In 2021, the mobile app development industry has seen rapid growth. In 2020, one of the consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic had created a huge demand for mobile applications. The mobile app users for Zoom, Google’s Meet, Microsoft’s Team, and many others surpassed historical downloads.

Many users have started adopting mobile applications to ease their work and businesses. Since it created a huge demand in the market, many companies had to heavily invest in mobile app development to increase their capacity and bring new features.

Since we are in 2021 now, and the catastrophe - pandemic has not left its position, it’s completely justified for video conferencing, delivery, remote education, and online video streaming mobile apps to continue to dominate the market.

However, in this uncertain time, mobile app development trends in 2021 are controversial. But as a versatile mobile app agency, we have identified that AR - Augmented Reality mobile commerce will increase the level of global consumerism. Additionally, the 5G Internet standard is going to make it possible for users to choose insecure cloud services and instead of keeping a database inside their devices. Besides, Machine Learning and Artificial Intelligence technologies are likely to kill plenty of well-paid human professions.

As a matter of fact, smart devices and mobile applications are not going to decrease in the coming years. Only mobile app development trends might spread its new colors.

Additionally, mobile app development services is one of the hottest trends among all the industries irrespective of their size and verticals. Every organization is rushing towards this trend to capitalize on it.

So, if you are planning to develop an app for your business then there are certain parameters that you have to consider: screen size, software version, platform, hardware specifications, and configuration.

For example, if your app works perfectly fine on every device and has a good user experience, then the consumer is more likely to use the app instead of a laggy and unresponsive app. You will find numerous advantages of having a mobile app for your business.

Therefore, in this blog post, we are going to discuss the mobile app development trends that will dominate in 2021. Our expert team of mobile app developers from Estatic Infotech has done some research and come up with such mobile app trends.

Let’s go through each.

Table of Contents:

Top Mobile App Development Trends

1) Machine Learning and AI App Development

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As we can see in the above image that the usage of AI app development is increasing. And as per the report, the AI industry is expected to rise to $40 billion by 2021. Moreover, this year, the technology was finally spread on most market segments and became widely used by regular mobile users.

“ AI-driven apps such as Siri, Cortana, and Google Assistant now become extremely popular and reliable. They learn from you and perform various tasks using Internet of Things connections improving our quality of life quality.”

For the most part, AI has made itself manifest in the form of chatbots, while Siri (ML+AI) is now a very much part of mobile app innovations.

Moreover, this year, the mixture of AI and ML will not be just limited to Chatbots and Siri. Many organizations have started implementing these technologies to grow profitability.

As per IDC, more than 75% of workers who are using ERP solutions will now leverage the capabilities of AI to expand their work proficiency.

Many industries such as healthcare, agriculture, and banking are implementing the quality of services with AI.

Moreover, in many industries, marketers utilize AI-driven Machine Learning (ML) or just Deep Learning to analyze user behavior and improve product sales.

Future trends of AI & ML:

  • AI automated DevOps through AIOps
  • Automated machine learning
  • Interoperability among neural networks
  • AI-enabled chips

2) Mobile Commerce App Development

In the current scenario, the conversion rates from eCommerce mobile apps are up to 70% higher than mobile sites.

But do you know why?

Because mobile users are accustomed to mobile apps and find them more convenient than mobile sites to choose and purchase goods.

As per the survey by Google, 66% of m-commerce users purchase goods online at least once a week. As a matter of fact, 9 of 10 mobile users keep their cell phones nearby all the time. So, by sending them alerts and notifications, you can enhance your business.

The trends of Mobile commerce are diverse.

  • Most brands tend to develop an engaging mobile app for selling their products in one touch
  • Mobile commerce enhances IoT development
  • It encourages users to make orders from M-Commerce platforms integrated with AI and AR modules into their apps.

Future Trends in M-Commerce:

  • One-click ordering
  • Voice shopping
  • Omnichannel shopping

3) IoT App Integration

The rapid growth and increasing demand for integrating smart things in an app are resulting in the need for IoT app development. The rise in mobile technologies across various industries and categories has created endless possibilities for the Internet of Things.

IoT is a network of internet-connected devices that gather and exchange data; the demand for IoT integration is noticed in both iOS and so far.

The emerging IoT-enabled technology is leaving its footprint on healthcare, automobiles, smart homes, and others. It provides convenience and automated control to customers.

Well, smart home technology is a perfect example of the rise in IoT and mobile app development services.

As per Global Data, the Internet of Things market is expected to reach $318 billion in 2023, out of which, $143 billion will come from software like mobile apps.

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As you can see in the above graph, the IoT is poised for steady growth in the coming years with software leading the way.

As per Statista, the revenue from technology associated with the Internet of Things will eclipse 1.6 trillion by 2025.

Future Trends of IoT:

  • Smart homes & smart areas
  • Routers equipped with more securities
  • Self-driving cars
  • IoT in healthcare

4) Foldable Apps

Which was your first cell phone? Do you remember that? Well, that’s fine if you don’t.

Because mobile phones have clearly changed over the last decade. Touch screens with one or no buttons have taken over the market.

But from the last couple of years, touch screens with foldable devices have made their comeback in the market. Last year, Samsung had launched its foldable device named Samsung Galaxy Fold. Moreover, Huawei Mate X and Motorola Razr also became foldable devices.

