---
title: "2010s in science and technology"
chunk: 1/3
source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2010s_in_science_and_technology"
category: "reference"
tags: "science, encyclopedia"
date_saved: "2026-05-05T04:38:08.831866+00:00"
instance: "kb-cron"
---

This article is a summary of the 2010s in science and technology.

== Technology ==
Big data and "Big Tech" saw an expansion in size and power in the 2010s, particularly FAANG corporations. The growing influence of "Big Tech" over cyberspace drew scrutiny and increased oversight from national governments. The G20 countries began closing tax loopholes and the European Union began asserting legal guidelines over domains such as data privacy, copyright, and hate speech, the latter of which helped fuel a debate over tech censorship and free speech online, particularly deplatforming. Throughout the decade, the United States government increasingly scrutinized the tech industry, from attempted copyright regulations to threatening antitrust probes. Increased protectionism and attempts to regulate and localize the internet by national governments also raised fears of cyber-balkanization in the later half of the decade.

=== Communications and electronics ===

Smartphones maintained their strong popularity throughout the 2010s, along with the arrival of tablets. Apple Inc. launched the iPad in 2010, its first tablet computer, which offered multi-touch interaction. The iPad became an immediate bestseller and only months after its release became the best selling tech product in history. By the mid-2010s, almost all smartphones were touchscreen-only, and Android and iPhone smartphones dominated the market.
Mobile apps become commercially available in the early 2010s, along with popular app stores such as Google Play, iOS App Store, and Microsoft Store.
Throughout the early 2010s, sales for PCs declined in favor of tablet computers and laptop convertibles; in 2012, tablet and smartphone sales overtook netbooks and Samsung overtook Nokia for the first time as the largest mobile phone maker in the world; in 2013 in developed countries, smartphone sales surpassed feature phones.
In April 2019, South Korea became the first country to adopt 5G broadband. Verizon launched its 5G services in the United States just hours later, along with disputing South Korea's claim of becoming the world's first country with a 5G network. The United Kingdom's first 5G mobile network became operational on 30 May, initially covering parts of six cities.
In 2011, more than 2 billion people used the Internet, one billion mobile broadband users predicted and 4.6 billion people worldwide were subscribed to mobile phones, and Americans spent more time using mobile apps than using the World Wide Web.
Social media continuously gained prominence through the convenience of mobile apps, including the services of WhatsApp, Pinterest, Instagram, Snapchat, Tinder, Vine, and TikTok being released throughout the decade. Facebook and Twitter, both of which were released in the 2000s, were still among the most popular social media platforms in the world. Social media offered massive reach to mainstream audiences for both individuals and organizations unseen before, facilitating phenomena such as influencer marketing.
Streaming media and rental kiosk services such as Netflix and Redbox forced video rental chains such as Blockbusters to close.
At the turn of the decade, the supply of IPv4 internet addresses was exhausted; an early period of transition to IPv6 continued during 2011.
In 2012, Google Chrome became the world's most used web browser, replacing Internet Explorer, and the Wikimedia Foundation started developing Wikidata, its first new project in six years.
Cryptocurrency, such as Bitcoin and Ethereum, gained ground as a digitally alternative way to secure financial transactions, control the creation of additional units, and verify the transfer of assets. Cryptocurrencies also expanded the usage and boundaries of Blockchain.
Virtual reality took a radical shift in the 2010s, with headsets such as the Oculus Rift gaining popularity. While the device was only capable of rotational tracking, the initial design would later serve as a basis from which the later designs came. Other popular headsets include PlayStation VR, Google Cardboard, HTC Vive, Oculus Rift, and the Samsung Gear VR.
During the decade, 3D printing, 3D modeling, and 3D scanners became increasingly popular, in which the technologies enabled users to join or solidify certain materials to create a concrete three-dimensional object. The 3D printer industry gained over $7 billion in sales.
Wireless headphones saw technological advancements and a large growth in usage.
Wireless charging for smartphones became more popular, with companies such as Samsung and Apple releasing wireless charging phones and chargers.
Smart watches became more widespread in usage, with over 175 million of them sold in 2018.
Smart glasses, such as Google Glass, were also released during this decade.
Transparent display screens and curved touchscreen displays entered the market, and slowly gained popularity throughout the decade.
In the mid-late portion of the decade, 4K resolution was implemented through high-definition displays and gained traction into more U.S. homes in a much faster adoption rate than that of Full HD (1080p).
In 2016, scientists at MIT created the first five-atom quantum computer with the potential to crack the security of traditional encryption schemes.
Fixstars Solutions created the world's first 13 Terabyte SSD in 2016.
The number of IoT devices increased 31% year-over-year to 8.4 billion in the year 2017 and it was estimated that there will be 30 billion devices by 2020.

=== Software ===
Artificial intelligence progressed significantly as a result of discoveries made in deep learning in 2012; it bolstered speech recognition and computer vision development and allowed for the fruition of technologies such as Deepfakes.
Virtual assistant devices and apps become widely available in the decade, such as Apple's Siri, Amazon Alexa on the Amazon Echo device, Samsung's Bixby, Google Assistant on Google-enabled/Android mobile devices, and text (online chat), especially in an instant messaging app or other app.
Collaborative source code sharing website GitHub became the world's most popular open source hosting site.
Oracle sued Google over the use of Java-related technology in Google's popular Android operating system in 2011. Google won the lawsuit on 26 May 2016, citing fair use.
Following an unprecedented internet protest and blackout campaign, the controversial Stop Online Piracy Act bill was temporarily withdrawn in the United States Congress in 2012.
The controversial Cybercrime Prevention Act of 2012 in the Philippines was adopted.

=== Automobiles and transportation ===