Hidden Potential: Finding Value in Underappreciated Technologies
Headlining technologies get everyone talking, but what about the other cool tech that’s flying under the radar?
There are tons of amazing innovations happening that aren’t getting the attention they deserve.
At Techronicler, we wanted to uncover those hidden gems, so we asked the people who know best: tech leaders and executives, pioneering minds from different industries, and people who are just obsessed with technology.
We asked them: What’s the one underappreciated technology that you think deserves way more investment?
This post is a collection of their picks – and their reasons why.
Get ready to discover some tech that might not have made headlines yet, but definitely should!
Read on!
Machine Learning in Biogas Production
I believe that anaerobic digestion is still an underappreciated technology: the whole idea, which has been applied for decades, consists in letting bacteria digest organic matter to produce gas, which can then be used to produce heat, electric or biofuels.
Bio-chemical reactions are very complex, partially modeled and operations greatly rely on empirical cooking recipes.
And this is why technology, in particular machine learning, is a fantastic tool to improve the efficiency of biogas production from organic waste.
More investment in this field can only be beneficial to fossil energy replacement!
Philippe Breuils
Co-founder of Green Data Science
Solar Battery Tech
I’ve been working in the solar industry for years, and I can tell you firsthand: if we want to improve our energy independence for homes and businesses, we need to seriously beef up our battery tech.
Solar panels? They’re already getting cheaper and more efficient by the day. But where we’re dragging our feet is in storage solutions.
Right now, we lean heavily on lithium-ion batteries. They’re good, but let’s be honest—they’re expensive and they don’t last very long.
What if we looked into something like solid-state batteries or sodium-ion technology? And I’m not just talking on a small scale here; imagine the leap in efficiency and cost reduction if we could roll these out on a large scale.
Investing in advanced solar storage isn’t just smart; it’s really important. It means less reliance on dirty fossil fuels and more stability for our power grids.
Let’s face it, the future of our energy hinges on how well we can store what our sun generously gives us every day. Let’s not waste it.
Robert Roth
CEO and Co-Founder of Quote For Solar
Brain Training for the Masses
We are all living longer, but are we living better into our old age?
Brain training technology merits greater attention and investment due to its potential to significantly enhance cognitive health. Brain training is crucial for maintaining and enhancing cognitive functions like memory, attention, and problem-solving skills, all of which are essential for personal and professional success.
It can delay cognitive decline, thus alleviating the burden on healthcare systems and improving the quality of life for aging populations.
Advances in miniaturization, battery technology and data interpretation have made brain training accessible to a broader swath of the population.
In all, the technology produces a more mentally agile and resilient society, fosters mental sharpness and resilience, and significantly contributes to our enjoyment of life.
Nick White
Head of Marketing,Thinkie Inc
Data Gathering and Management
their companies to explore even though the real battle lies in data management.
It’s always the trick, without good data management, the ability to pull data on your customers and operations easily, there will be no analytics and even less so AI.
What I mean is that most companies are not ready for that, not organised to gather data in the right way to even remotely pull together analytics rapidly and recurrently.
Tristan Pelloux
Founder, StrategWhy
Supply Chain Security
Hackers don’t always break in through the front door—they sneak in through the supply chain. That’s the hidden weak spot in cybersecurity, and it’s not getting enough attention.
As a former Chief Technology Officer for the Defense Intelligence Agency, I saw how cyber threats could cripple national security. I wrote The Cyber Threat to warn businesses and governments about dangers they often overlook. One of the biggest? Weaknesses in the technology supply chain.
Every company relies on software, hardware, and cloud services from different vendors. If just one of those has a security flaw, hackers can slip in and cause chaos. Yet, businesses focus mostly on securing their own networks while ignoring the tools and vendors they rely on.
We need stronger checks, AI-powered security scans, and constant monitoring to protect supply chains. Otherwise, we’re just locking the doors while leaving the windows wide open
Advanced Detection and Defense Solutions
Deepfakes are a critical but underappreciated threat that demands greater attention and investment. Cybercriminals are creating realistic fake audio, video, and text to promote fraud, identity theft, and disinformation by leveraging generative AI.
