IDC FutureScape: Worldwide Manufacturing 2025 Predictions
This IDC study provides manufacturers with the top 10 predictions and underlying drivers that we expect to impact manufacturers' IT investments in 2025 and beyond.According to Simon Ellis, group vice president, U.S. Manufacturing/Energy Insights and Global Supply Chain at IDC, "The manufacturing industry continues to experience high levels of disruption, thus putting a premium on change and the adoption of new technologies to dive both efficiency and resiliency. While the predictions highlighted touch upon many areas of the business, the main theme can be tied back to having the proper digital infrastructure in place to serve as the foundation for meeting challenges and taking advantage of opportunities."
IDC FutureScape Figure
Executive Summary
IDC FutureScape Predictions
Summary of External Drivers
Predictions: Impact on Technology Buyers
Prediction 1: By 2027, 50% of Global Organizations Will Deploy a GenAI-Powered Platform That Combines Disparate Data Sources to Simulate, Assess, and Predict Supply Chain Risks
Associated Drivers
IT Impact
Guidance
Prediction 2: By 2027, 70% of G2000 Manufacturers Will Leverage GenAI to Automate Product Quality Management and Improve Development Time/Cost by 10%
Associated Drivers
IT Impact
Guidance
Prediction 3: By 2026, Two-Thirds of Manufacturers Will Be Pursuing Industrial DataOps Strategies to Enable the Execution of AI-Supported Use Cases, Thereby Improving Operational Efficiency
Associated Drivers
IT Impact
Guidance
Prediction 4: By 2026, 30% of Global Manufacturers Will Use Federated Learning to Scale Industrial AI, Enabling Compliance with Data Regulations, Reduction of Data Preparation Effort, and Stronger Data Security
Associated Drivers
IT Impact
Guidance
Prediction 5: Driven by Operational Sustainability Goals, by 2028, 50% of Hard-to-Abate Industries Will Have Adopted a CCSaaS Model, Reducing Their Carbon Emissions by 60–70% and Improving Their ESG Rating by 10–30%
Associated Drivers
IT Impact
Guidance
Prediction 6: By 2027, 60% of G2000 Manufacturers Will Be Using GenAI to Enhance People Productivity and Accelerate Time to Expertise
Associated Drivers
IT Impact
Guidance
Prediction 7: Unable to Meet Global Repair SLAs, by 2028, 60% of G2000 Manufacturers Will Expand Spare Parts Ecosystem Partners Across the Supply Chain to Confidently Deliver Resolution and Improved Customer Outcomes
Associated Drivers
IT Impact
Guidance
Prediction 8: By 2026, Resiliency Pressures and AI Opportunities Will Drive More than 30% of G2000 Manufacturers to Invest in New Advanced Planning and Scheduling Deployments, Leading to PO Rates of Above 95%
Associated Drivers
IT Impact
Guidance
Prediction 9: By 2027, 60% of Manufacturers Will Share R&D Data on Innovation, Quality, and Best Practices to Global Data Spaces, Leading to Five Times Faster Time to Market and Overall Lower Cost of Quality
Associated Drivers
IT Impact
Guidance
Prediction 10: By 2027, 40% of Global Manufacturers Will Utilize AI and Generative AI for Compliance Automation, Ensuring a 90% Reduction in Manual Compliance Tasks and Cutting Operational Costs by 15%
Associated Drivers
IT Impact
Guidance
Advice for Technology Buyers
External Drivers: Detail
AI-Driven Business Models — Moving from AI Experimentation to Monetization
The Drive to Automate — Toward a Data-Driven Future
Future Proofing Against Environmental Risks — ESG Operationalization and Risk Management
Regulatory Flux — Navigating Compliance Challenges in a Shifting Policy Landscape
Geoeconomic Reordering — Rethinking Globalization, Supply Chains, and Macroeconomic Challenges
Battling Against Technical Debt — Overcoming Hurdles to IT Modernization
Customer Experience Squared — Consumer and Citizen Expectations for Digital Services
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