Exploring The Intersection Of The Edge, AI And IoT

It has been over 15 years since the phrase “data is the new oil” appeared on the radar of enterprise CIOs. Since then, enterprise data stacks have evolved to support complex business intelligence tasks. Recently, in December 2022, we witnessed yet another tectonic shift thanks to ChatGPT by Open AI.

As we synthesize the opportunities due to these shifts, it is clear that machine learning (ML) and artificial intelligence (AI) have exponentially transformed data stacks of enterprise IT and OT while providing new tools for digital transformation. Simultaneously, we have witnessed IT architectures maturing and adopting edge technologies, leading to bold proclamations that the “edge is eating the world!”

Along with this, computer vision and the Internet of Things (IoT) are combining and disrupting the landscape. In this article, I explore the opportunities and approaches at the intersection of these revolutionary market adoption paradigms.

Opportunities

A number of use cases and opportunities at the intersection of the edge, AI and IoT have been identified, including:

Preventive Maintenance: AI-based preventive maintenance, especially in manufacturing, is a significant use case at the above intersection. According to study results, the size of this opportunity is over $500 billion globally. In this context, AI’s ability to instantaneously process multimedia at the edge and detect anomalies augmenting human decision making is a crucial capability that is relevant.

• Video Analytics: This involves the use of AI and ML to autonomously recognize people/objects and their surroundings and make intelligent decisions. Some of the settings include smart cities, smart offices, smart retail stores, construction sites and manufacturing environments. According to a McKinsey report, the size of this economy is expected to reach at least $4 trillion by 2025.

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