Technology has created our software-defined world of today. As technologies change and evolve, we see the rise of new software development trends to further augment this growth. 2018 was no exception. We saw some exciting developments in the world of software development. We witnessed the rise of cloud-based software development, the cementing of DevOps, and the ever-growing importance of testing. But what about the year ahead? Here’s a look at some of the trends that will impact software development in 2019.

1. Artificial Intelligence (AI):Gartner estimates that the revenue from the AI industry will touch $1.2 trillion by the end of 2019. By 2022 the business value derived from AI is expected to reach $3.9 trillion. With the digital transformation wave taking over almost all organizations, it is clear that AI will continue to trend in the software universe for the next couple of years.In 2019 we will see the use of AI to speed up and improve the accuracy of software development- be it in automatic debugging, for creating intelligent assistants to speed up development processes, to automate code generation, or to create and train an automated system to produce accurate estimates to develop MVPs faster…the AI impact will be all around and hard to ignore.
2. Blockchain:Blockchain, the meta-technology, holds the promise of completely reshaping software development. Blockchain consists of a single ledger of transactions and enables smart contracts. It has a distributed database that is accessible to a peer-to-peer network but is protected against unauthorized access. The technology is secured by cryptographic technique making the applications developed using this tech more secure.Blockchain has already made its presence felt in several different sectors be it retail, banking, financial services, healthcare, and public administration. It is only a matter of time before Blockchain becomes a prime focus for organizations involved in software development. As security becomes top of the mind, the need for blockchain-based applications will increase. 2019 looks like a good year to jump on this technology trend.
3. Progressive Web Apps:Progressive Web Apps leaped to our attention when Gartner announced it as a software trend in 2017. In 2019 however, with a more mature app ecosystem in place, we expect to see Progressive Web apps become more dominant and gain that promised place. As the app economy gets stronger and the mobile environment evolves, progressive web apps are gradually going to become the new normal in this changing environment.
   Research shows that progressive web apps show a 68% increase in mobile traffic and are 15 times faster to load and install as compared to native apps. Progressive web apps also require 25 times less device storage space in comparison to native apps. These applications are also less complex to develop, are easy to maintain and provide the benefits of mobile experience with the features of browser technology. What’s not to love?
4. Security Rules: Security has been on everyone’s mind in the software development space. The increased focus of security during software development is only going to increase in this year. Research from Alert Logic showed that data loss and leakage is one of the biggest concerns for cybersecurity professionals (67%). Threats to data privacy were the concern for 61% while 53% were concerned with a breach of confidentiality. Owing to the huge impact security issues can have on a software product and its users, organizations are conscious of baking security into the process of software development. Software development companies also have to keep a close eye on regulatory considerations for specific industries.They must also follow security best practices and ensure that all security guidelines and protocols are met consistently. To make security more robust, organizations are also looking at Managed Security Providers or MSP’s for robust application security without compromising on development timelines.
5. Automated Testing: While test automation has been around for a while, automated testing will continue to be a trend in 2019. This will continue for as long as there is a need to release better-tested products into the market faster -that means, forever! As testing gets deeply ingrained into every software development methodology, test automation will get even more pervasive with testing teams striving for greater levels of automated test coverage. In 2019 we will witness test automation leveraging AI for better test accuracy. Tests will become more comprehensive, more intelligent, and more dependable. Even with that, they will become faster and less taxing. The products will become better tested and more robust as a result.Borrowing from, and evolving the technologies that help to automate testing, Robotic Process Automation or RPA will also become a dominating trend in 2019. RPA will drive to automate high-volume repeatable tasks, thus making them faster, more accurate, and less effort-intensive.

Conclusion:

2019 promises to be an exciting year in the world of software development. It will be interesting to see how these trends develop over the course of the year. Check back with us at the end of the year for a review of our predictions. And, do feel free to add more about the trends you think will dominate software development and testing in 2019.