AI, climate change and geopolitical shifts are reconfiguring the global economy. We’ve mapped where value is moving over the next decade, so you can build a future-ready business to capture it.
Creating new customer needs and preferences. Forging new markets. Enabling new business models. Attracting new competitors. And blurring the boundaries of sectors and industries.
It’s time to look for growth in new places.
It’s time to explore new domains of growth—markets where companies work across sector boundaries to meet fundamental human needs. Like how we feed and care for ourselves, move, make and build things, and how we fuel and power it all.
Scroll on to understand how these domains will form and grow. And discover how to seize your share of the value in motion.
To see which domains hold opportunity for you, select your industry/sector and region, or click on the graphic below.
Tap an industry and swipe left on the chart below to see how it will transform into a domain.
Source: PwC research and analysis
Select from the nine domains below to learn how they are forming, the size of the opportunity and how to seize the value in motion.
Our need for places to live and work is growing—and changing. To meet it, industries are converging on innovative ways to build.
Until recently, the companies building the structures and cities where we live, work, meet and play have competed in discrete sectors: engineering, construction, manufacturing, finance and real estate.
But global megatrends are rapidly changing what people need from the built environment, and how those needs can be met. Climate change is intensifying demand for resilient, efficient homes, factories and airports. Urbanisation is putting more pressure on housing and infrastructure. AI promises to lift architects’ and builders’ productivity.
Firms are responding with efforts to build more, and to do so faster and better than ever through alliances, partnerships and new ventures. This industry reconfiguration is giving rise to a domain of economic growth centred on how we build.
Some real estate developers are using their strong balance sheets and financial savvy to establish venture capital funds that invest in sectors like property tech and energy efficiency.
Technology firms are competing with home appliance manufacturers by deploying smart devices and software that control home heating, cooling and lighting.
And some engineering companies are using their accumulated expertise and global relationships to expand into the management of wastewater systems, the detection of forever chemicals, and the development of renewable energy plants.
In the construction sector alone, up to US$517 billion of revenues could be redistributed in 2025 as firms reinvent their business models.
Much of that growth will come from the swift expansion of some nascent sources of value, such as prefabrication and modular construction, energy management and building-materials recycling.
To help business leaders understand the possibilities for the coming decade, we modelled the domain’s growth under three divergent scenarios accounting for the impact of technological progress (specifically from AI) and climate action. Depending on the scenario, the domain’s size in 2035 could be as much as 3.0% above the baseline contribution of $13.76 trillion to global GDP or as little as 1.8% below it.
Until recently, the companies building the structures and cities where we live, work, meet and play have competed in discrete sectors: engineering, construction, manufacturing, finance and real estate.
But global megatrends are rapidly changing what people need from the built environment, and how those needs can be met. Climate change is intensifying demand for resilient, efficient homes, factories and airports. Urbanisation is putting more pressure on housing and infrastructure. AI promises to lift architects’ and builders’ productivity.
Firms are responding with efforts to build more, and to do so faster and better than ever through alliances, partnerships and new ventures. This industry reconfiguration is giving rise to a domain of economic growth centred on how we build.
Some real estate developers are using their strong balance sheets and financial savvy to establish venture capital funds that invest in sectors like property tech and energy efficiency.
Technology firms are competing with home appliance manufacturers by deploying smart devices and software that control home heating, cooling and lighting.
And some engineering companies are using their accumulated expertise and global relationships to expand into the management of wastewater systems, the detection of forever chemicals, and the development of renewable energy plants.
In the construction sector alone, up to US$517 billion of revenues could be redistributed in 2025 as firms reinvent their business models.
Much of that growth will come from the swift expansion of some nascent sources of value, such as prefabrication and modular construction, energy management and building-materials recycling.
To help business leaders understand the possibilities for the coming decade, we modelled the domain’s growth under three divergent scenarios accounting for the impact of technological progress (specifically from AI) and climate action. Depending on the scenario, the domain’s size in 2035 could be as much as 3.0% above the baseline contribution of $13.76 trillion to global GDP or as little as 1.8% below it.
Businesses that grasp the full potential of the Build domain will have the edge in 2035.
