After an eventful 2018, the new year is already showing robust activity in Connected Industry. The CES show once again highlighted the increasing prevalence of connected products, ranging from kitchen appliances to games to health and exercise equipment. The differentiation around connected products is fading as “smarts” are becoming increasingly subsumed into everyday life.
In cities across the USA there has been an influx of IoT enabled electric rental scooters arrayed on the sidewalks. Dominated by Bird and Lime, the scooter business is at its core an IoT business – the scooters are equipped with GPS and a mobile connected that enables them to be ridden and charged by the minute via smartphone app. It’s not just scooters – IoT enabled bike sharing is on the rise as well, creating new challenges for city planners along with lower emissions and more visits to emergency rooms.
There’s growing interest in the potential impact of 5G on Connected Industry, and we’re expecting increasing focus at Mobile World Congress in Barcelona. Meanwhile, the growth of low-power technologies, particularly LoRa, continues to gain momentum across industries and use cases. Businesses are having to face the implications of increasing privacy regulations, and Google’s 57mn Euro fine for GDPR violations shows that the regulators are looking to flex their authority.
Spending forecasts remain positive, and consistent with Momenta’s own survey results. IDC forecasts a 15% annualized increased in IoT spending to over $1 trillion in 2019, with VC investment continuing at a healthy pace even as the lines between IoT, home and industrial technologies are increasingly blurred.
As we look forward to 2019, we remain optimistic about the opportunities ahead and eagerly anticipate engaging with your comments and feedback!
