The Internet of Things: The Future of IoT

The Future of IoT

While even short-term technology predictions can be difficult, there are a number of trends within the IoT industry that are expected to have a major influence over the next five years.

Growth and adoption

The number of IoT devices connected globally is expected to surpass 75 billion by 2025. Enterprise adoption will grow as sensors become cheaper and increased competition amongst providers makes IoT investments more lucrative. More organisations will see IoT as not just a way of reducing costs and improving efficiency, but also as an opportunity to expand into new markets and develop new product offerings.

Artificial Intelligence

The merging of Artificial Intelligence technologies with IoT will be explosive. With a strong database, the accuracy and effectiveness of AI technology improves. As IoT continues to collect more data, AI will produce intelligent behaviour in machines of all kinds. AI-based data processing may even become necessary to make sense out of growing data sets that may require real-time analysis. AI will improve pattern identification, predictive analytics, and will vastly improve the ability of the IoT system to make decisions for itself, lessening the need for human interaction.

5G

5G is the fifth generation of cellular wireless technology that promises wider network coverage, more stable internet connections, and faster data transfer speeds. Major network deployments have already begun, and almost 40 per cent of the world is expected to be covered by 2024. These advancements are expected to spur IoT innovation and will allow organisations to build faster, more efficient IoT networks at scale.

Security

As organisations handle larger data sets and rely further on cloud storage, data protection will become increasingly important. And as network connectivity reaches further into the workplace, cybersecurity will become an organisation-wide concern. 5G technology will also play a part in this. As 5G technology becomes mainstream, an increasing number of devices will connect to the 5G network directly, forgoing the need for a Wi-Fi connection and increasing security concerns.