2018 has been an exciting year in the Internet of Things (IoT) space as we have seen a true transformation and many exciting developments. We have observed that so many industries are now investing in IoT and leading industries are quickly implementing IoT solutions. Other than special IoT devices, consumer products like wearable and connected electronics are also part of this huge market. As per an estimate, more than 80 % of IoT spend through 2020 will be on B2B applications. That’s why IoT will be one of the main drivers of the digital transformation in 2019 and beyond.

Many big companies are hiring IoT Developer and creating self-learning environment using IoT.  This will also drive digital revolution in the physical world as well. With IoT, new business models will emerge and there will be significant changes in work processes, productivity front, cost reduction and improved customer experiences. Keeping all of these things in mind, I will now discuss the important and main IoT trends which will lead the market in 2019 and beyond.

Cognitive Computing and AI

Cognitive computing and implementation of AI technology will also be the key trends in 2019 and beyond. The IoT is right now at the critical juncture of tremendous growth and opportunity. Till now we have seen connected things with unique IP addresses but due to advancement in sensors, processors and memory now we are not seeing everyday things just connected but intelligent too. Cognitive IoT, AI and machine learning are enabling enterprises to unlock greater IoT value. Cognitive systems are not explicitly programmed but they learn from interactions with the people and from experiences with their environment. Hence they are able to keep pace with the complexity of IoT and identifying data correlations which otherwise was not possible.

Blockchain Technology

In 2019, Blockchain will play a major role as it enhances security, makes transactions more seamless and reliable and creates efficiencies in the supply chain management. It looks like in coming years we will see companies to start leveraging blockchain in mainly three ways i.e. building trust, reducing costs and accelerating transactions. Blockchain for IoT can transform the way business transactions are conducted globally by providing a secure and trustworthy environment. Blockchain Solutions transactions are automated and encoded and enterprise level privacy is maintained while security is provided for all the parties involved. With implementation of IoT in blockchain, information from IoT devices will be used in transactions. These blockchain based solutions help organizations in improving operational efficiency as well, transform customer experience and adopt new business models. All of this is done in secure, private and decentralized manner.

More Adoption of Digital Twin

Digital twin is a key tool to improve operations with digital data. Digital Twins are great next step in the IoT space. In a world where software is used at so many places, digital twin technology will help organizations bridge the gap between the physical and digital. Digital Twin is like a glass to look into what’s happening with physical assets. They also give insights into the changes required for the future. Ultimately, the digital twin will accelerate the product development timeline at a reduced cost as it allows the product developers to create, build, test, monitor, maintain and service products in a virtual environment.

Higher Security

Now we are relying more and more on connected devices to do so many of our things hence security should be there. All contributors in the IoT ecosystem are responsible for the security of the devices, data communicated and solutions implemented. That means the device manufacturers, software developers, consumers, integrators and businesses, all should follow best, latest and secure practices and processes. IoT security needs a multi-layered approach and it starts with the design and development of the device. During the whole product lifecycle, all of the data must remain secure. Hence IoT full benefits will be attained only if there is a proper security.

Software as a Service (SaaS)

Still so many IoT implementations require on-premises implementations. But in 2019 and beyond, there will be higher instances when SaaS will be used. Now it is expected that more companies will choose the SaaS approach to quickly implement various IoT scenarios at lower investments. With SaaS, organizations will realize benefits more quickly, there will be lower cost of entry and there will be more flexibility.

Conclusion

We have just discussed the important IoT trends that will transform the way we do business in 2019 and beyond. It is also expected that many more other trends will emerge which are not in the limelight right now. IoT is evolving very rapidly and we have to keep an eye on all of these trends if we want our enterprises to extract full benefits of IoT technology.