Save IoT, Save The World!

When looking for a title for this article, I remembered the famous phrase from TV series Heroes, “Save the cheerleader,  Save the world”. Sorry if one more time I abuse of shocking headlines to attract more readers.

Is the Internet of Thing (IoT) in danger? In light of the latest events I have attended in Berlin and London and news like this “Intel To Amputate Three Modules For Internet Of Things, Including Joule“, I really believe  IoT is falling into the Gartner´s Trough of Disillusionment phase  and we need IoT heroes to push it faster towards the Plateau of Productivity phase.

The other part of the article’s title, “Save the World,” may sound pretentious, but the world needs to be saved. This year hot spring and summer is confirming even the most disbelieving that Global Warming is very real (Read more at ” Global Warming, Christmas and the Internet of Things” and in spite I do not consider that only IoT can save our blue planet, per recent events like “Portugal forest fire“, IoT can help and much.

“If we cannot control runaway pollution of our air and water, the world will end” Source: Ron Lake, Technology Evangelist at Galdos Systems Inc.

Let’s go by parts.

Has the Interest in IoT Slowed Down?  Some Symptoms

The IoT no longer fills single events. Now events like Internet of Things World Europe 2017 or IoT Tech Expo Europe in Berlin need help from other technologies like AR/VR AI, Blockchain, or 5G to attract exhibitors and visitors.

The heroes of IoT have lost their past evangelizing enthusiasm. What IoT heroes need to do?

• The IoT Industry heroes need to focus on Customer Value. It is important that IoT heroes address real pain points rather than creating something gimmicky.
• IoT Heroes can not do it alone, partnership with other heroes are absolutely essential for success in the Internet of Things.
• IoT heroes need to be more creative with new Use Cases. As sensors continue to decrease in cost and IoT-specific networks get rolled out, everybody expects the number of use cases to increase exponentially.
• Raise awareness about the major concern, IoT Security
• IoT heroes should follow the trends by pairing connectivity with AI/Blockchain/AR/VR heroes

How can IoT save us from world challenges?

Gary Atkinson, Director of Emerging Technologies at ARM, identifies five main challenges that the planet is heading towards:

1. We’re running out of agricultural land
2. Water is our rarest commodity
3. Energy needs to be cheaper to be efficient.
4. Healthcare is a growing problem
5. Transport – Everyone will be able to afford cars, but won’t be able to afford to pay for fuel.

Save IoT, Save Agricultural Land

If we all expect that IoT Agricultural solutions will be cheap, will have a long-lasting battery (+10 years), and will emit signals at least 5 miles, the smart farming will be a reality and we will not have excuses to save the agricultural land.

Additional info:

• “Smart Farming Can Make Food Supply Uncertainty and Volatility a Thing of the Past”
• Some companies to follow: Sigfox, Eightless, Enlight, Libelium, On Farm, John Deere, Trimble, and Valley Irrigation.
• Agri-Tech East is an independent, business-focussed cluster organisation, to improve the international competitiveness and sustainability of plant-based agriculture and horticulture.
• World Agri-Tech is held annually in London and San Francisco and is acclaimed as the most international gathering of agribusiness leaders, VC investors and agri-tech innovators. The next summit will take place in London on October 17-18, 2017. Find the full details here.
• Image analysis and artificial intelligence (AI) will change dairy farming
• Farm from a Box provides communities with the tools required to grow their own food and earn an income.
• Are you interested in invest in Agritech?, take a look at “How To Invest In Agritech”

Save IoT, Save the Water

Water is currently the most precious natural resource on planet Earth.

On the occasion of World Water Day, tech giant IBM entered into a pact with Ireland’s Dublin City University for a collaborative R&D pilot to leverage the internet of things (IoT) technology to help protect water.

The IoT could, for instance, make desalinisation coming to a cost-effectiveness point. India uses mostly a pivot irrigation system, which means 30% of the land is lost and 50 to 60% of water is lost by evaporation. The switch to tape based irrigation could save 2/3 of the water used.

Back in 2014, HydroPoint Data Systems utilised the Internet of Things (IoT) to help with water conservation efforts. According to the company and its partners, this system saved local people some $137m in expenses and 15 billion gallons of water in the first year alone.

Additional info:

• Water And The Internet Of Things: 2017
• How the Internet of Things Helps in Water Management
• The Internet of Things: A Water-Saving Revolution?
• How can IoT be used in smart homes to save water?
• Conserving Water with IoT Technology

Save IoT, Make Energy renewable and cheaper

Smarter, more efficient energy consumption it’s been the dream of environmentalists for decades. Now, it’s possible through the power of Internet of Things devices. Because of their connection capabilities, energy consumption such as the power in a commercial building or even smart home can be constantly monitored and adjusted.

Energy consumption could be reduced thanks to a smarter consumption and the implementation of micro-generation storage. Knowing that lightning is the second biggest consumer of energy (after motors), and that there are about 1 billion streetlights in the world, upgrading streetlights infrastructure would strongly impact the world consumption.

