2024 tech predictions: The top 4 digital communication trends to know

Welcome back to my annual predictions of future digital communications trends. This time, we’re talking about 2024 tech predictions! If you read my predictions for 2023, I scored 2 out of 3, and I feel pretty good about my 2024 tech predictions!

In this blog, let’s quickly take a look at how my 2023 tech predictions for digital communication fared. Then we’ll talk about what digital communication in 2024 might be like, with 4 predictions about digital communication trends and usage patterns.

Let’s dive in!

2023 tech predictions recap: How did the 2023 digital communication predictions fare?

What happened to the 2023 digital communication predictions? Prediction number 3 highlighted market demand for authentic and human interactions. Exactly 5 days after I completed last year’s writeup, OpenAI launched ChatGPT. Human-to-machine interactions skyrocketed, and the rest is history. The interactions were as intelligent and personal as ever; moreover, the hype cycle for generative AI, large language models, and next-generation AI chatbots has stayed in hyperdrive.

Perhaps I’m being generous with myself because last year’s prediction number 2 called for a make-or-break year for VR adoption. By the middle of 2023, Apple announced the impending release of its Apple Vision Pro VR headset. And knowing Apple, they’ll re-create and uplevel any category they enter — look no further than what the iPod did to MP3 players or what the iPhone did to Blackberry and smartphones in general — so perhaps I’ll end up a measly 1 for 3 (i.e., 33% accuracy). Read on if you dare!

I still believe that humans crave deep, meaningful connections. What I did not anticipate is just how powerful tech like ChatGPT already was, to be able to converse in human-like ways at scale, in multiple languages, instantly. AI and machine learning professionals say that by 2030, the level of AI intelligence compared to the human brain will be akin to how intelligent the human brain is to a fly today. This is amazing and terrifying at the same time. We’re experiencing the biggest paradigm shift since the Internet and the Dotcom boom. This feeds into my first 2024 prediction for the future of digital communications.

Here we go!

2024 tech predictions: 4 trends that will shape digital communication

Here are the top 4 predictions about what will shape digital communication in 2024.

Future of digital communication prediction 1: Moderation of and ethics in communications through content moderation

Have we entered the matrix? Is what we’re reading, hearing, seeing, sensing even real? Sometimes when I’m surfing the web, scrolling through LinkedIn, watching YouTube, and glancing through comments, I can’t help but wonder about the authenticity and “realness” of it all. It’s so easy for humans to create random accounts and start trolling. Or for humans to use AI technology that generates fake messages, images, or videos. Or for humans to create bots that create other bots. How do we moderate and create safe, authenticated digital spaces?

With generative AI and chatbots quickly becoming powerful, there needs to be a level of safety measures and control in place to enhance trust and safety online. A tool or technology for UGC content moderation to check the other almighty technology. Expect a push on this, whether top-down from the government or bottom-up due to consumer demand because of how powerful digital communication technology has become.

Future of digital communication prediction 2: User-centric asynchronous communication experiences

What is asynchronous communication? Asynchronous communication refers to the exchange of information where responses do not occur in real time, allowing participants to engage at their convenience. A great example is email or modern customer support chat (as long as customers don’t wait too long!). In this approach, people aren't confined to communicating only during pre-scheduled meetings, and responses are more free-flowing and less time-sensitive. Not only will digital communication styles trend this way in 2024, but it will also happen across systems and platforms, tied back to the end user. In business, this is often referred to as a ‘universal user record’ that is passed from system to system.

Technological advancements like this enable consumers to start a conversation on one device or platform and continue it on another without losing the context or history of the interaction. This is especially useful for organizations that have an expansive tech stack. With an in-app communications platform like Sendbird, organizations can connect all these systems on the back end. 

For example, Sendbird has a food delivery app as a customer. This food delivery app offers their own marketplace of restaurants and grocery stores to order from, but they use Salesforce Service Cloud for customer support, Iterable for marketing messages, Twilio for SMS; the tech stack list goes on! What they’re able to do, however, is connect all these systems on the back-end via integration with Sendbird, so that the consumer ultimately experiences one seamless digital communication thread regardless of where or when the conversation is actually taking place (via Salesforce, Iterable, Twilio, etc.)

The experience is tied to the user in an asynchronous manner. The challenge is all the various integrations of software and platforms. The bigger headache is to ensure data security and privacy as messages, chat, voice, and video flow across different systems.

Future of digital communication prediction 3: Personalized communications with generative AI

I’ll keep this one short. In a nutshell, in 2024, generative AI will be extensively used to create highly tailored content for consumers, from marketing emails to customer support interactions.
Large language models are evolving by the minute. They can analyze massive amounts of consumer data to generate responses and content that resonate more deeply based on individual preferences, real-time behaviors, and past interactions.

AI personalization will enhance customer engagement by providing more relevant and personalized experiences, leading to improved customer satisfaction and loyalty. The challenge for businesses will be to balance personalization with privacy concerns.

Future of digital communication prediction 4: Dominance of short-form multimedia communication

The rise of platforms like TikTok and Instagram Reels has popularized short-form multimedia content, a digital communication trend that is expected to continue growing in 2024. As this drives an overall shift in consumer behavior and expectations of content, businesses will adapt accordingly.

Given how bite-sized videos are highly effective in capturing the diminishing attention spans of consumers, businesses will start to create more short-form, catchy communications for more effective storytelling, brand promotion, and viral marketing. How? Ads, product demos, customer testimonials, brand awareness videos, the list goes on. It presents an opportunity to create unique and memorable digital communication that consumers actually respond to vs. the omnichannel mess that is customer communications today.

Solidify your digital communication strategy in 2024

As I finish writing the last communications prediction for 2024, I’m questioning whether this writeup should have been done in a short video format. Oh, the irony. Disclaimer: As objective as I tried to be, some of the predictions above did feed into Sendbird’s strategy. If you’re a product professional or technical developer looking to improve customer communications, future-proof your business, and invest more in your app, come talk to us. The team at Sendbird continues to innovate on in-app communication API, SDK, and UIKit across 10+ developer platform languages that allow you to fully customize customer communications, safely moderate user experience, and quickly embed public or private generative AI models.

Cheers to digital communication successes in 2024!