With 61% of organizations reporting increases in deepfake attacks and over 50,000 identity fraud attempts projected in 2025, industries like finance, e-commerce, and healthcare are particularly at risk.
Scammers are impersonating executives to authorize fraudulent transactions, manipulating medical records for fraud, and spreading falsified news to influence public opinion or destabilize markets. These threats cost businesses billions in losses annually.
While AI has enabled these attacks, it also offers the foundation for advanced detection and defense solutions. Investment in robust deepfake detection tools such as those we offer at Attestiv as well as multi-layered cybersecurity strategies is essential to mitigate the growing risks posed by this emerging technology.
Nicos Vekiarides
Chief Executive Officer & Co-Founder, Attestiv
AI Tutoring in Education
While generative AI is capturing headlines, AI tutoring and instruction is an underappreciated frontier with the potential to transform learning far beyond what we’re seeing now.
Tools such as Khan Academy’s GPT-4-powered learning assistant, Squirrel AI’s adaptive solutions, and Riiid’s data-driven tutoring systems (already used in several countries), illustrate how lessons can be tailored to each student’s needs, offering feedback and evaluation that purportedly outperform conventional methods.
As these approaches evolve and proliferate, they will likely become integral to higher education, supplementing traditional faculty instruction and dramatically improving online education in particular.
And while I think these tools will be most effectively and ethically used in collaboration with faculty instructors, I fear there will be an effort to broadly replace some types of human instruction entirely with AI, particularly if techniques are developed that demonstrate improved outcomes.
The technology has a revolutionary potential in education, for better or worse, and it deserves more critical attention.
Gareth Barkin
Dean of Operations and Technology, University of Puget Sound
AI Meeting Assistants
We are loving Circleback.ai and Fathom.video for AI meeting note takers. Our team can’t decide which is better, so it’s worth testing both and see which meeting notes prove most useful.
What I love about Circleback.ai is its ability to take action items and automatically pipe them into our project management system to take action on.
This has been saving us tons of time and resources.
I’m able to keep our PM team off calls because they receive the recaps and action items automatically, freeing up at least 30% more of their time to manage projects.
Matt Lee
Managing Director, Strategy Collective
Unified Business Operating Systems
Businesses face challenges with fragmented tools, especially SMEs, hindering growth and collaboration. Unified business operating systems address this by integrating finance, sales, marketing, HR, and operations into a single environment.
This breaks down silos and improves communication, empowering teams to work more effectively.
AI-driven insights offer predictive analytics for smarter strategic decisions, while automation streamlines mundane tasks, freeing employees for impactful work.
Modular design enables scalability, adding functionalities as businesses grow, offering a future-proof investment.
By facilitating efficiency and real-time collaboration, these systems enable businesses to innovate, scale, and respond rapidly to market changes.
They are essential for businesses seeking a competitive edge in today’s fast-paced and dynamic marketplace, providing the agility to thrive.
Diane Roberts
Founder, XPinnovates
Markup Languages
Markup languages, like AsciiDoc, are an underrated gem in tech that deserve more attention.
They let you write structured, clear, and consistent content without the headaches of traditional word processors—no more wrestling with random image resizing or formatting glitches.
The real magic? You can create multiple outputs—HTML, PDF, ePub, and more—all from one master file.
Think of it like a LEGO set: all your content is in one box, and you just build what you need, when you need it.
Need to tweak a document for different audiences? No problem—just include or exclude sections during export.
This approach simplifies maintaining and updating information, making it a dream for anyone working with complex documentation or long-form content.
Markup languages streamline your workflow and save time, and yet, they don’t get the love they deserve.
It’s time we gave them the spotlight.
Marvin Blome
Marketing Manager, ProjectWizards
On behalf of the Techronicler community of readers, we thank these leaders and experts for taking the time to share valuable insights that stem from years of experience and in-depth expertise in their respective niches.
If you wish to showcase your experience and expertise, participate in industry-leading discussions, and add visibility and impact to your personal brand and business, get in touch with the Techronicler team to feature in our fast-growing publication.
