Global Scans · Industry, Innovation and Infrastructure · Weekly Summary

In September 2015, 193 world leaders agreed to 17 Global Goals for Sustainable Development. If these Goals are completed, it would mean an end to extreme poverty, inequality and climate change by 2030.
Goal 9: Build resilient infrastructure, promote inclusive and sustainable industrialization and foster innovation.

• [New] The Consumer Product Testing, Inspection and Certification (TIC) industry is anticipated to grow by a CAGR of 6.1% between 2026 and 2034. Facts and Factors
• [New] Over 60% of large industrial companies are expected to deploy digital twins by 2026 to enhance predictive maintenance and reduce downtime. Market Data Forecast
• [New] Imagine a world where startups do not get bogged down by technical hurdles-Coaio steps in with tailored AI solutions to automate IT infrastructure, making innovation smoother and more efficient. Coaio Limited
• [New] By 2030, electric vehicles are no longer forecast to be an emerging alternative powertrain, but rather the default direction of the global automotive industry, reshaping manufacturing, energy systems, and consumer expectations. heycar
• [New] In the UK, EVs are widely expected to approach majority share of new-car sales by 2030, driven by tightening zero-emission regulations, falling battery costs, and continued expansion of public charging infrastructure. heycar
• [New] As the world faces shifting geopolitical alignments, digital disruption, and urgent sustainability challenges, GWF 2026 will address a defining trinity: Sovereignty, Economy & Society-affirming geospatial's place as an anchor of resilience, equity, and innovation. Geospatial World Forum
• [New] In 2026, traceability will not be treated as one-off compliance exercise and will increasingly function as core infrastructure. Coolset
• [New] Certain metal-intensive industrial equipment and electrical grid equipment will pay 15% duties through 2027, to accelerate the massive industrial base buildout currently underway across the United States. EUROMETAL - The Voice of European Steel, Tubes and Meta
• [New] Ukraine is preparing for a shift in Russian aerial tactics, with intelligence indicating that future attacks will move beyond energy infrastructure. Spectrum News
• [New] Microsoft said it will invest 1.6 trillion yen, or $10 billion, in Japan between 2026 and 2029 to expand AI infrastructure and deepen cybersecurity cooperation with the Japanese government. Tech Startups - Tech News, Tech Trends & Startup Fundin
• [New] Oracle's bet is the AI infrastructure boom's biggest stress test: If AI demand scales as projected, Oracle's capex-heavy strategy could generate enormous returns. AI to ROI - By Ray Rike and Peter Buchanan
• [New] Dubai is positioning itself as a digital asset and data center hub, which could help Hut 8 source capital, partners, and potentially new sites for AI-ready compute or Bitcoin infrastructure closer to Middle East energy resources. Simply Wall St
• [New] Plug-in hybrid electric vehicles represent the fastest-growing segment at 16.3% CAGR from 2025 to 2032, serving as a transition technology where charging infrastructure is developing. Persistence Market Research
• [New] Per PwC, looking at which sectors will lead IPO activity in 2026, interest is strongest in AI infrastructure, where continued investment in chips, data centers, and power capacity is driving a robust pipeline. Akerman LLP
• [New] Big Tech's combined AI infrastructure spending is projected to exceed $700 billion in 2026, with Google, Microsoft, Amazon, and Meta each committing tens of billions to data center construction and GPU procurement. Tech Insider
• [New] By 2030 the most interesting Web3 infrastructure will be the layer that AI agents use to coordinate, pay each other, and verify their outputs. Future
• [New] The DePIN story by 2030 is simple: every major infrastructure vertical (wireless, compute, storage, energy, sensors) will have a decentralized alternative operating at meaningful scale. Future
• SMRs are emerging as a major industrial development opportunity for Europe, with the potential to mobilize value chains across engineering, advanced materials, robotics, and finance. Baker McKenzie
• In 2026 we will begin to see an inflection point where many MMC manufacturers break through the critical threshold of 70% capacity utilization, moving closer to the high output levels typical of established industrial manufacturing sectors. The Offsite Guide
• Emissions from semiconductor manufacturing could rise by roughly a third to 247 million metric tons of CO2 equivalent by 2030 as demand for high-bandwidth memory and related AI infrastructure accelerates. Tech Startups - Tech News, Tech Trends & Startup Fundin
• Government policies, such as the New South Wales Electricity Infrastructure Roadmap, are being implemented to ensure sufficient grid-scale infrastructure is in place before coal plant retirements, thereby reducing reliability and system security risk. AEMC
• 80% of warehouses will adopt robotics or automation by 2028, while the International Federation of Robotics reported 575,000 new industrial robots installed in 2025. Inclusion Cloud
• Remote work adoption increased from 16% of employees in 2019 to 35% in 2024, with expectations for hybrid arrangements exceeding 60% by 2027, directly creating infrastructure demand for digital signature platforms supporting asynchronous, geographically distributed transaction workflows. Persistence Market Research

Last updated: 05 April 2026