13 game-changing trends ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌   ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌   ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌   ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌   ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌   ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌   ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌   ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌   ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ 

DELIVERING ACTIONABLE INSIGHTS ON THE DAY’S NEWS Subscribe Click to get this newsletter once a week Brought to you by Alex Panas, global leader of industries, & Axel Karlsson, global leader of functional practices and growth platforms Welcome to the latest edition of Only McKinsey Perspectives. We hope you find our insights useful. Let us know what you think at Alex_Panas@McKinsey.com and Axel_Karlsson@McKinsey.com. —Alex and Axel Transformative technologies In the news • Fit-for-purpose AI. With the proliferation of gen AI models on the market, how can business leaders choose the right one to meet their companies’ needs? As Fortune notes, since no single gen AI platform has emerged as a front-runner, experimentation can help. Users should test drive different gen AI models as they would a car, one computer science professor suggests. As users experiment with these tools, another expert recommends that they consider the complexity of their AI-powered tasks, how quickly they need their outputs delivered, and how much they may need to iterate on their prompts or requests. [Fortune] • AI agents in retail. IT executives are overwhelmingly interested in agentic AI, or AI systems that can perform actions autonomously, CIO reports. About eight in ten IT leaders say they intend to use agents within the next 18 months to augment their workforces and expand labor capacity, a recent Microsoft study found. Although the technology is still nascent, agentic AI’s influence is already being felt in multiple sectors. One retailer is experimenting with agentic AI to create digital content, provide personalized customer service, and automate tasks. [CIO] AI led the rest of this year’s technology trends in patent activity, web searches, and research publications, reflecting its rapid adoption across industries and disciplines. On McKinsey.com • One stand-out technology. Today’s executives must manage growing complexity, implement emerging tech solutions, and build trust in a world where the digital and physical realms are continuing to blur. McKinsey’s latest technology trends report, from Senior Partner Lareina Yee and her coauthors, analyzes 13 technology trends that could transform global business. The report finds that AI stands out as both a powerful technology wave in its own right and an amplifier of other technologies. • A rapidly growing trend. Beyond AI’s growing overall influence, one noteworthy development in this year’s report is agentic AI. This technology integrates the versatility of AI foundation models with autonomous functionality, effectively creating “virtual coworkers” that can independently plan and execute tasks. Although quantitative measures of interest and equity investments in agentic AI are relatively low, it’s among the year’s fastest-growing tech trends. Explore the McKinsey Technology Trends Outlook 2025 report and interactive charts to discover which technologies are attracting increased investment. Examine 13 top technologies —Edited by Belinda Yu, editor, Atlanta Was this forwarded to you? Sign up here. Or send us feedback—we’d love to hear from you. Follow our thinking McKinsey Insights - Get our latest thinking on your iPhone, iPad, or Android. Copyright © 2025 | McKinsey & Company, 3 World Trade Center, 175 Greenwich Street, New York, NY 10007