Management Perspectives

New tech applications emerging in the Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR) make it possible to leverage sustainable impact at scale, and at the same time, seize exciting market opportunities. Yet businesses have only tapped into a fraction of sustainable technology’s potential. In order for businesses to perpetuate worldwide progress while gaining a competitive advantage, they must adopt a purpose-driven approach to the way technologies are deployed, for the good of people and the planet. They must leverage ‘tech for good’.

Utilising tech for good to deliver the SDGs

Innovative companies in India are utilising tech for good to help deliver the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)—17 Goals, agreed upon by 193 countries in 2015, consisting of interlinked sustainability objectives designed as a blueprint for achieving a sustainable world by 2030. Three of the most exciting areas are Advanced Materials Tech, Extended Reality Tech (XR), and SpaceTech. Let us explore how Indian companies are developing this tech while also benefiting from huge market gains.

1. Advanced materials tech

Advanced materials are a new class of materials with enhanced properties that are continuously being developed. They are designed for superior performance. The drive towards sustainable business practices, large-scale manufacturing, and superior functionality is supported by advanced materials that prove fundamental to the 4IR economy. Innovative advanced material technologies are also expected to positively impact economic growth. The advanced materials market is forecast to reach $2.1 trillion by 2025, recording a 10 per cent CAGR globally from 2019 to 2025. Asia Pacific is expected to account for a majority of the advanced materials industry market share at 58 per cent by 2024.

CASE STUDY: Mynusco

Mynusco, meaning “subtract the harm caused on our ecology” formerly known as Spectalite, is a Bengaluru-based biomaterials company, established with the vision of assisting companies and consumers reduce their carbon footprint (SDG 13). The Indian bio compound startup assists the automotive, logistics, packaging, hospitality, and consumer goods industries with their sustainability objectives. Mynusco produces biodegradable and recyclable compounds based on agricultural waste and renewable resources. The startup’s products contribute to conserving natural deposits and forests, while also ensuring scalability and adaptability for existing manufacturing processes (SDG 15). Mahadev Chikkanna, founder and CEO, Mynusco says, “Biocomposites made from crop waste, for example, eliminate a harmful industrial age agricultural practice of stubble burning, yielding a material that matches plastic in durability and versatility, while at the same time being climatefriendly and eco-friendly. It benefits farmers, industry, and the community (SDGs 2,11).”

2.Extended reality tech (XR)

Computer-generated Extended Realities (XRs) are technological innovations that are poised to develop into the next computing platform. XRs fall into three categories: augmented reality (AR), virtual reality (VR), and mixed reality (MR). Real and virtual worlds interact in the MR experience, which combines elements of both AR and VR. The XR market was valued at $42.86 billion in 2021 and is expected to reach $465.26 billion in 2027, at a CAGR of 46.2 per cent during 2022 to 2027. Ambitious businesses eager to invest here can look forward to an improved design better suited for wearability and use in a work environment. The convergence of the real world and simulated content has allowed MR environments to emerge easily. The global MR market size is projected to reach $4.5 billion by 2026, from just $196 million in 2019. Entrepreneurs and innovators in isolated or marginalised communities need access to XR technologies. Economic and policy incentives as well as interventions can encourage individuals and businesses in disadvantaged locations to engage with the opportunities brought by XR.

CASE STUDY: Jio Tesseract

Jio Tesseract is India’s largest MR company. The tech leader is working towards enhancing and developing products that disrupt the global MR market. Its Developer Program allows creators to build for the XR hardware and reach India’s most extensive user base, including the 5G network launched by Jio (SDGs 9,10,17). With their built-in MR cloud for data computing that comes with the JioGlass Appstore, the company offers customers a comprehensive package. Businesses can publish and monetise their content on India’s biggest MR marketplace through this Appstore. Jio’s platform offers developers the opportunity to make tech companies’ content accessible to India’s largest user base, which includes 20 million households (SDG 11). Engaging approximately 16 million enterprises, Jio supports businesses by helping them improve productivity through immersive learning and remote collaboration (SDGs 4, 8). In India, the XR spending is expected to triple in size due to market penetration, from $2 billion in 2020 to surpassing an estimated $6.5 billion into 2023.

3.SpaceTech

Space technology is the application of engineering principles in the design, development, manufacturing, and operation of devices and systems for space travel and exploration. Space tech is currently used to explore other planets, study the universe, and provide communication and navigation services to support human activities. As the new space economy develops, it increasingly overlaps with sustainability in areas such as Earth observation, energy, and communications. These developing technologies from both public and private companies may soon become a new avenue for investors interested in pursuing both sustainability and investor returns. Space tech applications, such as satellite technology and space exploration, offer exciting potentials and new opportunities to assess and address climate change and sustainability on a global scale. In 2021, the global space market was valued at $388.5 billion and is expected to r each $540.75 billion by 2026. The sector expanded by an impressive 70 per cent between 2010 and 2020. The space economy is expected to grow at a CAGR of 6.84 per cent between 2022 and 2026.

CASE STUDY: Pixxel

Pixxel is a space data company based in Bengaluru, India, building a constellation of hyperspectral Earth imaging satellites and the analytical tools to mine insights from that data (SDG 9). The constellation is designed to provide global coverage every 24 hours. It detects, monitors, and predicts global phenomena. Hyperspectral imaging (HSI) is a technique that analyses a wide spectrum of light instead of just assigning primary colours (red, green, blue) to each pixel. The collected spectra are used to form an image in a way that each image pixel includes complete spectrum. Pixxel’s hyperspectral imaging satellites are uniquely designed to beam down 50 times more data than existing multi-spectral satellites. Through this technology, the satellites enable the detection and monitoring of groundlevel phenomena that had previously remained unseen. The company’s impactful solutions include:

• Agriculture: The tech covers large areas daily with up-to-date data across the entire season to monitor crop health, detect variations, and improve yields (SDGs 1,3).

• Environment: Pixxel’s HSI maps and monitors forest cover and deforestation (SDG 15). Regarding the environment, the satellites measure climate risks such as flooding and wildfires (SDG 13). By tracking natural capital utilisation, Pixxel assesses water resources and gives insights based on data for sustainability management (SDG 6).

• Energy: This unique technology is simple, affordable, and precise for energy surveying and extracting (SDG 7). Pixxel’s energy solutions monitor the state of vegetation stress near oil and gas pipelines, as well as quantify pollution stress levels due to pipeline leakages. In 2022, Pixxel raised $25 million to launch this constellation of satellites to monitor a wider view of the electromagnetic spectrum that can reveal all kinds of details not visible to ordinary cameras. “The quality of our data is the best—and a bonus is we’re doing it in a much more inexpensive way,” said Awais Ahmed, founder and CEO, Pixxel.

We have learned a lot since the former industrial revolutions. With the wisdom to learn from the past, we can create a future we all want. The next industrial revolution simply must be a global movement toward sustainable progress. Businesses hold the key and responsibility to repurpose technology to create a better future for all. And the hope of this bright and prosperous future will steer us along the right path and drive us to take positive action.