Business team meeting and reviewing upcoming trends to plan for
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Recently, I was able to spend some time at the EY Strategic Growth Forum. It’s been one of the top business and entrepreneurship conferences I’ve been to. Years ago I was fortunate to be an Entrepreneur Of The Year recipient, and I’ve made it back each year. It’s been one of the best places I’ve been able to learn about the trends for the upcoming year.
This year was a special one because it provided insight into an issue rapidly impacting almost every industry. I can honestly tell you we haven’t had a more turbulent and harried time attempting to predict and adjust to the evolution of AI. While AI was and is a pressing concern, there are still numerous other trends that are extremely noteworthy in their own right.
The Forum brings together entrepreneurs and CEOs of high-growth companies alongside Fortune 1000 C-suites via the new Enterprise Reimagined Summit. Therefore, I was able to see growth trends across the spectrum from the fastest-growing companies like Maverick Power—growing recently at 9,000%—to brands like P&G and Caterpillar. Despite the variety of industries these businesses operate in, there were clear and consistent messages across them. Here are the five growth trends to pay attention to next year.
1. Generative AI, Automation And Visibility
It wasn’t too surprising that Astera Labs was the overall Entrepreneur Of The Year winner announced during the event, as they are a leader of AI connectivity solutions. It’s not a secret that AI pretty much has to be looked at within every part of your business, whether it be through full automation or support for human operations. One of the companies I advise, Relevance, has made it a focus to help companies with AI visibility, and I must say I’ve been stunned by the demand for these services.
It reminds me of the first year when the term “SEO” became popular and brands knew they had to be in Google’s good graces to survive. However, it’s not just Google/Gemini these days; it’s also now ChatGPT, Perplexity, Grok and others that brands have to get in front of, depending on the audience.
2. Innovation Doesn’t Just Have To Be In AI
One of the cooler companies I ran into was RPG Acoustics. They have invested in and obtained a patented way to build office furniture that absorbs sound and reduces reverberation in a room by 25%. Imagine all of the practical use cases for this product. If you really think about it, sound is one of the bigger problems with office productivity, and it often gets overlooked as an unavoidable annoyance. However, this “minor annoyance” has the potential for major problems.
I recently had a connection in a bad situation because the sound in his office echoed. That seemingly innocuous sound issue caused a notable incident when a new employee heard something out of context, and it created a massive HR misunderstanding.
In the past, these kinds of office sound issues would often remain unsolved or be addressed with the hassle of blowing additional insulation into walls, tacking up acoustic panels, or double/triple glass in office fronts. With inventions like sound-absorbing furniture built into standard interior design and preventing fallout from miscommunication and oversharing, the SONIQ sound-absorbing furniture will soon become one of the new options when offices look to increase employee productivity. It’s not AI, but it’s proof there are opportunities everywhere for identifying problems that haven’t been addressed yet.
3. There’s Significant Opportunity In Financing
There were quite a few attendees in financing, which shouldn’t come as a big surprise. However, niche financing was something that really stood out as an opportunity. Companies like Film Hedge have specialized in film financing for some time, but Film Hedge has taken their services further and also provides the tech platform to support financing.
It was fascinating to hear how industry-specific purchasing works. In the entertainment sector, many films or shows get ordered but aren’t paid for until complete. Therefore, there’s a clear need for a specialized process to connect investors with films needing financing. Banks are great for many financing options, but sometimes it’s far more streamlined and effective to engage niche lending companies. There are definitely opportunities to be had for financing focused on serving specific niches, both for investors and lenders.
4. The Value In Data Will Continue To Increase
Big data has been valuable for years now, and that’s not slowing down. Pegasus was a good example of an aerospace technology startup using a combination of hardware (icing detection sensors) and software (proprietary sensor data) to solve an old problem like situational awareness for pilots. Pegasus is working to have this valuable data shared between aircraft, turning big data into a crowdsourced, live map of the weather.
Whenever there is a solid technology that solves a problem and can collect data, it’s a win-win. If you have a product or tech option that is doing a specific service, try and identify ways data collection can happen in order to provide additional value to the customer.
5. Communities Will Be Vital In A World Of AI
As the world gets more automated with AI and technology, human connection may decrease. Organized communities and events that bring people together to share ideas, make connections and innovate will undoubtedly provide value. A variety of groups that bring leaders together with their forums were at the EY event, including organizations like YPO.
Other groups that foster connection and community building are narrower in scope and serve specific demographics. One notable example of this is Braintrust, which supports women entrepreneurs as they scale companies. No matter where this AI evolution goes, it’s important to find your communities and tribes that will help you navigate through the challenges.
The EY Entrepreneur Ecosystem Barometer 2025 fall pulse survey results showed that 54% of entrepreneurs feel their business outlook is more uncertain now compared to how they felt at the beginning of 2025. So more than half of entrepreneurs feel uncertain. That’s scary, but the good news is with uncertainty comes significant opportunities to stay up to date on the trends above and others that you identify; if you stay resilient, humble and focused you can identify the biggest opportunities and power through the uncertainty.
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