A look into the future

Part 1: Sharing Economy

The sharing economy has gained enormous popularity in recent years. It is also known as collaborative consumption or peer-to-peer renting. Companies like Airbnb, Uber and Zipcar allow consumers to share resources and services to save costs and promote sustainability.

But what does the future of the sharing economy look like? Below are some conceivable developments:

1. The sharing economy will become professionalised and regulated. In the past, some sharing companies have sometimes struggled to comply with laws and regulations. In the future, stricter regulations to ensure the safety and integrity of the sharing economy are likely.

2. The sharing economy will evolve from renting from one person to another to a platform to share all kinds of goods and services. There are already companies that specialise in sharing tools, appliances and even clothes. In the future, the sharing economy could expand to other areas, such as sharing transport and even real estate.

3. To improve its services, the sharing economy will rely on new technologies. For example, virtual reality technologies could be used to give potential renters a glimpse of the accommodation available, or artificial intelligence could be used to improve the process of matching offers and demands.

4. The sharing economy could become part of a wider circular economy where resources are reused and used sustainably. Instead of owning things and throwing them away, we could develop a culture of sharing and reusing in the future. This would reduce the burden on the environment and reduce consumption.

Overall, the future of the sharing economy shows great potential to help consumers save costs and use resources more efficiently. To ensure the safety and integrity of services, it is also likely that the sharing economy will become more professionalised and regulated. The sharing economy could use new technologies to improve its services and become part of a wider circular economy. Overall, the sharing economy is thus expected to become increasingly important in the future.