will be created, disrupted, and redefined

June 4, 2025

Technology is no longer a background enabler of business strategy; it is core to the strategy. Each year, the World Economic Forum identifies the most promising breakthroughs set to reshape markets, industries, and society. The Top 10 Emerging Technologies of 2025 is more than a list of inventions—it’s a roadmap to where value will be created, disrupted, and redefined.

For business leaders, the implications are immediate. These technologies—from AI that reasons like a human to sustainable materials that unlock circular economies—are not distant possibilities. They are investment priorities, talent magnets, and innovation accelerators already moving from lab to market. They will change customer expectations, supply chains, and competitive dynamics.

Understanding these shifts is essential for building resilience and seizing opportunity. The leaders who engage early—experimenting, partnering, and scaling—will not only navigate disruption but set the pace of progress in their industries.

Here are 10 emerging technologies that have the potential to reshape industries, redefine healthcare, and accelerate the transition to a more sustainable and intelligent world.

  • Structural Battery Composites – Batteries integrated into the structure of vehicles or aircraft.
  • Osmotic Power (Blue Energy) – Harvesting clean energy from the salt gradient between seawater and freshwater.
  • Advanced Nuclear Technologies – Safer, simpler, and more cost-effective reactors.
  • Engineered Living Therapeutics – Microbes programmed to produce drugs inside the body.
  • GLP-1s for Neurodegenerative Disease – Repurposing weight loss drugs to tackle Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s.
  • Autonomous Biochemical Sensors – Real-time monitoring of health markers.
  • Green Nitrogen Fixation – Sustainable ammonia production for fertilizers.
  • Nanozymes – Synthetic nanomaterials mimicking enzymes for healthcare and industry.
  • Collaborative Sensing – Networks of distributed sensors powered by AI.
  • Generative Watermarking – Tracing the origins of AI content for trust and transparency.

Deep dives into each tech

Structural Battery Composites (SBCs)

What they are. Structural battery composites integrate the functions of a rigid, load-bearing material and a rechargeable battery in the same component. Instead of packing heavy cells inside a passive casing, the “case” itself becomes the battery—e.g., portions of an EV’s body, a drone’s wing spar, or even building panels doubling as energy storage.

Why it matters. Weight and volume are the enemies of electrification. SBCs promise large system-level gains: lighter vehicles (longer range with the same pack or same range with smaller packs), simplified architectures, fewer parts, and potentially lower costs and lifecycle emissions. In aerospace, where every kilogram counts, embedding storage into primary structures could unlock longer endurance for e-aviation and UAVs. In the built environment, SBCs hint at walls and facades that store and smooth on-site renewable electricity.

How it works. SBCs typically combine carbon-fiber reinforcement (mechanical strength) with solid-state or polymer electrolytes and engineered interfaces that can carry both ionic and structural loads. The technical challenge is balancing electrochemical performance (capacity, cycle life, safety) with mechanical properties (stiffness, toughness, crash behavior) in a single laminate or sandwich structure.

Trajectory and hurdles. Early prototypes exist, but scaling means qualifying entirely new multifunctional materials for safety-critical use. Key issues include damage tolerance and repairability, thermal management, fire safety, end-of-life recycling, and the need for new standards and test protocols (you’re crash-testing the “battery” as part of the chassis). Supply chains must adapt for co-manufacturing energy and structural layers at high yield. Still, the Forum frames SBCs as an inflection point for materials-energy convergence with cross-sector impact over the coming decade.

Bottom line. If validated at scale, SBCs could rewrite design rules for EVs, aircraft, marine craft, and buildings—collapsing separate subsystems into lightweight, power-storing structures and pushing electrification into domains where today’s batteries struggle.

Collaborative Sensing

What it is. Collaborative sensing links many disparate sensors—cameras, LiDAR, smartphones, vehicles, traffic lights, weather stations—into a network that fuses data in real time. AI sits atop this mesh to extract context and coordinate actions across domains such as mobility, emergency response, and environmental monitoring.

Why it matters. A single sensor has limited field-of-view and reliability; thousands working together create resilience, coverage, and richer situational awareness. Think traffic lights that dynamically retime based on live road, air-quality, and transit feeds; cars that “see” around corners using other vehicles’ sensors; mine sites and ports that coordinate machinery more safely; cities that detect floods or wildfire smoke early and route resources accordingly.

Enablers and challenges. Advances in edge computing, low-latency networks, and multimodal AI enable on-the-fly sensor fusion. The hard parts are governance and trust: privacy, security, data ownership, consent, and bias in models that make operational decisions. Powering massive sensor fleets, creating interoperable standards, and ensuring cyber-resilience are also essential. The WEF emphasizes that trust and safety frameworks must grow alongside deployments.

Outlook. As infrastructure digitizes, collaborative sensing becomes a backbone for smart cities and autonomy. Expect early value in controlled environments (industrial sites, campuses) and progressive rollouts in transport and public safety—where benefits can be measured in minutes saved and lives protected.

