Predicting the future has always been a significant challenge, and this is still true in 2024. While this year has seen notable success in several markets key to the electronics industry, such as medical electronics, others, like the automotive industry, are still going through a tricky transition period.
Looking forward to 2025, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) has predicted global economic growth of 3.3% - compared to a global average of 3.2% in 2024. Despite the IMF predicting that inflation will hamper some markets and increase the level of risk, market analysts are also forecasting a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 8.9% for the electronics industry, so there is reason to be hopeful.
But regardless of whether we will face welcomed growth or new challenges in 2025, there are key technologies and business trends that will undoubtedly be a significant part of next year.
At present, well-established markets such as the consumer, industrial, and transport sectors continue to drive the electronics industry forward. However, there are also emerging technologies that are creating new business opportunities.
Artificial Intelligence
In recent years, AI and its subset, machine learning (ML), have revolutionised countless products within the consumer market. New applications that are based on complex large-language models (LLMs), such as generative AI, have captured public attention and changed the way people search for information. Meanwhile, edge AI and ML have helped to enhance home and personal electronics, increasing the accuracy of voice recognition services, and offering valuable insights into personal or environmental health.
Significant advancements have also taken place in industrial settings, as well as underlying electronic hardware components. Edge AI and ML functionality is finding its way into more and more embedded devices as manufacturers incorporate it into microprocessors (MPUs), system-on-chips (SoCs) and coprocessors.
Countless tangible AI and ML solutions, from small edge image recognition devices to large real-world mimicking digital twins, are now readily available, providing previously unimaginable functionality. In 2024, the total AI market has surpassed $184 billion, representing a substantial growth of nearly $50 billion from 2023. This trend is set to continue through 2025 and beyond with the market predicted to surpass $826 billion by 2030.
AI development kits are key to providing engineers with a simple gateway to final AI applications. With a wide range of system-on-modules (SoM), system-on-chips (SoC) and microcontrollers (MCUs), Mouser provides several options for engineers looking to build edge AI or ML deployments from the ground up
IoT
With its growing maturity and the emergence of innovative technologies that improve product functionality, IoT is continuing to spread further into more areas of society including new medical, industrial, and environmental applications. Historically, consumer IoT solutions have always struggled with interoperability. Now, a greater number of open-source solutions along with increased manufacturer collaboration are helping to remove IoT complexity in our homes and are making smart devices more accessible to consumers.
Simultaneously, the Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) continues to see success as new communication and edge AI/ML processing technologies help engineers to create systems where machines communicate seamlessly to optimise production and prevent downtime. In the medical world, new IoT-backed devices are helping to transform healthcare by facilitating remote patient monitoring both inside and beyond clinical settings, helping to improve patient diagnostics and enable personalised healthcare.
2025 is set to continue the growth of IoT, with Statista expecting the market to be worth around $445.3 billion, and by 2033 this number is projected to rise to more than $934 billion.
As the number of IoT devices rises, so does the attack surface for sophisticated cybercriminals to target. Therefore, it is critical to prioritise device security to mitigate cybersecurity risks. To support this, Mouser offers a diverse selection of hardware security products, such as the EdgeLock SE050 Plug & Trust Secure Element family from NXP Semiconductors, which provides an extensive feature set and certified security features to defend against IoT targeting cyberattacks.
Renewable technologies and EVs
Photovoltaic (PV) technology is currently enjoying a high level of market confidence, fuelled by a growing number of grid-scale solar farms as well as advancements in underlying components, such as solar panels, batteries, and inverters. These breakthroughs, which include supporting components such as silicon carbide (SiC) semiconductors, are playing a crucial role in elevating performance and reducing the costs of solar deployments.
In 2024, investment in solar PV technology is expected to increase to $500 billion, outpacing all other power generation sources combined. 2025 will probably be another strong year for the sector with annual global solar power additions projected to be 614 GW in 2025, up 13% from 544 GW in 2024.
Electric vehicles (EVs), another key market to global sustainability, continue to mature and evolve. Following in the wake of consumer EVs, a growing number of viable large electric commercial trucks have now entered the market, and in the first half of 2024, the sales of electric trucks are up 51.6% from the same period in 2023.
Despite limited growth expectations for the automotive industry, the International Energy Agency (IEA) predicts that EV sales could reach around 17 million units in 2024, which will have a positive impact on the electronics industry.
For both renewable energy and EVs, wide-bandgap semiconductors like SiC are helping to reduce system losses and permit higher operating voltages, elevating the efficiency of key power components like PV inverters and EV onboard chargers (OBCs). Mouser offers a diverse range of SiC products, many of which are optimised for fast switching and low energy losses, helping engineers to push their designs’ efficiency and reliability.
Investing, diversifying and building resilience
Investment and diversification are key business trends that have emerged in 2024 and will persist beyond 2025. Geopolitical tensions, trade embargoes, and rising manufacturing costs can all impact businesses without warning, so it’s vital to invest in measures that make you more resistant to sudden changes.
At Mouser, in order to ensure our resilience, we continually invest in inventory, working to diversify our product range by continually adding new manufacturers to our line card, providing our customers with a wide range of products to select from.
While out customers have access to more than 7.4 million searchable products we are always looking for new ways to make their jobs easier by diversifying what we provide as a distributor. Beyond being an e-commerce platform, our website serves as a comprehensive resource hub, providing valuable industry insight and detailed component information straight from the manufacturers, as well as events and webinars co-hosted with our leading component suppliers. Furthermore, we have built a number of Services and Tools designed to simplify the buying process, helping to optimise the procurement process.
Looking ahead
While it is impossible to predict what 2025 will look like, many within the electronics industry have taken steps in recent years to ensure that their businesses are more resistant to sudden change, ensuring they have reliable supply chains, diverse product offerings and efficient business practices.
At Mouser, we also remain committed to investing in our product line and enhancing our offerings to better support engineers, making their lives easier and providing the solutions necessary for their success in 2025 and beyond.
Author details: Mark Patrick, Director of Technical Content, EMEA, Mouser Electronics
