Editor’s note: This article was first published in October 2022. The forecasts it cites, including the UBS space-travel estimates and nanosatellite market figures for 2030, along with the Strava, Statista and 23andMe data, are from 2022. 23andMe filed for bankruptcy in 2025 and was sold.
The world is changing at a dizzying pace, so it’s time to take another look at where we are heading, where the future of business is heading, and which industries will create jobs over the coming decades. That’s why we have gathered the industries and businesses that are about to take off. Others are already taking off in 2022, and others have come a long way already but are expected to keep growing in the future.
These are the businesses and industries of the future that will probably end up generating a large number of jobs and new ventures.
The businesses of the future
1. Charging stations for electric vehicles
Although today the electric car is not a smart buy and many of the benefits attributed to it are simply a fallacy, the truth is that governments are trying to introduce them at any cost. In addition to petrol stations being converted into electric charging stations, some entrepreneurs are already preparing to be pioneers in this business, and have come up with the idea of charging stations that can charge up to eight vehicles at the same time, with the energy coming from wind turbines.
2. Space tourism
Space tourism is close to becoming a reality. According to a UBS report, by 2030 space travel is expected to be a real business worth around 20 billion dollars, while space tourism could generate around 3 billion that same year. By 2050 we could be talking about a profitable, fast-growing industry, so getting involved in this sector in some way could bring in substantial income.
3. Asteroid mining
As our planet’s resources run out, the demand for and value of rare minerals could rise to levels never seen before. Asteroid mining is simply the exploitation of the materials available on asteroids and other planets. It won’t only be minerals useful on our planet that can be extracted. It may well become a highly speculative market.
4. Growing body parts and regenerating tissue
It may sound like science fiction, but we could be very close to achieving it. A company based in Connecticut already has advanced research under way to heal tears without removing any connective tissue, instead placing a degradable compound at the site and letting stem cells do all the healing.
Degradable polymers and stem cells are used to engineer tissue, and the possibilities of these advances are enormous. The next step is to use them to find solutions to many fatal diseases, including cancer.
5. The pet industry
People are spending more and more money on their pets, so the market in this niche is huge. And the good thing about this sector is that any entrepreneur can get into it: pet food, accessories, pet daycare, pet grooming, and so on. We already shared 7 business ideas related to pets.
The pet industry is expected to keep growing, since both couples and single people are choosing to get a pet, and they don’t mind spending money on them.
For this and other reasons, veterinary medicine will be one of the careers with the most opportunities for entrepreneurs who want to enter the pet sector.
6. Information technology
Information technology, or computer engineering, is an industry that has been booming for years, and everything suggests it will keep growing in the future. The integration of platforms driven by software technology has become the centre of all business and economic activity. Whether we’re talking about finance, health or commerce, there are business opportunities for those working in this industry.
See also: The most profitable businesses of 2022
7. Fitness technology
Fitness moves billions every year in many different ways, from headphones with innovative designs to smartwatches with multiple functions, not to mention mobile apps. Strava is one of the companies that has managed to take advantage of the fitness technology industry: with more than 1 million subscribers, it offers free mobile apps and online web support, connecting millions of athletes around the world.
According to a Statista study, fitness apps related to exercise and diet are among the most popular in Apple’s App Store, already accounting for more than 3.30% of the app market. There is a future in fitness-related business ideas.
8. Marriage counselling and mental health care
It’s common knowledge that mental health is practically more important than physical health, since poor mental health has serious consequences for physical health. Depression and anxiety are the new pandemics of the future: at a time when we talk so much about technology, and people are more connected than ever, they also feel lonelier than ever. That’s why therapists and psychologists specialising in this field will be part of an industry that is as profitable as it is necessary.
As for marriage, it has never been as hard to keep a marriage together as it is today, when marriage breakdown is breaking every imaginable record. And this is where expert advice really is needed.
9. Online therapy
This type of business boomed thanks to the pandemic, when people needed psychological help and could only get it online. Since the pandemic, the industry of online therapies of all kinds has kept growing.
It can’t be ruled out that by 2030 more than 40% of psychological consultations and coaching sessions will take place online through video chat. In fact, even initial medical appointments may be held by video call. BetterHelp is one of the companies that has managed to take advantage of this business trend, and it is transforming the way people connect with all kinds of professionals.
10. Sustainable and smart homes
This means adapting homes to be energy self-sufficient, as well as the many applications of home automation. Think of home automation, robotics, mobile apps, technology and housing, and you’ll probably find a business opportunity, especially if it also saves consumers money. Any venture built on the idea of using technology for sustainability and turning a house into a smart home will grow over the coming years.
11. Nanosatellites
Nanosatellites are a technology trend that can obtain data at a fraction of the usual cost. The nanosatellite market is expected to exceed 25 billion dollars by 2030. This growth will be driven by the need for satellite imagery among non-governmental organisations, the appeal of Earth observation applications, and many other uses.
12. Nanotechnology
This is the new technology based on handling microscopic materials, which makes it possible to work with and manipulate molecular structures and their atoms. Nanotechnology is driving major innovations in areas such as carbon nanotubes, water desalination using graphene and 3D printing with claytronics, as well as great advances in medicine and surgery and new industries that will change a large number of products.