The nature and scale of the new business opportunities that emerge in the Build domain will depend on how AI adoption and climate action progress. Your strategy should account for a range of possible outcomes.
Three scenarios can help leaders in the Build domain consider what the future might bring.
In Trust-Based Transformation, a coordinated, conscientious approach to tech deployment and climate response fosters productivity growth, job creation and environmental health.
In Tense Transition, regionalisation and nationalism give rise to technology systems and sustainability efforts that deliver benefits without the economies of global scale.
In Turbulent Times, atomised interests, divisive uses of technology, and suspended sustainability initiatives hamper economic growth.
Learn more about the three divergent tomorrows.
Global baseline 2035
Source: PwC research and analysis
Select a bar below to see projected values and how each scenario might influence the Build domain.
Source: PwC research and analysis
In this scenario, the Build domain is holistically transformed. Intelligent buildings are supported by smart infrastructure; urban growth is managed in a controlled, eco-conscious manner that prioritises green spaces; and buildings operate on AI-enabled renewable energy systems.
Select a bar below to see projected values and how each scenario might influence the Build domain.
The projected growth of the Build domain varies greatly, not just across future scenarios but among regions and territories, too. Knowing where opportunities are likely to emerge—and where they might be overlooked—can help companies target geographies, design offerings and retool their business models.
Global value
Source: PwC research and analysis
Regional clusters depicted above are based on IIASA research data and ISO mapping and do not represent the structure of the PwC network or where PwC member firms are incorporated and operate.
In a future of divergent possibilities, imagining new ways to create value can help reframe how we think about viable business models, products and services.
Regardless of the scenario, leaders can act now to ensure they succeed in the decade ahead.
Fast-forward a decade. What sorts of innovative offerings might generate outsize value for companies in the Build domain? To help leaders expand their thinking, we’ve imagined hypothetical businesses in the context of the three scenarios.
This business tackles the intractable challenge of low-income housing by partnering with engineering, technology and manufacturing companies to design and deliver residential properties that are affordable, modular, safe and sustainable. It relies heavily on housing data and engagement with housing advocates and regulators. The company assembles homes at a prefab facility where many components are 3D printed. Building materials—including carbon-free concrete, solar roofing panels and sustainably grown bamboo—are chosen for their energy efficiency and reuse potential.
Who’s got the edge?
Future growth area
Rehab, renovation and reclamation activities that can repurpose water, power and air-quality infrastructure, and profitably process recyclable materials such as wood, steel and insulation
These quick-hit concepts—some of them suited for just one future scenario, others for more—offer additional inspiration for business model innovation.
Cloud-based, AI-enabled time and project management software for architects
Specialised insurance products to cover risks from social instability and cyberattacks
Real-time data gathering and analysis from connected buildings
Provider of modular construction products
Energy-saving building control for office towers and public buildings
Construction 4.0 consulting firm
The process of reinvention needs to start now, with a focus on priorities that respond to the reconfiguration that’s already underway. This means driving hard towards a set of innovation imperatives, securing competitive advantages in areas such as technology and trust, and turning obstacles such as climate threats into enablers of growth.
How to win in the Build domain
Accelerate modularity and prefabrication
Think modular, systemically
Technology advances allow the construction industry to operate on a larger scale, with more efficiency, and at a faster pace. By embracing a more standardised, repeatable approach throughout the value chain, including logistics, regulatory compliance and approvals, companies unlock the full potential of modularity on any job.
Adopt off-site construction
Modularity and prefabrication enable important parts of projects to proceed away from congested job sites with just-in-time delivery. They also facilitate bulk purchasing, standardise labour practices, minimise site disruption and reduce waste—all of which combine to shorten project timelines, promote consistent high quality, enhance worker safety and lower costs.
A real-world example
A power company agreed to lead the construction of a 250 MW power station on an accelerated schedule. The project team committed, with the design and construction contractor and equipment suppliers, to a modular, prefabricated approach. Modularisation allowed the company to build the plant’s main components in countries with skilled construction workforces. Modularisation also enabled continual improvements in repeated activities around the steam generation units, boilers, high-voltage substations and control rooms. Because of the resulting efficiencies, the company completed its project ahead of schedule—even while expanding it to include three more 250 MW units.
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