A new world of opportunities to extract competitive advantage awaits businesses at the intersection of new digital technologies. Businesses could gain from “intelligence augmentation” by processing high-volume data from multiple sources for real-time business insights. They could also provide “immersive experiences” by gleaning consumer preferences through gestures, touch and specialized eyewear. Further along are “smart systems,” ubiquitous, “always-on” monitoring enterprises, and next-generation nano materials and digital substitutes. Enabling these would be enhanced crowd-sourced “open-execution” models to develop the desired technologies.

Anurag Srivastava, chief technology officer at Wipro Limited, and Shawndra Hill, Wharton professor of operations and information management, explain how businesses could calibrate and monetize their investments at that digital intersection.