The 'big data' already bills 250 million in Catalonia

The covid-19 pandemic has highlighted that it is essential to have the capacity to analyze enormous amounts of data in a very short time or in real time, to evaluate possible trends in the spread and evolution of the virus. For years, big data has existed, which mainly deals with processing and extracting value from large volumes of data and information. This technology has become popular over the last decades and in Catalonia, more than 200 companies dedicated to this sector have already been created.

A study carried out by Acció, the agency for business competitiveness, dependent on the Department of Business and Knowledge, has analyzed the situation of the sector in Catalonia and the main global trends in this field. It concludes that the big data sector employs about 2,500 people in Catalonia and has a turnover of 250 million euros.

The document highlights that big data is a transversal technology in various sectors and those that have implemented it the most are those related to ICT, telecommunications, energy, finance, and health. The use of this technology can represent concrete improvements in customer knowledge, optimization of production processes, and risk management, among others.

According to the report, the big data sector is booming in Catalonia: 89% of companies dedicated to this field are SMEs and 61.4% are less than ten years old. It also highlights that 35.5% of these companies have a turnover of more than one million euros and 12.7% more than ten million. Big data also has great international growth potential, given that a quarter of Catalan companies in the sector are exporters.

In addition to these companies, the big data sector is also made up of other agents such as technological and research centers, universities that promote training programs in this area, or entities and institutions linked to public administration, as well as organizations and associations linked to fairs and congresses.

In the context of the pandemic, initiatives based on big data and artificial intelligence have been deployed in Catalonia, such as an epidemiological observatory, with the aim of preventing other epidemics, while renowned institutions in the health field led by Hospital Clínic have promoted a project to incorporate data management when treating covid-19 patients.