5 Trends to Unlock the Future of Low Code

5 Trends to Unlock the Future of Low Code

The Rise of Low Code Development

The year 2020 highlighted the importance of preparedness, speed, and agility for every organization. As businesses shifted to remote operations and sought to respond faster to market disruptions, low code platforms emerged as a critical enabler of business resilience.

In 2021 and beyond, low code has evolved from a developer convenience to a strategic enterprise priority. According to Gartner, more than half of medium to large enterprises will adopt low code as one of their core application platforms. By 2024, over 65 percent of application development is expected to be conducted on low code platforms, with 75 percent of large enterprises using at least four low code tools.

This eBook explores five trends shaping the future of low code technology and how enterprises can harness them to accelerate transformation, improve productivity, and strengthen governance.

Trend 1. Accelerated Adoption of Low Code Platforms

The demand for rapid digitalization and business agility continues to grow. Enterprises across industries are embracing low code platforms to meet increasing expectations from customers, partners, and employees.

Key Drivers of Low Code Adoption:

• The need for faster application delivery and quicker time to market.
• Rising demand for automation across business functions.
• Increasing collaboration between IT teams and citizen developers.
• The ability to rapidly adapt to unforeseen challenges and disruptions.

Low code empowers both professional and citizen developers to create enterprise-grade applications within hours instead of weeks. The result is an organization capable of innovating and responding dynamically to new opportunities.

Trend 2. Rapid Application Delivery through Standardization and Governance

As enterprises scale their low code initiatives, standardization and governance become critical. Without a consistent framework for integration, data access, and security, innovation can easily turn into chaos.

The importance of governance:

• Establishes control over data access, privacy, and compliance.
• Reduces vulnerabilities across distributed teams and systems.
• Enables alignment between business users and IT departments.
• Provides a structured approach to citizen development.

In 2020, 70 percent of large enterprises had established citizen development policies, compared to only 20 percent in 2010. Governance ensures that these initiatives remain secure, scalable, and aligned with organizational goals.

Trend 3. Increased Importance of Disposable Applications

The need for flexibility and rapid response has given rise to a new category of short-lived, disposable applications—lightweight tools created for temporary or situational needs.

Organizations can now build, deploy, and retire applications quickly for use cases such as event management, employee tracking, and temporary reporting.

Advantages of Disposable Applications:

• Rapid development within hours or days.
• Customizable and affordable solutions.
• Easy modification and deactivation once the task is complete.

By leveraging low code, enterprises can meet short-term needs without burdening IT departments or compromising long-term architecture.

Trend 4. Fit-for-Purpose Applications

As customer needs become more specialized, enterprises are moving away from monolithic applications toward smaller, modular, fit-for-purpose apps.

These micro or mini applications are highly customizable, focus on specific business goals, and can integrate seamlessly through APIs and shared services.

Key Benefits:

• Personalized user experience and improved responsiveness.
• Easier integration with existing systems and data models.
• Faster deployment of vertical or industry-specific solutions.
• Enhanced agility through flexible, reusable components.

According to Gartner, by 2022, one in four new applications will be delivered as packaged business capabilities, a significant jump from just 3 percent in 2019. By 2023, nearly 40 percent of professional workers will curate their own business applications, much like managing their playlists on a streaming platform.

Trend 5. Greater Investment in New-Age Technologies

Low code does not exist in isolation. It serves as the foundation for integrating modern technologies such as Robotic Process Automation (RPA), Artificial Intelligence (AI), Machine Learning (ML), Business Intelligence (BI), cybersecurity, and cloud ecosystems.

How New-Age Technologies Enhance Low Code Value:

• RPA eliminates repetitive manual work.
• AI and ML predict business trends and improve decision-making.
• BI transforms raw data into actionable insights.
• Cloud integration ensures scalability and distributed collaboration.

According to Forrester, over one-third of developers are expected to use machine learning in 2021 to automate software development activities. The convergence of these technologies will redefine enterprise application delivery in the coming years.

The Market Outlook

The application development landscape has been transformed. What once required weeks of effort can now be accomplished in days, and sometimes even hours.

Forrester projects the global market for low code development platforms will grow from 3.8 billion dollars in 2017 to over 21 billion by 2022. This growth is driven by the increasing need for automation, faster innovation, and lower total cost of ownership.

Low code platforms are now at the center of digital transformation, empowering enterprises to modernize legacy systems, enhance collaboration, and deliver omnichannel, contextual, and secure applications.

How Newgen Helps Drive the Low Code Revolution

Newgen’s Low Code Digital Automation Platform enables enterprises to rapidly design, build, and deploy applications across business lines. It integrates capabilities from three core areas—process automation (BPM), content services (ECM), and customer engagement (CCM)—into one unified ecosystem.

Key Features:

• Intuitive drag-and-drop application design.
• Cloud and on-premise deployment flexibility.
• Built-in AI, ML, and RPA for intelligent automation.
• Seamless integration with APIs, blockchain, and analytics.
• Secure identity management through IAM and SSO.

With Newgen, enterprises can achieve faster turnaround, lower development costs, and end-to-end process visibility while accelerating their digital transformation journey.

Conclusion

Low code is no longer a futuristic idea—it is the present and future of enterprise application development. Organizations that embrace low code will not only build faster but also innovate continuously, respond better to change, and maintain long-term competitiveness.