Top technologies to watch in 2025: CSIR's Smart Society division

The CSIR is dedicated to promoting industrial development and fostering a capable state through innovative solutions.

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As we progress through 2025, transformative technological advancements are poised to reshape industries while addressing pressing global challenges. However, these developments may also exacerbate the divide between developed and developing nations. For South Africa, these advancements are crucial for effectively tackling significant socioeconomic and environmental challenges, including water scarcity, natural disasters, energy shortages, educational disparities, unemployment and inefficiencies in healthcare systems. The Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) is dedicated to promoting industrial development and fostering a capable state through innovative solutions.

At the forefront of these technological advancements is the Smart Society division of the CSIR. Within this division, there are three key clusters, including the Next Generation Enterprises and Institutions (NGEI), the Smart Places, and the Smart Mobility. Collectively, these contribute to the nation’s industrial growth by facilitating smarter resource utilisation and enhancing digital transformation efforts.

This press release offers an overview of the technologies set to play pivotal roles in 2025, with a key focus on the NGEI cluster. It highlights its capabilities and articulates how both industry and society stand to benefit from innovative solutions it fosters. This press release also aims to outline the strategic importance of these technologies in achieving a sustainable and capable state, ultimately driving progress across multiple sectors in South Africa.

The NGEI cluster is structured into three impact areas, one centre and one hosted programme. These areas drive research and technological advancements in critical domains, fostering digital transformation and economic growth.

The Networked Systems and Applications impact area includes research on cloud and network architectures, spectrum access innovations and natural language processing, ensuring seamless connectivity and intelligent communication solutions.

Operational intelligence is an impact area that focuses on design optimisation, data science and geospatial modelling to drive informed decision-making and efficiency improvements across industries.

E-government strengthens digital governance through spatial information systems, software architecture and technology implementation, enhancing service delivery and public sector efficiency.

In addition, emerging digital technologies for the fourth industrial revolution explores advanced internet of things (IOT), artificial intelligence (AI), augmented reality and distributed ledger technologies (DLT), positioning South Africa at the forefront of global innovation and technological change. The National Integrated Cyber Infrastructure System supports high-performance computing, networking and data-intensive research, empowering businesses, researchers and government institutions with state-of-the-art computational resources.

The innovations from the NGEI cluster span critical sectors and represent significant opportunities for investment and collaboration in 2025. Below are the top technologies to watch and their potential impact on the country’s development.

The use of crypto-currencies and digital assets in illicit financial activities is on the rise, globally. Scams, money laundering, terrorism financing and ransom cases have become daily occurrences, contributing to South Africa being greylisted by the international financial watchdog, the Financial Action Task Force. Several factors have played a role in this problem: regulation often cannot keep up with the pace of technological development, and without adequate tools to monitor these developments, policing becomes difficult. Skills in this relatively nascent industry are in short supply and take years to develop. With a lack of affordable tools in South Africa, do we stand a chance?

It turns out, we do. The DLT research group is developing software and tools to monitor, analyse and report crypto-currency transactions and activity in the country. Dubbed Project eXochain, the solution is capable of monitoring crypto-currency exchanges and wallets, tracing the movement of criminally linked transactions in real-time, detecting and analysing patterns of fraudulent behaviour, generating investigative reports and engaging with scam victims to assist in police case creation.

eXochain has already been deployed to help multimillion-rand scam victims trace their funds, in police and regulator investigations of organised crime rings, and in legal cases where crypto-currencies are used to hide or launder funds. With each investigation, the analytic capabilities of eXochain only grow stronger, as addresses linked to criminal activity are added to a database of sanctioned addresses and closely monitored.

The Next-Gen Cloud Streaming (NGCS) is a cutting-edge video content distribution network designed for efficient and cost-effective streaming. It uses a multicloud system that spreads computing and storage tasks, allowing quick and affordable set-up without heavy infrastructure costs. Its advanced video encoding reduces data usage while maintaining high viewing quality. At its core, the system features innovative cloud streaming technology and smart algorithms that adapt to network conditions, ensuring smoother and more reliable streaming. The platform enables media owners to upload, encode and stream their content at lower costs with a flexible bit rate based on local conditions. This expands content distribution to a wider audience, regardless of network quality.

