For over a decade, the World Economic Forum’s Top 10 Emerging Technologies report has served as a unique lens for understanding technological transformation – tracking how early-stage technologies evolve from tentative signals to transformative solutions. Consider CRISPR-Cas9, first highlighted in the 2015 report as a promising gene-editing technique. What seemed then like a theoretical breakthrough has since revolutionized multiple domains, from enabling precise vaccine development during the COVID-19 pandemic to facilitating groundbreaking xenotransplantation in 2024.

This trajectory illustrates the core methodology: identifying technologies not for their immediate application, but for their potential to create systemic change. The most profound innovations emerge not in isolation, but through intricate convergences – where synthetic biology meets AI, materials science intersects with energy systems and biotechnology converges with digital technologies.

Each technology tracked represents more than a standalone solution; they are signals of broader transformations, capable of redesigning entire systems. Green nitrogen fixation reimagines agricultural supply chains, structural battery composites transform understanding of material functionality and autonomous biochemical sensing creates entirely new paradigms for health monitoring.

This annual review reveals consistent patterns in technological maturation. Breakthrough innovations require more than technical brilliance – they demand comprehensive ecosystem development. This means navigating complex interactions between social acceptance, technological capability, environmental sustainability, economic viability and regulatory frameworks.

Looking back, the report has consistently demonstrated its predictive power: identifying CRISPR in 2015, anticipating mRNA vaccine platforms in 2017, exploring AI in drug discovery in 2020 and now examining engineered living therapeutics. These are not mere technological snapshots, but waypoints in an ongoing journey of innovation.

As the report continues to track emerging technologies, the goal remains unchanged: to provide a forward-looking perspective that bridges scientific potential with practical implementation. The most profound innovations are rarely obvious at first glance. They emerge through persistent observation, interdisciplinary collaboration and a fundamental willingness to reimagine what’s possible.

Figure 3: Scaling innovation: how emerging technologies become tomorrow’s foundations