Green Nitrogen Fixation

What it is. Ammonia is indispensable for fertilizer, underpinning roughly half of global food production. Today it’s made mainly via Haber-Bosch, a high-temperature, high-pressure process fueled by fossil hydrogen—responsible for about 2% of global energy use and significant CO₂ emissions. “Green” nitrogen fixation swaps in low-carbon pathways: electrolytic or photochemical routes, bio-engineered microbes and enzymes, or hybrid systems that leverage renewable electricity.

Why it matters. Decarbonizing ammonia tackles a major industrial emitter while making food systems less exposed to gas price shocks. It also enables on-site or distributed production near farms, potentially reducing transport emissions and improving access in emerging markets.

State of play. The report notes momentum from lab to pilot scale across electrochemical nitrogen reduction, plasma catalysis, photocatalysis, and biocatalytic approaches, though achieving energy efficiency, selectivity (suppressing hydrogen evolution), and durability at scale remains tough. Systems engineering—coupling intermittent renewables to continuous production, storage, and safety—will determine competitiveness against incumbent Haber-Bosch.

Risks and policy. Certification of “green ammonia,” clear carbon accounting, and incentives (e.g., for green H₂) can accelerate adoption. Bio-based routes raise biosafety and containment questions; any distributed production must meet stringent safety standards given ammonia’s hazards.

Outlook. With fertilizer demand steady and shipping eyeing ammonia as a zero-carbon fuel, green fixation could influence both agriculture and maritime decarbonization if cost and performance targets are met.

Nanozymes

What they are. Nanozymes are engineered nanomaterials that mimic natural enzymes’ catalytic activity while often being more stable, cheaper, and easier to manufacture at scale. They can catalyze redox reactions, peroxidase-like activity, and more—opening use in biosensing, diagnostics, environmental remediation, and targeted therapies.

Why it matters. Natural enzymes are powerful but fragile (temperature, pH, proteolysis) and costly to produce. Nanozymes tolerate harsher conditions, can be tailored for activity and targeting, and integrate with electronics for readouts. Potential wins: faster, rugged point-of-care tests; catalytic filters that break down pollutants; oncology or neurodegeneration interventions where nanozymes activate drugs or scavenge reactive species.

Evidence and momentum. The WEF synthesis highlights accelerating research and early commercialization, including companies pursuing nanozyme-enabled diagnostics and therapeutics. Market forecasts anticipate rapid growth as materials and selectivity improve, though clinical use will demand rigorous safety and biodistribution data, plus regulatory clarity for nanomedicine.

Caveats. Key challenges are specificity (avoiding off-target reactions), biocompatibility and clearance, and standardized assays to compare catalytic performance with native enzymes. For environmental uses, lifecycle and ecotoxicity assessments are essential.

Outlook. By combining catalysis, materials science, and device integration, nanozymes could become a general-purpose tool for robust sensing and intervention in messy, real-world settings where proteins struggle.

Engineered Living Therapeutics

What they are. “Living medicines” use engineered microbes or cells that reside in the body and manufacture therapeutic molecules on demand—think programmable probiotics that sense inflammation and release anti-inflammatory factors, or bacteria that convert toxic metabolites into harmless products.

Why it matters. Conventional drugs are static; living systems can adapt, persist, and target niches (gut, skin, tumor microenvironments). That raises the prospect of long-acting, responsive therapies for chronic disease, metabolic disorders, infections, and even cancer, potentially with lower costs and improved adherence.

State of play. Synthetic biology, chassis optimization, and AI-assisted design are converging to improve safety circuits (kill switches, auxotrophy), delivery, and manufacturability. Early trials and regulated probiotics offer learnings, but regulatory pathways must evolve to assess genetically modified organisms living inside patients. Post-market monitoring, horizontal gene transfer risks, and environmental containment for excreted organisms are active considerations.

Outlook. The Forum frames engineered living therapeutics as a meaningful step toward adaptive medicine—if safety engineering and governance keep pace with ingenuity. Expect initial approvals in tightly controlled indications and delivery sites, then expansion as toolkits mature.

GLP-1s for Neurodegenerative Disease

What this means. GLP-1 receptor agonists (GLP-1 RAs)—best known for type 2 diabetes and obesity—are being investigated for Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s. Mechanistically, they cross the blood-brain barrier and may reduce neuroinflammation, improve insulin signaling, enhance cellular energy management, and support clearance of toxic proteins.

Why it matters. Neurodegenerative diseases impose huge human and economic burdens, with limited disease-modifying options. If GLP-1s slow progression, even modest effects could extend independent living and reduce care costs. The report notes mixed early clinical results but enough signals to justify larger, rigorous trials now under way. Affordability and supply constraints remain salient.

Risks and realities. Translating metabolic benefits to neuroprotection is non-trivial; dosing, duration, and patient selection matter. Frailty and unintended weight loss in older patients require careful oversight. Policymakers may need new reimbursement models if upfront drug costs offset long-term care savings.

