The arguments here often focus on the negative, the loss of third-party cookie data that enables advertisers to identify their most desirable targets across a vast network. But this doesn't mean that it's time for marketers to panic or tear their hair out in frustration. Yes, walled gardens of data will undoubtedly grow but now is the time to look beyond what we'll lose in third-party data terms towards the possibilities and opportunities. Paramount among these is the growing role of AI-driven predictive analytics in helping organizations to enrich their audience data. By using predictive analysis, publishers can deliver enrichment that's transparent and cost-effective, leading to a far higher quality of data than is delivered by the black box third-party solution that brands have used previously to target audiences.

Investment in machine learning and artificial intelligence is ramping up across the healthcare industry as multiple players all look to tap into the benefits of deep neural networks and other forms of data-driven analysis. A number of forward-looking provider organizations made strides with AI in 2019, including Summa Health, a nonprofit health system in Northeast Ohio, and Sutter Health, a health system based in Sacramento, California, to name just two. Looking forward into 2020, administrative process improvements are expected to be an investment priority, including technologies to help automate business processes like administrative tasks or customer service. Many in the healthcare ecosystem already are on their way. An October Optum survey of 500 U.S. health industry leaders from hospitals, health plans, life sciences and employers, found 22% of respondents are in the late stages of AI strategy implementation.

One can argue that even the most innovative banking institutions are bureaucratic enough, and their slow decision-making causing banks to lose their premium over fintech applications, peer to peer lending marketplaces, and payment processors. At the same time, many expanded into the business of micro-lending. Banking services are no longer a monopoly of banks, and traditional financial institutions have to innovate in order to survive. The era of non-traditional financial services providers such as Amazon Payments, PayPal Payments and PayU, has risen. The launch of the Payment Services Directive II in Europe unlocks new dynamics for FinTech and Payment Services.