Experts said that thanks to the Internet of Things, we can move from about 13 percent aggregate energy efficiency to 40 percent in the next 25 to 30 years.

Creating a new connected economy powered by renewable energy will cause a temporary surge in productivity worldwide as grids are modernized and infrastructure is rolled out. Installing wind and solar is labor intensive, for example, so for two generations, people will have plenty of work to do.

Additional info:

IoT company SkyGrid which is based in Melbourne and Sydney, is developing a smart hot-water system in partnership with hot-water company Quantum Energy. The aim is to intelligently control when a building’s hot-water systems are switched on, so that energy isn’t wasted heating water when no one is around to use it – something that currently wastes as much as 50% of a system’s power.

• EnLight works on streetlight efficiency
• Freestyle has partnered with engineering firm PowerTec, on an intelligent energy grid for Kangaroo Island in South Australia. Sensors and controllers in the grid intelligently manage energy sources to sway energy consumption towards renewables without sacrificing the reliability of the supply.
• Top 10 Internet of Things Companies Disrupting the Energy Industry –
• PingThings is combining big data and machine learning to change the way that state utility grids operate.
• Actility employs IoT and machine-to-machine (M2M) communication to reinvent the way the energy sector operates.
• Tibber is a personal assistant that can regulate a house’s energy consumption and buy more energy if the need arises.
• Wattz is implementing solar power solutions that rely not on the sun’s light, but capturing ambient light from LED and compact fluorescent bulbs to recharge the batteries in IoT devices.
• Positive Energy uses IoT devices and software to optimize the functional efficiency of industrial buildings and smart homes alike.
• Smappee allows users to turn devices on and off remotely. It also has the capability to monitor solar panel output values and gas and water usage in real-time.
• GasZen allows customers to convert their traditional “dumb,” or non-networked, propane tanks into smart tanks that can be monitored by both the gas provider and the user remotely.
• 75Farenheit, beyond their ability to predict and adapt to changing climates, they offer analytics and suggestions on how to make the operation of a building more efficient.
• Inspire Energy is giving citizens the power to become a part of the growing clean energy movement.
• Verdigris Technologies primary target is energy consumption and waste.

Save IoT, Save Healthcare

Despite incredible improvements in health since 1950, there are still a number of challenges, which should have been easy to solve.

In a 2016 report by Deloitte, we can read “Change is the new normal for the global health care sector. As providers, payers, governments, and other stakeholders strive to deliver effective, efficient, and equitable care, they do so in an ecosystem that is undergoing a dramatic and fundamental shift in business, clinical, and operating models. This shift is being fueled by aging and growing populations; the proliferation of chronic diseases; heightened focus on care quality and value; evolving financial and quality regulations; informed and empowered consumers; and innovative treatments and technologies — all of which are leading to rising costs and an increase in spending levels for care provision, infrastructure improvements, and technology innovations.”

The IoT has brought many exciting advances in healthcare, improving patient experiences, increasing the quality of care provided, as well as updating and streamlining healthcare operations. From digital assistants to ‘smart’ medicine bottles, a new wave of connected devices could help people live independently for longer.

According to Goldman Sachs, IoT functions would produce an estimated $32.4 billion in annual revenue (45% from remote patient monitoring, 37% from telehealth, and 18% from behavior modification). But Healthcare IoT not only increases revenue, IoT reduces this cost by offering a more cost-effective method of managing chronic illness. The $305 billion estimated savings is accounted for by a combination of chronic disease management and telehealth.

Additional info:

• The 2020 Health Care Climate Challenge is a GGHH initiative to mobilize healthcare institutions around the globe to protect public health from climate change.
• 3 Ways the Internet of Things Is Improving Healthcare
• Healthcare Can Save Big, Win Big in IoT
• IoT for healthcare: Three use cases
• 6 Applications of IoT in the Healthcare Industry
• A guide to healthcare IoT possibilities and obstacles
• Predictive Health Care: How the IoT Can Save Lives
• The IoT is helping cut US healthcare costs by the billions
• Goldman Sachs Report: How the Internet of Things Can Save the American Healthcare System $305 Billion Annually

Save IoT, Save Transportation 

I leave this topic for a special post in the coming months.

Key Takeaway: Save IoT and IoT will enable Save the World

As I have commented many times, the IoT is a Journey. Those who have been more time in the race know that there are easier and other more difficult stages, but not for that reason we abandon the hardness of climbing one of them. If we have not yet achieved that the IoT has a unique definition, it is not surprising that the term could disappear for reasons of business marketing. Nor does it matter that technologies such as AI, VR / AR, Robots, Blockchain, join to IoT to solve world problems. We could call it “Unified Information Technology“. The World of 2017 has some immense problems but he challenges for the next 10, 20 50 years can only be overcome if we save the IoT, the Enabler to Save the World.