How will communications technology progress during the course of 2026? Technology is increasingly central to business strategy and execution, including the bridge to communicate with clients and consumers. There is work to be done, considering that 46% of business leaders are “frustrated” by the limitations of their company’s technology. Under growing scrutiny, IT leaders are expected to deliver deeper impact across their organisations.
In particular, the backlash against AI monetisation on platforms like YouTube and Disney+ is driven by concerns over the quality and authenticity of AI-generated content. Creators and viewers alike are worried that AI tools are being misused to produce low-effort, repetitive content that lacks originality or viewer value.
To help answer these questions is eM Client CEO Michal Bürger. Burger considers the technology, privacy, and communication trends that will define 2026. His insights highlight a global reset in how consumers evaluate AI-driven tools, as well as the growing role of email as the intelligent backbone of modern communication.
Burger focuses on:
- AI Monetization Sparks a Global Privacy Reset: As big tech leans on user data to fund AI, consumers will push back and turn to tools that guarantee data ownership, minimize cloud exposure, and keep intelligence local.
- Email Becomes the Intelligent Command Center: AI will transform email into a proactive, context-aware hub that automates organizing, prioritizing, and responding, making it the most reliable and future-proof communication channel.
There are two subjects, as indicated above, that are close to Burger’s heart and he has taken Digital Journal through both of these topics:
The AI monetization battle will trigger a global privacy reset
Here Burger finds: “The AI monetization battle will trigger a global privacy reset. In 2026, consumers will wake up to the real cost of “free” AI. As tech giants search for sustainable revenue models, many will turn to aggressive data extraction, training models on user conversations, expanding targeted advertising, and quietly monetizing the very content people assume is private. This shift will spark a backlash, as users realize their personal data has become the currency fueling AI innovation.”
As to how this is played out, Burger comments: “The result will be a global reset in how people evaluate digital tools. Demand for platforms that guarantee true data ownership, limit cloud exposure, and keep intelligence local will surge. Governments, especially in Europe and parts of Asia, will push for tighter controls, forcing the industry to reckon with a fundamental truth: the next wave of AI adoption will belong to vendors who protect privacy first and innovate second, not the other way around.”
Email will become the intelligent backbone of modern communication
On the ever-present electronic mail position, Burger thinks: “Email has survived every prediction of its demise, and in 2026, it will reassert itself as the most reliable, universal, and future-proof communication channel. Unlike messaging apps and proprietary ecosystems, email remains the only platform not owned by any single provider, a neutral layer that works across industries, continents, and competing technologies. That neutrality becomes even more valuable as organisations grow frustrated with fragmented communication tools.”
Email will be transformed by artificial intelligence. Burger considers: “AI will transform email from a time sink into an intelligent command centre. Composing, sorting, prioritising, and responding will shift from manual tasks to automated, context-aware workflows that save users countless hours.”
On this basis, he concludes: “As these capabilities mature, email won’t just stay relevant. It will become the central hub where people manage work, streamline decisions, and maintain authentic communication in a world overloaded with apps and noise.”