South Africa faces a severe education crisis, with 81% of grade 4 learners unable to read for meaning, as highlighted in the 2023 PIRLS report.

Ngiyaqonda is an innovative language learning and literacy development platform that integrates multilingual natural language generation with automatic speech recognition technology. It provides real-time feedback in four major South African languages: isiZulu, Sesotho sa Leboa, English and Afrikaans. The platform benefits learners across all levels, such as medical students needing additional language proficiency to understand medical jargon and patient interactions.

Over 600 000 visually impaired learners lack access to assistive technologies, creating significant barriers to educational progress. iSinkwe is a revolutionary solution designed to assist visually impaired students and those with dyslexia. It synchronises human-narrated or AI-generated audio with text in 11 of the official South African languages. With customisable features such as adjustable font sizes and playback speeds, iSinkwe ensures an inclusive and effective learning environment.

The CSIR prides itself in the first and most advanced text-to-speech product, Qfrency, covering 11 languages. For automatic speech recognition, the CSIR has significant expertise and resources in domain-restricted speech recognition that allows it to cater for South Africa’s diverse accents and contexts.

Cervical cancer, primarily caused by Human Papillomavirus (HPV), remains one of the leading causes of mortality among South African women. Current diagnostic tools are expensive and centralised, limiting access for low-income and rural populations. In collaboration with Medical Diagnostech and the University of Cape Town, the CSIR is developing an AI-powered rapid diagnostic tool that includes:

• A nucleic acid amplification test for high-precision HPV DNA detection.
• An enzyme-based electrochemical biosensor for rapid diagnostics.

These portable and affordable tools enable early detection and intervention, significantly improving health outcomes, especially in resource-constrained environments.

Tuberculosis (TB) remains a major public health issue in South Africa, with latent TB often going undiagnosed due to the lack of adequate imaging techniques. The X-Ray Image Processing System leverages AI and deep learning to detect latent TB by analysing radiological patterns, and distinguishing it from other conditions like pneumonia and COVID-19. This solution is particularly beneficial in resource-constrained environments.

South Africa is grappling with critical water management issues, with a staggering 44% of its water supply lost due to ageing infrastructure, and 56% of wastewater treatment plants operating below acceptable performance levels. STOWRM DST technology addresses these challenges effectively by integrating real-time monitoring, predictive analytics and scenario simulation to enhance wastewater treatment processes. This innovative solution ensures cost-effective and compliant management of water resources, making it an essential tool for municipalities and wastewater treatment facilities to tackle the pervasive water crisis. Through its implementation, STOWRM DST provides a robust framework for optimising water management practices countrywide.

In South Africa, the challenge of E. coli contamination in water sources poses significant public health risks, often stemming from inadequate sanitation and ageing infrastructure. The development of an image-based, cost-effective tool for rapid detection of E. coli in water samples offers a promising solution. By facilitating quick and accurate water quality assessments, this technology empowers local authorities and communities to take timely actions to ensure safe drinking water, ultimately protecting public health and enhancing water management practices. Through its practical application, this innovation aims to address one of the critical environmental health concerns facing South Africa.

With over 2 000 mining accidents annually and R3.5 billion lost to workplace injuries, the CSIR has developed an immersive extended reality (XR) safety training solution. This technology allows workers to practise safety protocols in risk-free environments, reducing training costs while improving knowledge retention and workplace safety. By simulating real-world hazards and emergency scenarios, it allows users to practise safety protocols and decision-making without real-world risks. Companies can track user performance, customise training modules and ensure compliance with safety regulations. Ultimately, this technology reduces workplace accidents, minimises operational disruptions and lowers training costs while improving overall workforce safety and preparedness. The technology is not only limited to mining but can be adapted to various domains.

In underground mining, the drill-blast-extract cycle stresses surrounding rock, requiring re-entry inspections to detect loose rock that could pose serious risks to miners. Traditionally, inspectors rely on visual checks and tapping, but these methods are prone to human error and environmental challenges.