Outlook. Repurposing a mature drug class accelerates timelines. If efficacy is proven, GLP-1s could shift neurology from symptom management to disease modification and spur combination regimens with other agents (e.g., GIP co-agonists). W

Autonomous Biochemical Sensing

What it is. Analytical devices that continuously detect and quantify biochemical markers with minimal human intervention—wired for real-time data capture and often self-powered. Beyond glucose monitors, think wearables for inflammatory cytokines, continuous hormone tracking, microbial “whole-cell” biosensors that report pollutants or pathogens, and environmental nodes that surveil soil and water chemistry.

Why it matters. Continuous data can move systems from reactive to preventive: early infection warnings, real-time food safety validation, leak/spill detection before public exposure, and adaptive agriculture. During crises, a distributed biochemical “nervous system” can inform faster, targeted responses.

Hurdles. Sensors must balance sensitivity with longevity in messy environments; fouling and biofilms degrade performance. Engineered microbial sensors raise biosafety and permitting issues. Then there’s data governance: privacy for health signals, secure telemetry, and analytics that avoid false alarms.

Outlook. Expect early traction in industrial and regulated settings where ROI is clear (pharma, food processing, water utilities), followed by consumer health niches. As materials and wireless power advance, biochemical sensing will become a standard layer of digital infrastructure.

Osmotic Power Systems

What they are. Osmotic (salinity-gradient) power harvests energy when fresh and salty water mix, typically across a selective membrane that drives ion flow and electricity generation. Advances in membranes and system design have revived a previously niche concept, with pilot plants exploring coastal and estuarine deployments.

Why it matters. It’s clean, steady (not intermittent like wind/solar), and colocates with abundant coastal water flows. Integrating osmotic systems with desalination or wastewater treatment may share infrastructure and enable resource recovery (e.g., lithium from brines), improving project economics. The report cites research momentum and early investment signals.

Challenges. Membrane cost, durability (fouling, scaling), and energy density are central. Environmental permitting must address impacts on estuarine ecosystems and salinity plumes. Grid integration and hybridization with other renewables can improve capacity factors but add complexity.

Outlook. If new membranes and modular designs hit cost targets, osmotic power could complement baseload-seeking grids and provide resilient coastal microgrids—especially valuable as electrification and water stress rise.

Advanced Nuclear Technologies

What they are. A new wave of nuclear systems—such as small modular reactors (SMRs), alternative coolants, advanced fuels, and passive safety designs—aims to deliver firm, low-carbon power with improved safety, cost, and siting flexibility. These can serve grids, industrial heat, or hydrogen production.

Why it matters. Electrification (EVs, heat pumps, AI data centers) is driving demand for reliable clean power. Advanced nuclear offers high capacity factors with small land footprints and potential load-following. Modularization and factory fabrication promise better cost control than bespoke gigawatt plants.

Issues to solve. Licensing pathways, financing models, spent-fuel strategies, and public acceptance remain pivotal. Supply chains for advanced fuels (e.g., HALEU) and skilled labor must scale. Integration with district heat, desalination, or industrial processes can boost value but requires tailored regulation.

Outlook. The Forum highlights advanced nuclear as a repurposing of established tech for new demands—poised to help decarbonize grids if projects demonstrate schedule and budget discipline. Early deployments at industrial sites and remote locations are likely beachheads.

Generative Watermarking

What it is. Invisible (or machine-readable) markers embedded in AI-generated content—images, audio, video, and potentially text—to signal provenance and enable authentication at scale. Watermarks may be cryptographic, signal-processing-based, or standardized metadata, designed to persist through common transformations.

Why it matters. As synthetic media proliferates, societies need infrastructure to discern origin and maintain trust—especially during elections, disasters, or markets-moving events. Watermarking complements other provenance approaches (e.g., content credentials) and can help platforms, newsrooms, and courts assess authenticity. The Forum elevates this as a key trust-and-safety technology for the networked world.

Limits and governance. Determined adversaries may attempt removal or spoofing; standards and broad adoption are critical. Watermarks raise questions around privacy, interoperability, open vs. proprietary schemes, and how to treat non-watermarked content. The WEF flags the need for shared norms and technical collaboration to prevent fragmentation and evasion.

Outlook. Expect rapid maturation as major model providers and platforms adopt watermarking and provenance stacks, paired with detection and disclosure policies. It’s not a silver bullet against misinformation, but as part of a layered authenticity ecosystem, it’s a pragmatic step toward healthier information markets.

Themes that stand out

  • Convergence of biology and technology: From programmable microbes to wearable health sensors, biotech is becoming deeply integrated into our daily lives.
  • Energy reinvention: Clean, efficient power—from blue energy to structural batteries and next-gen nuclear—is reshaping the global energy mix.
  • Healthcare reimagined: Therapies are becoming more personalized, real-time, and even self-generating inside the body.
  • AI and accountability: As generative AI scales, watermarking and collaborative sensing show that transparency and ethics are rising priorities.
  • Sustainability through innovation: Green nitrogen and osmotic energy represent a broader shift toward technologies that work with nature, not against it.

These breakthroughs remind us that technology is not just about speed or scale, it’s about direction. And the direction we choose matters.

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