For storage manufacturers, the growing flood of data is a blessing. No wonder they have their own view of the trends resulting from data usage. (Image: Western Digital)

The comparison is to the thought of immeasurable wealth: data as a new gold treasure or more valuable than crude oil. Many applications of the future are inconceivable without data. Measuring points become information that generates added value. This article looks at five of the most important trends from the perspective of a data storage manufacturer. 

In the zettabyte age, processing and storing the flood of data, as well as increasing energy requirements, pose major challenges for companies – both technologically and environmentally. Manfred Berger, Senior Manager, Business Development at Western Digital, takes a look at 2023 and has identified five technology trends that he believes companies should keep in mind.

Trend 1: Sustainability as an innovation driver

The amount of data and the use of modern technologies such as artificial intelligence are continuously increasing. As a result, power consumption in data centers is also rising. In a recent study, the German industry association Bitkom expects annual growth in energy demand of around 3.5 to 5 percent by 2030. For Western Digital Corporation, sustainability and technology are inextricably linked and are becoming decisive innovation factors, because storage solutions are a key energy aspect in the data center. Modern technologies that are both cost- and energy-efficient are therefore in demand. Helium hard disks are one example.

The inert gas helium is hermetically sealed in the hard drive housing instead of air and has only one-seventh the density of air. This reduces flow effects that occur when the disks rotate in the hard drive, as well as energy requirements. Thinner and therefore more platters can be accommodated in the enclosure, providing higher capacities for the same HDD form factor. In addition, helium HDDs are cooler in operation compared to air-filled HDDs and accordingly require less cooling in the data center. This reduces energy costs for cooling as well as operation and has a positive impact on drive reliability.

Trend 2: The metaverse and the digital twin

The metaverse will make it possible to bridge the gap between the real and virtual worlds. This means that the metaverse will meet another key technology in the coming year: the digital twin. This can be used to create comprehensive digital models of anything physical or logical – from simple resources and products to complex environments such as power grids, warehouses or factories.

Thanks to data from IoT sensors, it will be possible to create increasingly realistic digital twins – of a factory, for example. Companies can then immerse themselves in this environment using Metaverse technologies such as virtual reality (VR) headsets. This leads to a better understanding and deeper knowledge of actual manufacturing processes without having to access them directly. In this way, product development or design, for example, can be improved.

Trend 3: Long-term archiving of data

With the steady growth of data, cold storage is gaining in importance. This involves the long-term archiving of data that is not actively used immediately and is only accessed when needed. This includes, for example, unstructured information such as video surveillance recordings, sensor data or images that offer great potential for future AI or analytics applications. Cold storage is a cost-effective yet increasingly common method of data storage. By 2025, around 80 percent of all digital data could be stored in archives.

Trend 4: DNA Storage

New solutions and innovations are needed for archiving over a long period of 100 years or more. DNA storage, the storage of digital data based on the molecular structure of DNA, is proving particularly promising. What sounds like science fiction is already feasible today and could have a major impact on the future of data storage. DNA molecules as carriers of storage data have a number of advantages, including very high storage density and low maintenance costs. Currently, the technology is still in the development phase. However, major advances in genetic engineering and sequencing in recent years, as well as falling costs for DNA synthesis, could soon pave the way for DNA storage on the market.

Trend 5: Intelligent storage strategy

In addition, technologies such as IoT, 5G and AI are establishing themselves on the market and generating data not only in the data center, but also at the network edge or on the end devices themselves. For example, for video surveillance in smart cities, in retail or for crime prevention. Due to the different application areas, the requirements for storage solutions also vary greatly. The form factors also differ significantly, depending on whether the device is a surveillance camera, a drone or a factory robot, for example. A crucial success factor for companies will therefore be to develop more intelligent storage strategies and thus align their data storage architecture with future needs.