Stuck in neutral

Technology & Innovation

Stuck in neutral

February 16, 2020

Global

February 16, 2020

Global
W

Cars and other vehicles are the ideal example of “unconstrained” Internet of Things (IoT) devices: plenty of power and space for high-bandwidth communications and processing. That capability is, in theory at least, a platform for digital services that could enhance the driving experience and boost automakers’ coffers.

But the Economist Intelligence Unit’s IoT Business Index 2020 suggests that companies in the automotive sector have made less progress embedding IoT features in their products and services than many other industries. This article, which accompanies the IoT Business Index 2020 report, explores why and what automakers can do to unlock the potential of the connected vehicles. 

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The IoT Business Index 2020: a step change in adoption

The latest edition of the IoT Business Index, which has tracked business use of the IoT since 2013, identifies a step forward in adoption, especially in internal operations. 

Back in 2013, The Economist Intelligence Unit launched the inaugural Internet of Things (IoT) Business Index to measure commercial adoption of the then-emerging technology. Unsurprisingly, companies were in the nascent stages of IoT integration at that time. More surprising was the first follow-up study in 2017: despite considerable discussion, business adoption of the IoT had advanced only marginally in the intervening years.

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This report, which is sponsored by Arm, examines the results of the IoT Business Index survey and draws on in-depth interviews with executives who have led or advised on IoT initiatives within companies or founded IoT-based businesses.

This report examines the results of our survey of 825 business executives, conducted in late 2019. Survey respondents were drawn from Europe (30%), North America (30%), Asia-Pacific (30%) and the rest of the world (10%) and from the following industries: Seventy- five percent of respondents work within the following industries: financial services; manufacturing; healthcare, pharmaceuticals and biotechnology; information technology; energy and natural resources; construction and real estate; automotive; infrastructure; agriculture/ food; and outsourced facilities management. Half were drawn from companies with annual revenue of more than US$500m and half from smaller companies. 

We interviewed the following executives for the report (listed alphabetically by organisation name):

Nancy Hartsoch, co-founder and CEO, AquaSeca

Dr Frank Maddux, global chief medical officer and member of the management board, Fresenius Medical Care

Nathalie Wright, group digital and IT transformation director, Rexel

Luke D’Arcy, co-founder, Sensize

Regu Ayyaswamy, global head of IoT and engineering services, TCS

We would like to thank all interviewees and survey respondents for their time and insight.

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Securing IoT

The Economist Intelligence Unit’s Internet of Things (IoT) Business Index 2020, sponsored by Arm, reveals that IoT adoption has progressed significantly since 2017, both in companies’ internal operations and in their products and services. 

But this progress has come in spite of lingering security concerns, both from consumers and companies themselves. Evidently, companies that wish to pursue IoT strategies must reassure both internal and external stakeholders that they can do so securely. 

This article, which accompanies the IoT Business Index 2020 report, examines the security challenges that the IoT presents and how companies are building the capabilities to address them. 

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When IoT meets AI

The business value of IoT data increases with the insights that can be extracted from it. Artificial intelligence (AI) is helping many businesses extract insight from IoT data; indeed, 26% of executives survey for the Economist Intelligence Unit’s IoT Business Index 2020 say IoT data are ‘pivotal’ to their AI initiatives. 

This article, which accompanies the IoT Business Index 2020 report, explores how companies are putting this combination of AI and IoT to work.

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