In April 2021, the Advanced Technology for Industry (ATI) project published a Sectoral Watch report named “Technological trends in creative industries”. The report analyses various trends within the creative industries, such as the generation and uptake of advanced technologies and the skills needed. The report is discussing the following topics related to advanced technologies in creative industries:
- Providing an overview of the industry;
- Technological trends in the advanced technologies applied;
- Private equity investment and start-up/spinoff activity;
- The supply and demand of skills in the industry;
- Outlook in the creative industries.
Creative industries are a crucial part of the European economy, employing approximately 7.4 million people in the EU27. The COVID-19 lockdowns have had a severe impact on the industry, but have also shown that online communications can serve as a lifebelt for communities to stay in contact.
The creative industries have been influenced by advanced digital technologies such as Augmented & Virtual Reality (AR/VR) and Artificial Intelligence (AI). AR/VR can, for example, be seen in video games and museums. AI on the other hand is transforming, for example, the music industry with automated production of music.
In the year 2020, design, digital, gaming, music and media technology ventures were continually invested in. However, most of these deals were made pre-COVID and a downturn is expected. Investors will likely allocate their recourses to their existing portfolios.
Looking at the most popular advanced technologies in creative industries in 2020 AR/VR is on top followed by Cloud and AI. Furthermore, looking at the patterns of AI professionals in creative industry segments, the video games industry has by far the largest share of AI professionals.
Additional Sectoral watch reports include Technological trends in the financial services and the banking sector and Technological trends in the machinery industry. For more information on advanced technologies in the EU, explore the ATI website.