These are the 5 tech breakthroughs we will forever associate with 2022

Time to stock up. In January 2022, Numerama wrote an article on the 5 most anticipated technologies of the year. Were our predictions correct? For the most part, yes. But, unsurprisingly, what 2022 did was not the most predictable. The sector of new technologies is full of surprises and, once again, has distinguished itself by its ability to stand out from the ordinary. Who could have thought in January that Elon Musk would become the owner of Twitter and start an ideological fight?

In this article, Numerama offers you the top 5 of what, according to its journalists, are the 5 biggest tech successes of 2022. For the biggest flops, go to our flop 5.

1. Elon Musk, personality of the year 2022

Before going back to the crazy year of Elon Musk, maybe it’s better to explain it to us. What is the richest man on the planet doing in this top 5, when he causes so many scandals throughout the year?

Whether we like Elon Musk or not, it seems obvious to us that his role in the year 2022 is too big to be put in the category of failures. Takeover of Twitter for 44 billion dollars, success of Tesla and SpaceX, Optimus robot, development of Starlink constellation, desire to offer implants for the human brain, role in the war between Russia and Ukraine, discussions on highest representative of the planet, transformation into a player in the political world… The general media around the world is interested in Elon Musk, the public hates him as much as they admire him. Elon Musk is, by far, the personality of the year 2022.

Elon Musk is a controversial personality to say the least. Defender of a freedom of expression that he wants to be absolute, but capable of censoring people he doesn’t like on a whim, the billionaire is feared and fascinated. His desire to buy Twitter in April 2022, then his decision to give it up before being forced to do so in October, created the soap opera of the year. Since then, Elon Musk has talked about his impulsive management every day, giving the impression that he rules alone. Elon Musk is everywhere, and it’s set to last.

2. Microsoft’s acquisition of Activision

Microsoft’s acquisition of Activision is part of our top news for 2022… but could join the flops in 2023. Why? Because Sony, in the name of competition law, is fighting to stop the developer call of duty to join the Xbox family. If he succeeds, Activision can remain independent despite himself.

Announced in January, Activision’s acquisition of Microsoft is the largest in the world of culture. Microsoft wants to line up 69 billion dollars to carry out the operation and get their hands on brands like Call of Duty, Diablo, Crash Bandicoot, Candy Crush or Warcraft. This merger scared Sony, who refused to believe Microsoft when it promised it call of duty will remain on PlayStation. The Japanese is doing everything it can to prevent its competitor from growing, but the authorities are leaning on Microsoft.

In the coming weeks, Activision should, unless the situation reverses, join the Xbox family. Expect to see a large portion of the developer’s catalog on Xbox Game Pass, which once again stands out as one of the best offerings of the year.

3. Covid, scarcity… It’s getting better

In 2020 and 2021, the world of new technologies is very slow. The lack of ingredients and the Covid-19 crisis have slowed down many production lines, especially since consumers are not necessarily changing their equipment. 2022 ended this reluctance, change continued.

Take the video game sector for example. If finding the PlayStation 5 is still complicated, the next generation games are coming in 2022. Horizon, God of War… Let’s not talk about everything coming in early 2023, a real traffic jam of launches after Covid.

Events also continued. Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, ​​​​​​Vivatech in Paris, IFA in Berlin… Even Apple reopened its doors, welcoming journalists to its campus for the first time in its history. Unsurprisingly, therefore we had many great products in 2022, starting with the new AirPods Pro, which is united, or the excellent Pixel 7 from Google. There are still some degradation issues, but it’s still better. The only downside, prices have exploded due to the global economic crisis.

4. BeReal, a success in France

Is BeReal just an epiphenomenon, as some people think? Maybe, but no one can question its success in 2022. The French social network, named by Apple as “application of the year”, has exceeded 50 million downloads worldwide. The US President himself uses it, while “doing his BeReal” has become a popular expression. At a time when everyone is praising the success of TikTok, how can we not salute a French application that managed to scare Meta, Snap and Bytedance, who all copied it?

If you don’t know BeReal, it’s an anti-social network. Its concept is simple, it tells you when you have the right to publish. You will receive a notification and take a photo to show where you are, using your smartphone’s front camera and rear camera. A concept that everyone wants to steal from its French developers.

5. ChatGPT and AI artists

Finally, how to complete this summary of the year 2022 without talking about artificial intelligence? We thought we knew them for 10 years (Siri, Google Assistant, Alexa…), we finally discovered them this year. The work of OpenAI, with its bots capable of creating an image from a sentence or writing entire articles by analyzing a context, is impressive. Humanity is starting to realize that an AI is not just about starting a timer and that its role in our society will be important.

Should we fear the rise of AI? Of course, this is one of the main challenges in the coming years. In another register, Thierry Ardisson’s program interviewing the dead thanks to deep fakes and vocal imitations made a lot of noise. Technology is starting to mature, humanity must now ask itself what to do with it.