The evolution of the internet of things

The Internet of Things (IoT) could soon be directly affecting every aspect of our lives. According to Gartner, 6.4 Billion connected things are estimated to be in use in 2016, this is an increase of 30% compared to 2015. The number of connected things is only set to rise as this figure is predicted to reach 20.8 billion by 2020.

There are two main types of connected things, cross‐industry and vertical‐specific devices. Cross‐industry devices are generic devices that can be used in multiple industries, such as building management systems or connected light bulbs. Vertical‐specific devices are found in particular industries, such as specialised hospital equipment or container ship tracking devices.

In terms of the impact that this will have on business is three fold. Firstly, IoT has the ability to benefit a wide range of industries, from smart home solutions to intelligent vehicles. Secondly, the increase in the number of connected devices will result in further investment needed in IoT infrastructure, such as more bandwidth to handle the increase of information. Finally, this increase of data availability will necessitate the higher levels of security.

In order to reflect the key predictions from Gartner, Lucas Blake have created the infographic below.

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