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The Internet of Things (IoT) is at the center of the Fourth Industrial Revolution, which the World Economic Forum defines as an economic, technological, and cultural revolution combining the physical, digital, and biological worlds.
IoT is powered by technologies like ubiquitous connection, big data, analytics, and the cloud.
The IoT industry is projected to contribute $1.1 trillion to the global economy by 2030, largely driven by democratized access and widespread adoption.
However, democratizing IoT entails making IoT technology available to all individuals and organizations, regardless of technical knowledge or resources. And while this revolution is being driven by open-source development boards and communities that ease IoT design and promote innovation, a range of challenges remain:
Developers must handle compatibility, dependencies, and performance
Licensing, copyrights, and patents need careful management.
Poor documentation, repeated code, and limited support reduce reliability.
The lack of standard protocols increases risks.
Cutting costs and risks is crucial for broader adoption.
And while the challenges are apparent, tackling them remains a challenging endeavor.
Your peers increasingly strive to improve their IoT democratization efforts—and you’re invited to follow suit. To learn more about the IoT, read this article on:
IoT’s impact and why you should democratize it across your company
How AI comes into play
Key considerations before implementing IoT
The State of IoT
IoT remains a key focus for businesses, ranking among the top three technology priorities. While AI has taken the lead, the State of IoT – Spring 2024 report underscores the lasting importance of IoT.
In addition, recent surveys by PwC, KPMG, and BCG show that IoT consistently ranks second or third in investment priorities for emerging technologies, just behind AI, which holds the top spot across the board.
How IoT Drives Efficiencies
Thanks to real-time data, resource optimization, and process automation, IoT applications can significantly increase productivity in a variety of sectors.
Moreover, analyzing equipment performance helps predict potential breakdowns, enabling proactive maintenance that reduces downtime and lowers repair costs. By putting the right tools in place, you can:
Drive efficiency across business operations and enable resource monitoring and management, helping you cut costs and reduce waste
Decrease costs and waste by providing resource monitoring and management, which boosts efficiency throughout corporate activities
Improve process management and streamline operations for greater efficiency by automating tasks and providing actionable insights
Enhance customer experiences through smart devices that adapt to user preferences, which helps you foster loyalty and satisfaction
AI Enters the Realm
The convergence of AI and IoT has become a central focus in technology in recent years.
The demand for AI in the IoT market is rising, with an expected compound annual growth rate of 6.4% from 2024 to 2033 and AI chipsets are revolutionizing industrial automation hardware.
These chipsets are shrinking in size while gaining power, leading to the development of IPCs and gateways with embedded AI. This allows edge AI equipment to perform parallel computations and train algorithms with minimal latency.
As AI technology evolves, companies are tapping into edge AI to meet the growing demand for real-time data analytics.
By using AI chipsets at the edge, businesses accelerate data processing on industrial equipment, reduce network traffic, and enhance security by limiting the amount of data sent to the cloud.
However, implementing AI-powered IoT brings a few hurdles, particularly high costs.
Small businesses often face steep expenses due to pricey hardware and the need for extra security measures. Data management also becomes a challenge, as the massive amounts of data generated by IoT devices require precise processing by AI algorithms.
Plus, the high energy demands of AI algorithms clash with the battery limitations of many IoT devices, pushing the need for more energy-efficient solutions.
Democratizing IoT
Democratizing IoT means making IoT technology accessible for workers across the businesses, regardless of their technical expertise. Even smaller enterprises are adopting IoT to enhance operations and foster innovation.
This approach also helps you overcome technical and financial barriers, democratizing IoT also empowers you to optimize operations, gain real-time data insights, and elevate customer experiences.
Key IoT Investment Considerations
Democratizing IoT within an organization begins with actionable steps that prioritize accessibility, scalability, and security for every team member.
It’s important to leverage intuitive, easy-to-use solutions to equip employees with modern capabilities and help them harness IoT’s potential.
To seamlessly integrate IoT into operations, make sure you choose IoT platforms and devices that are simple to deploy and understand, even for teams with low technical experience. Scalable solutions guarantee that your IoT setup expands with your organization.
It’s also important to provide teams with the necessary skills and resources to smoothly incorporate IoT. Training ensures that staff can properly use IoT data to make better decisions.
Moreover, relying on open-source frameworks or affordable solutions can help you spark innovation without breaking the bank. These tools often integrate smoothly with existing tools to reduce complexity, streamline data sharing, and boost return on investment.
Establishing strong security measures is also essential. This will help you build trust and safeguard information. Prioritize platforms that support transport encryption for both Message Queuing Telemetry Transport (MQTT) and Hypertext transfer protocol secure (HTTPS) protocols. You should also ensure that your chosen partner supports device authentication and device credentials management.
Securing long-term success and protecting investments should also be priorities.
Given how quickly technology evolves, solutions can become outdated fast, leading to wasted resources and potential harm to a company’s reputation. That’s why you must focus on developing reliable, future-proof IoT products.
One way to stay ahead is by creating products that can be easily upgraded and scaled without needing a complete overhaul. For instance, a modular IoT sensor design allows businesses to swap out individual components as newer versions are released. This flexibility helps extend the product’s lifespan while protecting the initial investment.
Conclusion
To sum up, democratizing IoT goes beyond simply expanding access to technology—it’s about fostering a culture where innovation, efficiency, and scalability are embedded in every part of the business.
By adopting scalable, user-friendly platforms, prioritizing security, and promoting cross-team collaboration, organizations can ensure IoT becomes a valuable tool for all employees, no matter their technical expertise.
By creating cutting-edge products and making long-term plans, businesses may stay ahead of technological changes while preserving their investments and cutting expenses. Making IoT safe, adaptable, and accessible for everyone is key to its future.