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Industrial Internet of Things Market Set for Explosive Growth Amid Industry 4.0 Surge

Recent survey data shows that the Industrial Internet of Things market is set for explosive growth amid an industry 4.0 surge. We consider what this explosive growth will look like – and what’s driving it.

The latest State of IoT 2024 survey shows that the number of connected IoT devices is continuing to grow at an explosive rate.

The summer 2024 survey shows the growth rate in connected IoT devices at 13 percent. At this explosive rate, experts expect the number of connected IoT devices expected to hit 18.8 billion by the end of this year.

The results of the summer 2024 State of IoT report

Although the survey authors recognise that the growth rate remains very high, this rate has actually been slightly downgraded from their 2023 predictions. 

The 2024 prediction reflects a number of factors:

  • Continued chipset supply constraints
  • Cautious enterprise spending while interest rates remain high and a certain degree of economic uncertainty persists
  • Global instability affecting market confidence with continuing conflicts in Eastern Europe and the Middle East.

However, despite these factors, the growth in the number of connected IoT devices remains explosive. While the number of devices is expected to hit nearly 19 billion by the end of this year, the survey authors predict that the number of connected IoT devices will reach 40 billion by 2030.

What is driving the explosive growth rate?

Although consumers have been quick to embrace IoT enabled devices, including fitness trackers, smart watches and home appliances, the biggest driver towards IoT adoption remains the industrial Internet of Things (IIoT). That’s because of the plethora of use cases already demonstrating convincing return on investment (ROI) in an industrial setting. Such use cases include solutions for process monitoring, quality assurance, preventative maintenance, environmental monitoring and more.

Connectivity enhancements are another driver of IoT adoption. The survey shows that three technologies make up nearly 80 percent of all IoT connections. 

These are: 

  • WiFi
  • Bluetooth
  • Cellular IoT. 

These technologies account for 31 percent, 25 percent and 21 percent of all IoT connections respectively. Advances in mesh WiFi networks, the continuing rollout of 5G mobile connectivity and the greater adoption of LTE-M and NB-IoT all help to extend the potential applications of IoT and drive up the number of connected IoT devices.

What are the factors that will drive future IoT growth?

A number of technology advances are helping to maintain the growth in the number of connected IoT devices at explosive levels. The survey authors identify three key technologies which they expect will extend the applicability, usefulness and return on investment from IoT use cases significantly.

These are:

  • The wider adoption of artificial intelligence (AI) and, in particular, generative AI in combination with IoT ecosystems

  • Edge computing

  • Improved cyber security, including the use of AI-powered cyber security and information security tools.

Cyber security is a key issue in IoT adoption. The survey authors reference a 2023 ThreatLabz report which showed a 400 percent increase in IoT-targeted cyberattacks in the previous year. Manufacturing is the sector most targeted by such attacks; accounting for 54.4 percent of reported IoT attacks.

In addition, edge computing is rapidly becoming a staple of IoT systems. By processing data closer to the source, rather than sending it to cloud servers to be processed, edge computing offers significant advantages in IIoT use cases. 

These include:

  • Reducing latency; crucial in time-sensitive industrial applications

  • Minimising bandwidth usage by filtering out unnecessary data before sending it to the cloud

  • Lowering costs associated with data transfer and cloud storage

  • Making critical data available locally for real-time analytics and decision making.

The report suggests that, together, heavy investment in edge computing, cybersecurity advances and the integration of more AI and generative-AI solutions in IoT solutions will continue to drive the explosive growth we are seeing in the number of connected IoT devices.

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