2014 has opened up with a bang. This week, Google (GOOGL -1.23%) announced its $3.2 billion acquisition of smart home company Nest. Not only that, but the annual trade show for consumer electronics -- CES -- saw its own share of innovative products like Sony's new cloud-based gaming service, PlayStation Now.
The slideshow below will focus on 15 companies that will define technology in 2014. Some are large players, such as Google and Apple (AAPL -1.22%). While mobile is no longer an up-and-coming trend, both companies will play tremendously important roles across 2014. The list also features some smaller, non-public companies that might be unknown to investors. Companies like Aereo and Oculus VR could both reshape entire industries.
To learn which companies will be creating the future in 2014, simply click on the slideshow below.
Also, make sure to check out our new exclusive investor hub. The hub features Fool co-founder and legendary tech investor David Gardner discussing some of the most important trends today across all of tech. As a bonus, he also selects a handful of exclusive stock picks that stand to benefit the most from those trends. This free site is available for a limited time only, so click here to get started.
