2026 in technology will be defined by the UK’s attempts to solve a structural weakness in the state’s intention to go “digital by default”. While innovation and research are traditionally one of the country’s strengths, we have been slow to adopt new technologies across firms and public services; treating technology as a discrete sector rather than a systemic productivity lever across all industries.

The Department for Science, Innovation and Technology has been explicit in framing national AI competitiveness as not merely an abstract research ambition, but as an economic necessity involving widespread commercial deployment. The DSIT 2025 Technology Adoption Review dismantles a persistent myth in UK innovation policy; that adoption is limited only by technical feasibility and a shortage of talent. Instead, it shows that adoption is equally constrained by management capability, operational planning, change leadership and “boring but valuable” infrastructure.

For businesses, this shift from strategy to diffusion is a double-edged sword. On the positive side, it opens space for firms that act as integrators, implementers and compliance enablers, rather than pure inventors. Demand will rise for capabilities that sit at the intersection of technology, regulation and operations: sector-specific AI, automation, data engineering, cyber security and assurance. However, diffusion strategies are fragile, and can fail if procurement is slow, public sector capacity is overstretched, or skills shortages persist despite investment.

On a local level, these national dynamics collide with a very practical constraint: digital inclusion. For businesses operating in Sussex, technology adoption strategies that ignore inclusion are not just ethically weak; they are commercially fragile, because adoption ceilings are reached faster in places with uneven digital access.

Five Trends to Watch:

  1. A focus on practical AI integration: Government’s AI Opportunities Action Plan positions AI as a tool for improving national prosperity and public services. Crucially, the plan implies that 2026’s central policy challenge has shifted from novel ideas to the practical mechanisms of delivery; access to compute, procurement reform, common standards, and the skills required to operate AI systems at scale, across complex organisations. For SMEs, this means that there will be a competitive advantage in enabling organisations to adopt technology effectively and safely.
  2. Emerging technology becoming “everybody’s business”: The DSIT review highlights that technical talent is only part of the picture – over 40% of firms cite management skills and non-technical workforce skills as barriers to AI adoption. There will be a huge market for AI change management, workflow design and capability building, and the best-positioned SMEs will be those who help their team to learn appropriate skills rather than generic training.
  3. Digital inclusion remains an economic imperative: Ofcom evidence shows that digital exclusion persists and is shaped by age and socio-economic status, with millions in the UK lacking basic digital skills and living offline. Given that adoption will plateau and inequalities deepen without action, there is growing demand for solutions, from accessible and assistive digital technologies, to community education.
  4. Demand for greater cyber resilience as AI risk increases: The exponential growth of AI will create both direct and indirect security risks. AI adoption increases data exposure, automation blast radius and supplier dependency – with heightened scrutiny from government, customers and insurers, security credentials may become a barrier to entry for SMEs lacking the skills or budget to do something about it. On the other hand, there will be a strong market for businesses trading in security-by-design, auditing, monitoring and incident response.
  5. Place-based tech competitiveness will be tested during Sussex’s governance transition: The 2026-28 devolution transition is likely to bring an emphasis on demonstrable value and transition-proof programmes, rather than experimental bets. Investment in data foundations, productivity tools and digital infrastructure should make it easier for practical, ROI-driven innovation to scale, but we can expect to see much longer decision cycles for high-commitment projects.

If you’re an innovator planning to embrace emerging technologies in 2026, we’d love to hear from you. Over the next few months we’ll be running Frontier Tech events to share groundbreaking innovations with local businesses, as well as the Scale-Up Brighton & Hove programme for high-growth companies.

Get in touch to find out more about how Sussex Innovation can support you on your journey, or click here to read our overview of the political and economic landscape impacting Sussex businesses.