What kind of bikes will we be riding in the 2020s?

I often find myself wondering what kind of bikes will be hitting the market over the next 10 years or so. Bike technology is increasing all the time and to a large degree follows that of cars - in recent years fuel injection, ABS, traction control etc have all transferred across - so what can we expect to happen in the future? We're nowadays seeing bikes with very sophisticated technology. In 2009, BMW came out with the S1000RR and seemed to re-invent that whole class at a stroke. Close to 200bhp, sophisticated electronics - and apparently all very usable for capable mortals (of which I am not one!). And now MV Agusta are about to break the gentleman's agreement that has been in place among manufacturers by releasing their new range-topping, 200bhp, 320kph+ F4 1000RR superbike.

I'm no techno-wizard but looking to the future I think some things are already clear. Within 10 years I think there will be different materials used in manufacture for weight saving and styling and design will become more and more radical.

I also think we will see much more happening on bike electronics - switchable modes and factory performance kits, perhaps even KERS as standard? Really, the sky is the limit in terms of power and gadgetry, though taking the new BMW and Agustas as examples, it seems to me fairly ludicrous to build bikes capable of such ridiculous speed and power on the public road. But will we now see a new bhp "arms-race" developing amongst the major manufacturers? And what will these bikes cost in the future? How do you keep such high-tech machinery affordable to the masses?

As governments advance the green agenda and exponentially screw us with taxes to pay for it, smaller bikes with good fuel economy figures will hold greater and greater appeal I think - especially in urban areas. The Ninja 250 has been one of the best selling bikes for the last couple of years. The new Honda CBR250 is also selling well. Smaller bikes are selling like mad in Asia and are arguably carrying the cost of developing the higher spec bikes that head for western markets - which is slightly odd given that in the UK and across Europe, sales of sportsbikes are dwindling. Cruisers, nakeds, tourers and "real world" bikes seem to me to represent the future. Those are what's hot right now and manufacturers are beginning to take note of the market shift, so I think we'll see more technology advances there over the next few years. Ducati has already laid down the challenge with the technical advancements seen on the new Diavel. Others will surely follow.

As for the more "functional" side of biking, it seems clear that electric bikes are evolving very quickly, and looking into my crystal ball, I anticipate that in 5-10 years time, they will be very competitive performance-wise with their smaller capacity, petrol powered equivalents.

Of course, the key to their widespread appeal will be whether or not bike enthusiasts accept the differences - for example, in sound, power delivery and recharging range. However, as battery technology improves, for urban commuters I think they have the potential to take off in a big way.  Will we begin to see viable electric bikes in the mass performance market, I wonder?

Anyway, these are just my few thoughts - what do you think we'll be riding in the next decade?