The 2020 pandemic changed every aspect of our lives, including our relationship with technology. Analysts predict many of the changes are here to stay.
Here are 14 stats and fun facts about how we used technology this year.
- Average daily screen time increased 500 percent, with many people now getting their news and entertainment on social media platforms like Tik Tok
- Sales of blue-light-blocking glasses tripled to $24 million
- Zoom logins jumped from 10 million to more than 300 million a day as most companies transitioned to remote work environments and video conferencing became more common than in-person meetings
- As students transitioned to distance learning, apps enabled everything from virtual field trips, online tutorials to gamification of homework
- Live-streaming platforms saw phenomenal growth – market leader Twitch streamed 1.65 billion hours of content, a 101 percent increased in hours watched
- The fitness industry went virtual – sales of The Mirror doubled, Peloton sales grew 66 percent and online fitness classes saw subscriptions soar
- Families bought homes they had never set foot in, thanks to enhanced virtual tours
- City dwellers dumped the subway for e-bikes; Lectric eBikes reported a 140 percent increase in sales
- Uber Eats’ business is now bigger than its ride-hailing service, with Q2 gross bookings of $6.96 billion
- After 34 states legalized on-demand alcohol delivery, Grubhub’s top search term for 2020 was ”wine”
- E-commerce saw a 129 percent year-over-year growth in North America with a 146 percent growth in all online retail orders
- The number of Amazon Prime memberships in the U.S. has now surpassed 50 percent of the population
- Contactless payments eased coronavirus fears – MasterCard saw a 40 percent increase in usage
- Americans watched 4 billion more hours of television in 2020 versus 2019, while e-book sales grew 39 percent
With artificial intelligence and virtual reality becoming mainstream, we will continue to use technology in new ways both in business and in our personal ways. This bodes well for tech workers, who will find new opportunities for career learning and advancement. The future is bright!