The Electronic Sounding Device (ESD+) is a handheld device that enhances inspection accuracy by:

• Identifying potential loose rock using thermal contrast in ventilated cavities.
• Confirming looseness when tapped, leveraging recorded expertise from experienced inspectors.
• Reducing inspector errors during re-entry assessments.
• Providing an immediate second opinion based on combined inspector experience.
• Recording data for post-inspection analysis and training.
• Enhancing situational awareness by sending alerts to control rooms if a network is available.

The main value proposition of the ESD+ is improved mining safety, especially at the mining face, with significant economic benefits for mining operations. The device is ready for licensing to manufacturers and service providers and currently has no international competition in addressing this critical safety challenge.

Together with Guduza Technologies, the CSIR is in the process of productising GoafWarn for underground mining operations. GoafWarn is an advanced real-time micro-seismic monitoring system designed to provide early warnings of impending roof failures in underground mines. By detecting and analysing micro-seismic activity, the system enhances safety, minimises production disruptions and reduces financial losses.

Roof failures pose a significant risk to miners, equipment and mine productivity. A collapse can lead to operational shutdowns, resulting in multimillion-rand losses for high-production mines. While injuries may be avoided, these disruptions directly impact mine sustainability and profitability.

GoafWarn is a game-changing technology for underground mining operations, offering a strategic investment opportunity. Its ability to provide early warning of goafing ensures safer, more sustainable and more profitable mining.

The CSIR invites investors and industry stakeholders to participate in the commercialisation and deployment of this cutting-edge solution.

SolarAIDD is an AI-driven, end-to-end platform that automates electroluminescence (EL) image analysis, drastically reducing processing time from 25-30 minutes per image to roughly 30 seconds (depending on image size). It identifies and quantifies 14 solar defect types and 15 PV features at the cell, module and batch level, transforming unstructured EL images into actionable data. SolarAIDD leverages semantic segmentation to generate detailed colour maps of defects and features. Users can upload and process batches of EL images, view automated defect detection and statistical analysis, and access data-driven insights for quality control and decision-making.

The Integrated Vessel Tracking (IVT) tool is an advanced web-based platform designed to integrate data from various sources effectively. It provides users with a comprehensive and real-time understanding of maritime conditions. This tool combines information from terrestrial and satellite automatic identification systems (AIS), which track the movement and identification of vessels, with the vessel monitoring system that monitors fishing activities to ensure compliance with regulatory standards. Additionally, the IVT tool uses satellite imagery to detect vessels, making it useful for locating ships without AIS, and to monitor pollution, including bilge dumps and oil spills.

At the core of the IVT tool are sophisticated algorithms and processing chains developed by the CSIR. These advanced technologies facilitate the efficient and accurate processing of substantial data volumes. This integrated approach significantly enhances decision-making processes and resource management for stakeholders within the maritime sector.

The Networked Systems and Applications area offers a cutting-edge, use-case agnostic 5G standalone private network testbed. This platform enables local businesses, start-ups and academia to explore and test 5G applications, accelerating South Africa’s digital transformation.

As South Africa faces increasing natural disasters, the need for smart disaster management systems has never been more urgent. The Smart Disaster Management Tool empowers governments, emergency responders and communities with real-time data, predictive analytics and AI-driven decision-making to minimise disaster impact, save lives and optimise resource allocation. It features a UAV-integrated real-time AI-based command system that enhances disaster response by providing aerial surveillance, rapid assessment and real-time co-ordination. With real-time alerts and early warnings, it enables quicker, more informed decisions, while AI-powered predictive analytics help identify high-risk areas to prevent major losses. Data-driven planning strengthens evacuation strategies, resource stockpiling and infrastructure resilience, ensuring better preparedness.

The CSIR invites industry leaders, technology partners and entrepreneurs to collaborate in the development, commercialisation and successful deployment of these groundbreaking technologies. By working together, we can drive economic growth, enhance technological capabilities and ensure a more sustainable future for South Africa. For more information, contact the CSIR's Commercialisation Manager, Sipho Dikweni, at sdikweni@csir.co.za.