In 1999, British entrepreneur Kevin Ashton coined the term “Internet of Things” to refer to a system of ubiquitous sensors connecting the Internet to the physical world. Today, the Internet of Things is a way of life–arguably the only way of life, for many–in every sector from finances and media to education and professional sports.
What Does the Internet of Things (IoT) Look Like?
The Internet of Things, also called the Internet of Everything, is the means by which machines communicate with other machines, so that people can communicate with devices far beyond the ones in their hand. The Internet of Things includes everything from tracking chips on livestock or endangered species, to mobile apps for college freshmen that tell them which washing machines are free in the basement, to technologies that let you activate the security system on your New England home while you’re away in the Caribbean on vacation.
The Internet of Things is not a directionless phenomenon. The increasing interconnectedness of almost every aspect of daily life is expected to result in the automation of anything you could ever want automated. The advent of smartphone technology is only catalyzing the reality of the concept, and wearable technology is about to push it even further. It is no longer far-fetched to imagine a world in which your watch could sense irregularities in the rhythm of your pacemaker, send your vital signs to your doctor’s email address, and call for an ambulance by the time you hit the floor. The same goes for programs that remotely monitor the structural health of bridges and railways or the environmental conditions and energy consumption of factories and wildlife habitats. We already live in that world.
It’s Here and It’s Growing
Any business model of import has already integrated the IoT into its operations, and financial advisors expect the value of the IoT market to jump from $655.8 billion in 2014 to $1.7 trillion in 2020. The FBI has adjusted its understanding of security to account for the IoT, and so has every other relevant player in the security industry, from mall cop offices up to the Pentagon. The IoT is even the subject of debate and dissection from scholarly journals to dive bar bathrooms.
And just as the IoT carries the threat of doing harm to human economic, social, and political systems, it also holds the potential to change the world for the better in a big way. Governments from San Francisco to Singapore are harnessing the IoT for planning and management systems on a scale ranging from city to national levels, using the data flow it enables to monitor everything from air and water quality to transportation efficiency (down to helping citizens search for parking spaces).
Obviously, the Internet of Things is an incredibly powerful human development that requires great caution and responsibility from us as it grows. It may be centuries, if ever, before we truly understand the implications of the changes we’re living. But for now, let’s hope that we’re equipped to make the best of them.
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The Internet of Everything, IoT, is Here to Stay
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