2024 was a year full of upheavals. The conflicts in Ukraine and the Middle East, the outcome of the United States election, natural disasters remind us every day that our world is increasingly unpredictable and that predicting the future is becoming more and more difficult! On the grounds of satisfaction, we can still note the Paris 2024 Olympic Games as well as the restoration of Notre Dame de Paris, which show us that the strength of the collective can give us reasons for hope!
So, what will be the challenges of 2025?
First of all, let’s talk about Artificial Intelligence, a magic word that everyone uses! Behind this term lies a complex reality that large companies such as Amazon or Microsoft have embraced, believing that nothing will happen in the future without Artificial Intelligence! This revolution requires the development of new electronic components that are more powerful and less energy-consuming. New 3D architectures are being developed that will require more accurate and complex inspection systems. Imaging solutions companies will therefore need to be innovative, going beyond nanometer accuracy. In addition, the growing volume of data to be processed as a result of Artificial Intelligence will require ever more powerful data centers, which will in turn consume more energy. The revival of the nuclear industry, particularly with the development of Small Modular Reactors, is a new revolution, moving from centralized energy (Large EPR-type nuclear power plant) to distributed energy (hundreds of SMRs located on sites such as data centers). Google and Oracle have already indicated that they are investing in these new technologies. In this field, the demand for monitoring, safety and radiation protection will also be very high, requiring high-performance detection and vision systems.
The increase in natural disasters linked to climate change is the second major challenge we are facing to. Detection and imaging systems are again solutions to prevent, simulate and detect before it is too late. The development of imaging and LIDAR solutions to detect methane, TDLAS sensors to detect toxic gases in industrial chimneys, and fire detection in forests are just a few examples of optical technologies that are helping to make our world more sustainable.
Last but not least, the field of life sciences and medicine, especially after the COVID period, is also a field where optical technologies are invaluable, whether for detecting new viruses, for advanced diagnosis as well as for monitoring the evolution of a disease in patients. Detecting even infinitesimal traces as early as possible is an imperative. Here too, advances in terms of optical microscopy, whether confocal or fluorescence, improved resolutions of X-ray imaging, the ability to sequence DNA or new robotic vision systems for medical applications are all advances that contribute to public health.
2025 is shaping up to be an exciting year where we will take up all these challenges, with the same passion that drives us to make this world more pleasant to live in! I would like to take this opportunity to wish each of you a very happy and prosperous new year 2025!
Claire Valentin. Chief Strategy Officer of EXOSENS
