Technology in the Wake of 2020
2020 compressed years of digital transformation into months. Businesses that had been slowly modernizing their technology were forced to accelerate overnight, and those that had already invested in digital capabilities found themselves with a significant competitive advantage. As we enter 2021, the question is no longer whether to invest in technology — it is which technologies will deliver the most business value.
At StrikingWeb, we work with businesses across industries to evaluate and implement technology strategies. Based on what we are seeing with our clients and in the broader market, these are the trends that will matter most in 2021.
1. AI and Machine Learning Move from Experiments to Production
Artificial intelligence has been on every "trends" list for years, but 2021 marks a shift from experimentation to practical deployment. The tools and platforms for building AI-powered applications have matured to the point where you no longer need a team of PhD data scientists to implement machine learning. Cloud services like AWS SageMaker, Google AutoML, and Azure Cognitive Services provide pre-built models and training pipelines that development teams can integrate into existing applications.
Practical Applications We Are Seeing
- Customer service automation: Chatbots powered by natural language processing that can handle common support inquiries, routing complex issues to human agents
- Demand forecasting: Machine learning models that predict inventory needs based on historical sales data, seasonality, and market trends
- Fraud detection: Real-time transaction analysis that identifies suspicious patterns and flags potential fraud before it causes financial harm
- Personalization: Product recommendations, content curation, and dynamic pricing based on individual user behavior and preferences
The key to successful AI adoption in 2021 is starting with specific business problems rather than adopting AI for its own sake. Identify the processes where human decision-making is slow, expensive, or inconsistent, and evaluate whether machine learning can improve those specific outcomes.
2. Low-Code and No-Code Platforms
Low-code and no-code development platforms are gaining significant traction as businesses seek to build applications faster and with fewer dedicated developers. Platforms like OutSystems, Mendix, Microsoft Power Apps, and Retool allow business users and citizen developers to create functional applications through visual interfaces and pre-built components.
This does not mean professional developers are becoming obsolete. Rather, low-code platforms handle routine internal tools and simple workflows, freeing professional developers to focus on complex, differentiated applications that require custom architecture and deep technical expertise.
At StrikingWeb, we see low-code as complementary to custom development. We help clients identify which applications are good candidates for low-code (internal dashboards, simple data entry tools, basic workflow automation) and which require custom development (customer-facing products, complex integrations, performance-critical systems).
3. Cybersecurity as a Business Priority
The shift to remote work in 2020 dramatically expanded the attack surface for most organizations. Personal devices, home networks, and cloud-based collaboration tools introduced vulnerabilities that traditional perimeter-based security could not address. In 2021, cybersecurity moves from an IT concern to a board-level business priority.
Key Areas of Investment
- Zero-trust architecture: The assumption that no user or device should be trusted by default, requiring continuous verification regardless of network location
- Multi-factor authentication: Moving beyond passwords to require additional verification factors for all critical systems
- Endpoint security: Protecting the diverse devices (laptops, phones, tablets) that employees use to access company systems
- Security training: Regular education for all employees on phishing, social engineering, and secure handling of sensitive data
- Incident response planning: Documented procedures for detecting, containing, and recovering from security breaches
For web applications specifically, we recommend regular security audits, dependency vulnerability scanning, and implementing Content Security Policies (CSP) to protect against cross-site scripting attacks.
4. Multi-Cloud and Hybrid Cloud Strategies
Organizations are increasingly adopting multi-cloud strategies, using different cloud providers for different workloads rather than committing entirely to a single vendor. AWS might host your application infrastructure, Google Cloud might power your data analytics, and Azure might run your productivity suite through Microsoft 365.
The benefits of multi-cloud include reduced vendor lock-in, the ability to choose the best service from each provider, and improved resilience (an outage on one cloud does not take down everything). The challenges include increased operational complexity, the need for consistent security policies across providers, and the cost of maintaining expertise across multiple platforms.
We help clients design multi-cloud architectures that balance these trade-offs, focusing on portability through containerization (Docker and Kubernetes) and infrastructure-as-code tools like Terraform that work across all major cloud providers.
5. Progressive Web Applications
Progressive Web Apps (PWAs) continue to gain adoption as businesses seek to provide mobile-app-like experiences without the cost and complexity of native app development. PWAs work offline, can be installed on the home screen, send push notifications, and access device hardware — capabilities that were previously exclusive to native apps.
For businesses that need mobile reach but cannot justify the investment in separate iOS and Android codebases, PWAs offer a compelling middle ground. They are built with standard web technologies, deployed through the web, and maintain a single codebase that works across all devices and platforms.
6. API-First Development
The API-first approach — designing and building APIs before implementing user interfaces — is becoming standard practice for modern application development. This pattern decouples the frontend from the backend, allowing different teams to work in parallel and enabling the same backend to serve web apps, mobile apps, partner integrations, and IoT devices.
We are seeing growing adoption of GraphQL alongside REST APIs, particularly for applications with complex data requirements. GraphQL allows clients to request exactly the data they need in a single query, reducing over-fetching and under-fetching problems that are common with REST endpoints.
7. Edge Computing
Edge computing — processing data closer to where it is generated rather than in a centralized data center — is gaining relevance for web applications. CDN providers like Cloudflare (Workers), Vercel (Edge Functions), and AWS (Lambda@Edge) now allow developers to run code at the network edge, reducing latency and enabling location-aware functionality.
For e-commerce applications, edge computing enables geolocation-based pricing, localized content delivery, and faster checkout experiences. For content platforms, it enables dynamic personalization without the round-trip to a central server.
8. Subscription and Recurring Revenue Models
The shift from one-time purchases to subscription-based revenue continues to accelerate across industries. Software (SaaS), media (streaming), retail (subscription boxes), and even traditional manufacturing (equipment-as-a-service) are adopting recurring revenue models that provide predictable cash flow and deeper customer relationships.
This trend drives demand for subscription management platforms, billing integration, customer lifecycle analytics, and retention-focused product features. We are building more subscription-based applications than ever, helping clients implement billing logic, trial management, and churn prevention strategies.
The businesses that will thrive in 2021 are those that view technology not as a cost center but as a strategic capability. The tools available today — from AI and low-code to edge computing and multi-cloud — make it possible for organizations of any size to build competitive digital capabilities.
Where to Start
The sheer number of technology trends can be overwhelming. Our advice: start with the business problem, not the technology. Identify the areas where technology can have the greatest impact on revenue, efficiency, or customer experience, and invest there first. At StrikingWeb, we help businesses navigate these decisions and implement the right technologies for their specific goals.