Coronavirus and Software Development: Chance to Shine

The recent outbreak of the Coronavirus (COVID-19) has a lot of disruptions in the business world and the IT sector is no exception. However, even though there are difficult working conditions nowadays caused by the overall fear of the virus, this is an opportunity for technology and software development in particular to shine. First, let’s take a look at how IT companies are coping with the pandemic and then learn about the new technology being developed to combat the spread of the Coronavirus.

IT companies are taking all of the safety measures necessary to help keep their employees safe and the public at large. This starts with shifting all business processes to remote work and virtual meetings instead of face-to-face interactions. Companies that do not usually allow working from home are having a difficult time making the transition, but it is the only way to maintain business operations during this difficult time.

Fortunately, a lot of IT companies choose to outsource a lot of their software development, which means that their process will not be as affected. Also, it is the responsibility of the outsourcing company to get everybody on the same page and give all employees everything they need to stay productive while working remotely. This frees up a lot of time and resources for the client and they can focus on their core business functions.

Having said this, everything that is going on with remote work and teleconferences is done just to maintain the status quo. In other words, companies are putting off signing any new agreements or adding new features to their products until the future becomes a little more clear and we know when the pandemic will end. This is reasonable when we consider the economic impact the virus is having with the Dow Jones and other markets around the world seeing record selloffs.

For starters, a lot of social media companies are using their platform to fight the spread of misinformation. For example, Twitter has a prompt in place that will guide users searching for Coronavirus to accurate information from credible media companies. Google is also doing a lot to prevent phishing attacks, conspiracy theories, and many other threats. Facebook is providing researchers with anonymous data in order to assist doctors to track the spread of Coronavirus and help them provide fast responses to the areas that have been affected the most.

New AI-powered technologies are also being developed to help identify cases of the Coronavirus. This has really made a huge impact in terms of providing quick access to screenings and testing in areas where there might be a lot of infected people. Such technology is powered by the cloud and top companies in the cloud computing industry, AWS and Azure have already invested millions of dollars of their own money to help assist doctors and IR companies developing state-of-the-art technology. This is also helping find a cure for the Coronavirus because a lot of patent data needs to be stored and analyzed. The latest technology in the race for the cure is IBM’s Summit supercomputer.

One of the most interesting ways technologies are being used is in China, where they are using self-driving cars and robots to deliver medicine and other supplies to hard-hit areas. We usually tend to think of self-driving cars as the transportation of the future, this is an interesting use for autonomous vehicles since this technology can help save lives.

One of the positive takeaways from the impact of the Coronavirus is that we are seeing the entire world come together and help each other during a time of crisis. This includes sharing information, technology and taking preventive measures to make sure neighboring states do not become even more affected.

Technology is also playing a key role in helping us keep some level of normality in a time of crisis and allowing us all to stay connected. Even though the development of new software is not as active as it was before the outbreak, we are seeing some interesting new developments in healthcare, which will continue to rely heavily on software development to combat the Coronavirus and other healthcare uses as well.

Find out also the latest IT solutions in healthcare to improve the collaboration process.