SINGAPORE – In a recent FutureScape report, IDC FutureScape: Worldwide Developer and DevOps 2024 Predictions — Asia/Pacific (Excluding Japan) Implications, IDC predicts that by 2028, GenAI-based tools will be capable of writing 70% of software tests decreasing the need for manual testing, resulting in improvements to test coverage, software usability and code quality.

According to the IDC Asia/Pacific Software Survey 2023, 48% of enterprises in the Asia/Pacific Excluding Japan (APEJ) region consider code review and testing as one of the important tasks that AI could most effectively help developers streamline. IDC research shows that the top areas of emphasis for utilizing AI/ML with testing include prioritizing tests, discovering the underlying cause of failed tests, creating test cases, and self-healing and testing procedures.

GenAI for test automation is becoming more popular amongst enterprises in the APEJ region. This involves using AI algorithms to generate and manage test scripts, allowing for more efficient and adaptable testing procedures.

IDC’s predictions highlight that the new wave of GenAI has the potential to shape the future of industries and drive advancements in the AI-driven world. AI will drive greater level of automation across software development, with developers and DevOps experts at the forefront of this new paradigm. Below are the other AI-driven predictions for the region:

• Refactoring: Gen AI will reinvent refactoring of legacy apps, with enterprises utilizing GenAI tools and cloud service provider platforms to initiate and execute 50% of code conversion and development tasks by 2027.

• Intelligent Apps: Trying to reduce content ingestion, by 2026 more than 50% of consumers will employ AI through mobile devices to discover, evaluate, and purchase most of the products and services they want.

• DevOps AI for Security: By 2026 45% of DevOps teams will use DevSecOps tools leveraging AI to identify security challenges in applications and supply chains.

• Dev Growth: By 2026, the maturation of GenAI technologies catalyzes accelerated growth of the world's developer population and causes the Asia/Pacific's developer population to grow 2x faster.

The Asia/Pacific region is thriving in technology, with advanced AI, innovative practices, and a growing developer community, enabling businesses to deliver intelligent, efficient, and secure applications for market needs in the near term.

The other trends that leaders must pay attention to are:

• Server WASM: By 2028, 20% of organizations will use server-side WASM within their application delivery chain, achieving key improvements in code reusability, security and time to market.

• Natural Lang Programming: By 2028, natural language becomes the most widely used programming language, with developers using it to create 30% of net new applications.

• Application Platform: By 2027, 50% of enterprises adopt a composable, internal-facing app platform empowering developers to source and personalize discovery of development-related products, services, and infrastructure.

• GPU Development : By 2027, 60% of enterprise devs will use GPUs and other specialty processors to enhance development for machine learning, AI, video editing, 3D modeling, simulations and digital twins.

• Shift Left VSM: By 2025, 65% of enterprises use integrated value stream management metrics within dev and deployment tools to map efforts to business outcomes and drive increased delivery coordination across the org.

"The Asia/Pacific market for generative AI assisted software development, including code generation, user interface, testing, and other use cases, is rapidly growing. China, India, and Japan are investing significantly on this to enhance software testing capabilities. The IT sector's robustness and quality assurance focus are driving market progress," says Dhiraj Badgujar, Senior Research Manager for Digital Innovations, xOps and Developer strategies, IDC Asia/Pacific.

Each year, IDC releases its top technology predictions at worldwide, regional and country levels through its IDC FutureScape Reports and gives a crystal ball view of what is ahead for the rapidly changing IT industry. These predictions have been used to shape the strategies and business objectives of technology leaders and business executives in the next 1-5 years. All the predictions stated here cover Asia/Pacific implications.