These foldable devices fold to compress or expand the screen size based on user performance. For example, a user might make or attend a call with the device closed, but watch a video on a larger screen by unfolding the device.

Hence, a developer and content creators need to keep these factors in mind while developing or updating an app for foldable devices.

The main focus is that an app should seamlessly adjust its display as the screen folds or unfolds.

However, as per the survey by USA Today, 17% and 19% of iPhone and Android users respectively are excited about using a foldable design phone.

As per Statista, approximately 3.2 million foldable phones were shipped in 2019. That number is forecast to grow to 50.1 million units by 2022. That means, 2021 will be a big year for foldable, which means app developers must plan accordingly.

Surely, it will bring more complexity to mobile app development services. However, you can hire a mobile app developer to open many opportunities for your business.

5) Rise of Beacon Technology

Beacon technology is one of the emerging trends in mobile app development, leveraged by many sectors such as hotels, museums, healthcare, retail outlets, and others. Integrated location-based service applications like Apple’s iBeacons and Google Beacon have gained immense popularity among organizations.

This easy-to-use technology grabs the attention of users instantly that use Bluetooth to send signals. The major factor beacon technology should be in top mobile app development trends is its major benefit, i.e. proximity marketing.

Here’s how a beacon works:

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This technology gives a major scope to personalized app marketing and is expected to reach $56.6 billion by 2026, considering one of the major mobile app trends.

Future trends for beacon technology:

  • Mobile payments beacons
  • AI-enabled chips
  • Automated machine learning
  • Beacon treasure hunting

6) Cloud-integrated Mobile Apps

Cloud technology plays an important role in for businesses. Cloud integration with mobile apps will make your app function seamlessly across multiple platforms. This technology also helps mobile apps store a huge amount of data and efficiently carry out complex tasks.

At the end of 2020, 83% of enterprise workloads will be cloud-based. So, if you are planning to develop an app for your business, you need to consider cloud computing technology.

Cloud computing trends:

  • Quantum computing
  • Hybrid cloud solutions
  • Evolution of cloud services and solutions

7) Rise of Chatbots

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Due to the interactive conversational experience, Chatbot deployment has become one of the most important mobile app development trends in 2021. Chatbots are applications that simulate human interaction to help users meet their requirements.

There are many chatbots available in the market. Some are in the form of virtual assistants such as Siri, Alexa, Google Assistant, and Bixby. Also, you will find other types of chatbots on websites and web apps.

The integration of chatbots in your mobile app can help your business grow and retain customers. It also helps users to respond promptly to their real-time problems.

As per the report by Business Insider, the global chatbot market is increasing by 24% every year and will reach $9.4 billion by 2024 at a Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of 29%.

In a nutshell, AI-driven technology, chatbots in mobile apps is one crucial mobile app development trend that will dominate2020.

8) Instant Apps

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Well, this is one of the important trends that nobody talks about.

A few years back, Android Instant Apps was launched and we will see a rise in usage in 2021.

Android Studio allows Android developers to develop instant app experiences to improve their app discovery. Here, users can utilize the app without being installed on their devices. What they have to do is to click on the “Try Now” button.

However, instant apps come up with size restrictions. So, it will not be a full version of the app, I suppose. But these limitations could be changed in the coming time.

It’s a great way to allow users to experience an app without downloading it.

Hollar, a mobile commerce app, was able to increase conversions by 20% by launching an instant app. Moreover, 30% of their entire traffic from Android phones comes from the instant app.

So, if you are planning to develop an Android app in 2021, you need to have an instant version as well.

9) Accelerated Mobile Pages

Nowadays, every user prefers mobile browsing. However, it’s fast, responsive, and user-friendly.

Accelerated Mobile Pages (AMPs) helps you deliver smoother and faster performance. Besides that, it improves user engagement and increases user traffic.

AMP is among the ever-growing mobile app development trends that implement a strategy to improve visibility in search results. AMP websites load four times faster than normal sites.

Therefore, Google encourages websites and drives traffic to AMPs. Also, it helps to improve SEO as well as user engagement, making it among the inevitable mobile app development trends in 2021.

10) Blockchain Development

The blockchain mobile app development trend is gaining the attention of many users, industries including banks, finance, insurance, health, and others. Blockchain integration has boosted many organizations.

Many blockchain technology trends such as BAAS (blockchain-as-a-services), asset tokenization, trading on a cryptocurrency exchange, and more will help you in mobile app development.

Future Applications of Blockchain:

  • Blockchain in Anti-piracy
  • Secure public elections
  • Transparent betting
  • Swarm Robotics
  • Asset Tokenization
  • Blockchain as service (BaaS)

Also Read: Future of Mobile App Development – Guide for 2024 & Beyond

Conclusion

The mobile app development trends keep on changing and looking at the growing demand, the competition among the app development industry will be more intense than ever in 2021.

If you own a mobile app that is not updated with the latest trends, then your business will not be able to survive anymore. It’s not necessary to implement all the above-mentioned trends in your app development, but you should be aware of which trend might help you grow your business. You must have a general understanding of how marketing is shifting so you can adapt accordingly. Moreover, you can hire mobile app developers from an experienced team who can help you stay aligned with the latest trends.

So, based on my research, the top technology trends will keep you ahead and gain an edge in your space in 2021.

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