Manufacturing is increasingly turning to next-generation networks to propel their businesses. After years of hype and steady uptake, Internet of Things (IoT) technology is all set to become a part of mainstream adoption. Right from industrial goods, retail, utilities, healthcare, agriculture, logistics to aviation, startups are offering IoT-enabled solutions ranging from connected cars, automated home, medical IoT, wearable technology to smart cities. Innovation in IoT is entering into a stabilization phase, as evident by the decline in new patent applications and venture capital (VC) deals activity but its adoption is increasing as corroborated by increase in hiring activity and corporate filing mentions with more companies mentioning their IOT related initiatives. GlobalData’s recent report, Future Internet of Things (IoT) Unicorns reveals that in Q2 2021, the IoT industry reported investment in excess of $6.4bn spanning 268 deals globally.


The rapid increase in IoT deployments over the last few years highlights the considerable progress global industry has made to overcome some of the world’s most challenging forces. During the period, Asia-Pacific accounted for nearly half of the overall VC deal volume, followed by North America (primarily the US) with 34%. When it comes to social media discussions, ‘IoT’ and its use cases in autonomous driving, cellular IoT, port operations and education are increasingly being mentioned by social media influencers. In the post-COVID-19 era, several organizations considered digitalization as their top priority, and saw IoT as one of the enablers. Fuelled by this digital transformation wave, the demand for new IoT applications will continue to increase in 2021 and beyond led by its applications in industries, connected cars, automated home, smart offices, medical devices, remote asset monitoring, drones, and location tracking services. Driven by this underlying demand, the IoT market is expected to reach $1 trilli.