13. 3D printing
Although 3D printing is now very widespread, it is still one of the business concepts with the most potential. As the technology advances and printers keep getting better, experts believe that instead of buying a product in a shop, we will soon be able to print it on a 3D printer at an affordable price. Nor can we rule out that the future of construction will involve structures built by giant 3D printing machines. In fact, it has already been done.
In medicine, 3D printing is already being used to make parts that are later used in surgery.
See also: 8 business ideas that don’t exist yet and that you could start
14. Greenhouse gas auditing
Concern for the environment is giving this market niche real potential. It involves monitoring the pollution caused by companies and organisations, including their factories and other emissions into the environment.
15. Online education
Education is already changing. The wide possibilities the internet offers for education also go hand in hand with the large sums of money that can be made in this field. Business ideas related to online education include e-teaching and e-tutoring, online courses and portals that offer courses and lessons to their subscribers, but also e-universities, e-training and the new generations of ways of acquiring information in the future.
By 2030, online education will have become very important, although we can already see that the sector is booming.
Companies such as Coursera, Udemy, Udacity, Codecademy and Skillshare, and non-profit organisations such as Khan Academy and edX, are allowing anyone in the world with a cloud connection to receive high-quality education from Harvard, Stanford or even MIT! Broadband internet access will reach places that can’t get it now.
16. Privacy protection services
The spread of technology-driven devices and internet use is at its highest level today. This has increased the exposure of our personal and confidential data, such as photos, credit and debit card numbers, account numbers, personal tastes and the products we prefer, the people we are seeing, and other personal and intimate information.
In many places and areas of life, we can see that people would like to protect this data not only from hackers trying to get hold of it, but also from companies that track our personal information for their own business.
17. Robotics and mechanics
Today we can see robots being used in many areas of our lives: to transport things, to read and even to operate certain machines. But right now they can’t wash the dishes or do the housework. In the future there will be great demand for robots that can perform multiple functions and take on even the smallest jobs for humanity.
So the companies investing in AI (artificial intelligence) and robotics to help humanity achieve what it otherwise couldn’t, and to save time, effort and energy in delivering certain value-added services, would be earning the highest possible profits. It may sound like science fiction, but the truth is that this future is closer than we think.
See also: 11 original, untapped business ideas
18. Organic food
Food has become extremely cheap in recent years, but its quality has deteriorated as farming has become more intensive, focusing on quantity rather than quality. As a result, according to a growing number of business analysts, nutritious, high-quality organic food will be one of the essential and profitable business concepts of the future.
People are increasingly aware of what they eat and value the quality of their food. As a result, healthy natural foods have become more popular in recent years: food shops selling healthy products and organic fast food, and organic restaurants.
19. Plastic recycling
Imagine a device that turns all plastic waste into ready-to-use plastic parts that can be made on 3D printers. Think of a system that takes in used plastic and gives you new, clean carrier bags or plastic cutlery in return. Examples like these only scratch the surface of the capabilities and potential of plastic recycling. Recycled plastic can be a valuable resource. Plastic is a free raw material waiting to be collected, processed and sold at a profit, especially considering the amount of “free” plastic now in the oceans. This kind of recycling holds great business opportunities.
20. Home care and care for the elderly
As the population ages, there is a growing need for this type of service. Home care for older people, food delivery, cooking and catering, physical activity and rehabilitation with a trainer or physiotherapist, and help and technical assistance with everyday concerns are some examples of specialised businesses with great potential.
21. Jet packs and other flying gear
Humans have always wanted to fly, and not just in aeroplanes. Several companies now sell jet packs and other kinds of flying equipment. Manufacturing and supplying jet packs, renting them out, flying schools and jet pack flying sports all create a business opportunity with a future.
22. Cybersecurity providers
There is growing demand for cybersecurity as more money, business, work and information is sent over the internet. Internet crime is often so sophisticated that people need professional help to protect themselves. Protecting private data, removing private data from various websites, and protecting databases, computers, smartphones, IT systems and internet-connected apps and devices are examples of cybersecurity services and businesses.
23. Water desalination
Recent research at MIT has used graphene to create a highly energy-efficient way of removing salt from water. As the human population grows (it is estimated to reach 9.5 billion people by 2050), this would ensure access to drinking water for a large part of the planet that currently lacks it.
24. Quantum computing
In 2013, Google bought a D-Wave II quantum computer and, together with NASA, created the Quantum Artificial Research Center (QUAIL). Unlike binary computers, in which bits must be either in state 1 or in state 0, quantum computers use superposition to allow every state between 0 and 1, which makes much faster processing possible. Research on quantum particles will enormously increase the speed of computers, which will also speed up what researchers can do.
25. Personalised medicine and gene sequencing
Since the completion of the Human Genome Project and the full sequencing of human DNA, companies such as 23andMe have made progress in the field of personal genetic sequencing. Now, for only 99 dollars, you can have your DNA partially sequenced, giving you a better understanding of your ancestry and your risk of disease.
26. Coworking spaces
Since it is less and less necessary to have an office, because almost everything is done online, demand for coworking centres will rise. They allow different companies and entrepreneurs to share costs within the same business space, making it cheaper than having your own office.
See also: 37 businesses with low investment and high returns
Featured image: NASA, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons.
