With the end of 2019 closing the 2010 decade, it’s time to think about the future decade: 2020. A lot has changed for me in my development career in the past 10 years, or even the past 5 years. Now I am looking forward, and I am excited about the years to come.

I find it super exciting to think about the possibilities, maybe also wishes, and what of all them could become true. Also, it’s very interesting to look back when we are in 2030 and find out which predictions actually became true. So, here are my predictions for the new decade.

Programming

Programming Languages

In the next years, typed languages will continue to raise and take over where non-type languages are currently the standard. It becomes more and more clear, that types make a language more stable and squash bugs before running the code for the first time. Typescript, for instance, will become the status quo for JavaScript programming.
Many old languages will die, with newer languages like Go and Rust taking over the fields. Python becomes the most important language worldwide.

Writing Code

AI-powered tools will not replace the humble programmer, but assist him with writing code. The tools are available in your IDE and suggest common solutions for your problems. Also, static analysis and similar tools will become even more powerful with the help of AI.

Containerization

Docker was basically the big thing in the 2010 decade. It changed my development workflow completely. Usage of container products like Docker and Kubernetes will continue to raise and become the new standard for software development instead of locally installed tools on the developers machine.
I can imagine a new powerful competitor will raise to replace the current solutions.

Web Hosting

Website builders like Wix and Squarespace, and containerization with Docker will replace shared hosting. Admin panels like Plesk and cPanel will become niche products. People build their own websites with said tools, or buy virtual servers with Wordpress or other tools pre-installed, instead of using shared hosting.
VPS, or servers in general, will become even cheaper. Servers like the now standard $5 droplet from Digitalocean will cost not more than $1 by the end of the decade.
Hopefully, hosting with data centers powered by renewable resources will become the standard.

The Internet

Social Media and Communication

After the raise of Facebook with text messaging, Instagram with pictures and Tik Tok now with short videos, the next big social network may become more video-centered and support AR where you place the avatar of your beloved ones in front of you while you talk with each other.

Browser Wars

Chromium will become the main browser of this decade, leaving Firefox as the sole competitor without much power after Safari switches to Chromium like Edge did. Microsoft, Apple and smaller companies like Brave and Opera form a stakeholder group, supported by the EFF and other organizations interested in a free internet. The purpose of the group is to control the development and management of the Chromium project previously owned by Google alone, to prevent Google abusing the sole power over the project. DuckDuckGo will eventually become the new default search engine of the Chromium project, the company is supported by said stakeholder group.

Internet Economy

Looking back at the past decade, it becomes clear that the internet giants will become even more powerful with basically no government being fully able to control their actions.
Google will have launched about 100 new services by the end of the decade, with 90 being cancelled within 3 years.
Reddit becomes the new status quo for new small communities, while larger communities with no main topic will continue to decrease. Specialized communities like Dev.to will continue to grow.

Gaming

In the field of gaming, VR and AR become more important as hardware prices drop and the headsets become even more reliable. Major publishers like EA, Ubisoft or Blizzard will release AAA VR titles pushing forward VR sales. Microsoft releases a OpenVR-compatible headset for the next-generation Xbox, leaving the Playstation as the only closed system on the market.
Also, major companies gain trust in working on more single player AAA games again, following the success of the latest titles like a new Assassins Creed becoming the most-sold title of the entire series, and the critically acclaimed Cyberpunk 2077 by CD Projekt Red. In the meantime, Bethesda continues the downward spiral by introducing large-scale micro transactions and a pay-to-win-like system in Elder Scrolls 6, leading to large parts of the player base abandoning the series.

Hardware

AMD continues to publish powerful, low-cost hardware for PC systems, leaving Intel behind and gaining more market share again. 12-Core CPUs become the new standard for PC systems. Powerful systems are capable of rendering reality-like 3D scenes by the end of the year because of a major breakthrough in graphic computation, like Nvidias Raytracing.

IoT

Billions of popular IoT devices are affected by both a critical security issue and a large data breach, resulting in millions of USD of damage for the customers. Responsible manufacturers fail to inform their customers, leading to sanctions against said companies and new laws for internet-powered devices which control important parts of the user homes, like door controls, video cameras and heating systems.