The AI industry’s focus is shifting toward practical, physical applications of the technology|Dietmar Rabich|CC BY-SA 4.0
As we move toward 2026, the artificial intelligence industry is bracing for a shift in workforce, robotics, privacy, and more. Here are a few projections, according to Wired.
Corporate restructuring
Following a period of aggressive hiring, AI companies may face their first major layoffs to streamline operations, as investors question high spending on data centers.
Many firms may rush toward IPOs to capitalize on peak valuations before the market cools.
Robots
The year 2026 is expected to be the year of the robot, as the category is poised to dominate tech conferences. By integrating AI learning models into hardware, robots can now understand manuals and videos to perform household chores. However, their high prices may deter buyers.
Increasing robot taxis
Autonomous ride-hailing is set for a massive scale-up. Services like Waymo are expected to provide over 1 million rides per week, expanding into dozens of new cities.
Tesla and Amazon-owned Zoox are also testing their fleet in several parts of the US.
Anti-data center issues
More communities could resist the construction of massive data centers. There is also a growing risk that foreign adversaries, like China and Russia, will instigate anti-data center propaganda.
Agentic monitoring
Businesses are expected to deploy surveillance software to record employee workflows, using that data to train AI agents to automate complex office tasks.
Privacy and AI
AI tools that record and summarize meetings without explicit consent are becoming common. This always-on feature could trigger major privacy lawsuits or data breaches in 2026.
AI-enabled gadgets could also increase personal privacy concerns of being constantly recorded.
Next year, the AI industry’s focus will shift toward practical, physical applications of the technology.