The digital waves that brought us to where we are today
There are three major 'waves' behind us that have completely changed the way we work.
The Internet Wave (1996)
The breakthrough of the Internet in 1996 marked a revolutionary period. We went online en masse and more and more websites and web shops were launched. The Internet democratized information and connected people and organizations around the world in an unprecedented way. Some companies that got in early, like Amazon and eBay, grew into giants. But there were also huge bubbles (World Online, for example) that fell apart within a few years.
Ultimately, the internet laid the foundation for the digital economy as we know it today, paving the way for all the waves to follow.
The mobile & always online wave (2007)
With the introduction of smartphones, such as the first iPhone, in 2007, a new wave began. Many people were skeptical: “It's like you're ever going to do business on such a small screen. And even without physical tests!” That skepticism turned out to be unjustified. Nowadays, the smartphone has become an integral part of our existence. This, together with the improvement of the digital infrastructure, ensured that we can be online anytime, anywhere. And that's how the basis for the cloud revolution that followed was also created.
The cloud wave (2015)
The cloud revolutionized the digital world. By moving computing power and storage to centralized data centers, technology suddenly became scalable and flexible. The cloud democratized advanced technologies such as computing power, storage, streaming, big data analysis, and machine learning — techniques that were previously exclusive to tech giants.
The cloud has become the foundation for almost all modern software and provided the essential ingredients for successful SaaS companies. And in doing so, it also laid the foundation for the wave we are in today: the era of AI agents.
The most impactful digital wave ever: the AI agent wave (2025)
The previous waves completely changed our world in a short time. But I am convinced that this wave will have even more impact. In an even shorter time. AI agents are already changing various organizations and business processes, but are going to change the world as we know it even more.
What makes this technology so powerful?
We all have some experience with AI tools like ChatGPT. But AI agents go one step further. AI agents are intelligent software programs that combine the power of large language models with the ability to take action in the digital world. They can independently carry out tasks, make decisions and learn from experiences in an autonomous way. Proactively, without human intervention.
And they can also collaborate with other agents. So you can create teams of multiple, specialized agents who work together on complex challenges.
For example, let's say an AI agent sees that your customer service department has a lot of questions about your pricing model. The agent concludes: “The pricing model needs to be simpler. I'm going to create a new pricing model myself, have it checked by an agent who specializes in market research and competition analysis, and present the result to the marketing manager, including the business case in various scenarios.”
The impact of AI agents on your business is enormous. AI agents are fundamentally changing how we work, do business and innovate. Companies that effectively integrate AI agents will see their productivity, effectiveness, and distinctiveness increase exponentially, while reducing operational costs.
And adoption is happening at an unprecedented rate. In previous waves, it took years for the new technology to become mainstream. For example, there were about 7 years between the first websites and Google's breakthrough. But with AI, that's different. Within a year of introducing ChatGPT, we are already seeing a huge impact on how companies work. That means you can't “wait and see how it goes”. You have to get to work, and fast.
At Blis Digital, we're now asking ourselves tough questions
For 20 years, we have been helping organizations with digital innovation. From the first wave of the internet to cloud computing, we've guided our customers through every digital change. To keep doing that well, we have to stay ahead ourselves. That's why we're asking ourselves some really tough questions right now:
What's going to be a hype and what's going to stay?
With every wave of technology, there are developments that pass and changes that are permanent. That is why we critically analyse all AI developments and use our intuition, market knowledge and years of experience to determine where the real value lies. This is how we help ourselves and our customers make the smartest choices.
What will our new business models be?
The traditional hourly invoice model is not going to work. AI will soon make our processes so efficient that we will not be able to run a profitable business with them. And the added value of our AI knowledge is much greater than hours x rate... So we have to pay for our added value in a different way. That is why we are already experimenting with different business models, looking more at results achieved than time spent.
What scenarios should we prepare for?
We are not a company that goes' all-in 'on one thing. We prefer to prepare ourselves for different future scenarios. With these kinds of developments, you never know where exactly it will end, so choosing too fast is risky. We prefer to innovate in different directions so that we can flourish in any scenario.
How do we lead our team through these turbulent times?
Much is already changing and much bigger changes are coming. That makes people restless. That is why, as management, we want to set a clear course that offers guidance. Because one thing is certain: turbulent times require strong leadership.
How are we going to pioneer in this new landscape?
This is perhaps the most important question for us. For a company like Blis Digital, with our long-standing focus on digital innovation, there have never been so many opportunities as now. We see enormous potential to pioneer this new landscape with our customers. For example, by combining the possibilities of AI and agents with the digital products that we have been making for our customers for years.
Will you be the winner or loser of this era?
Each digital wave had its winners and losers. Companies that responded to the internet, mobile or cloud on time created enormous value. With each new wave, thousands of billions in market value moved from losers/laggards to winners/precursors. Companies that were late disappeared or became irrelevant. And with this wave, it is more dangerous than ever to get in too late.
Now, like us, is the time to ask yourself a few crucial questions:
- How will my value creation model change? And what does that do to my business model?
- Which parts of my services will soon be much more efficient? And how am I going to translate that to the market?
- How do I organize innovation within my company? Can I do that within the existing organization or do I have to organize it outside of it?
- How do I ensure that my team is able and willing to participate in this change?
- What are the different scenarios that I need to consider?
These are tough questions, but you can't afford to avoid them.
It's going to make the difference between winning or losing.
The next step with AI
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