A picture to see which players are currently in the field of Internet of Things

       Before 2016, an estimated 6 billion objects around the world will be connected to the Internet. Yes, we are talking about the "Internet of Things" which is not a new concept. You can literally guess what the word means, that is, an object connected via the Internet, or, to put it more cryptically, "an object that learns and adapts to user behavior." Companies in various fields want to share this big cake in the future. The following picture lists the current competitors of this big cake. There will definitely be new companies joining in. From bottom to top, they are the projects and companies that sell water to gold diggers. , vertical companies, horizontal companies.

       Projects and companies that sell water to gold diggers

       In fact, the concept of the Internet of Things is not new (proposed in 1999), but the rapid development is also due to the following factors.

       It is getting easier and easier to construct hardware, because many components have been open sourced (such as Arduino microcontroller); at the same time, the development of 3D printing has also provided a lot of assistance; professional manufacturers such as Dragon Innovation can manufacture the main components in production ; companies like Grand St help with distribution; crowdfunding sites like Kickstarter help startup hardware companies get off the ground.

       The rapid development of the mobile Internet worldwide has led to the development of the Internet of Things. Mobile phones and tablets can act as IoT remote controls in everyone's hands. It became possible to connect to the Internet at any time (Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, 3G, 4G), and various protocols began to emerge (MQTT). In fact, in the implementation of the Internet of Things, most of the items use the M2M (machine to machine) protocol instead of the Internet.

       Solutions brought by infrastructure such as cloud computing. Cloud computing can allow devices to be "dumb" because it only needs to hand over data to the cloud. Big data tools, like open source Hadoop, can also help a device process the data it collects.

       vertical companies

       The vertical field is the product that implants the Internet of Things into its own foundation. For example, the smart thermostat Nest is a simple and direct vertical strategy for the Internet of Things, and it, like Apple, firmly controls both hardware and software in its own hands, in order to better control and improve user experience. .

       Not only Nest, but also home control itself is the main battlefield of the Internet of Things. Recently, Microsoft also revealed that it will build a Home 2.0 home control system. Another important word for users is "self-quantification", which enables users to increasingly realize the potential of the Internet of Things. (Note: quantified self "self-quantification" is a kind of life philosophy, some people think that collecting and analyzing their own data every day can improve the quality of life. Therefore, "self-quantification" is also increasingly valued by technology startups, and based on "self-quantification" "Idea researches and develops related equipment and software.)

       Not only for ordinary users, there are also many vertical applications of B2B enterprise-level IoT, such as artificial intelligence research in manufacturing, transportation, medical care, retail, energy and other fields. These areas are yet to be filled by start-ups.

       horizontal sector companies

       Even though there are many applications in vertical fields, the ultimate goal of many companies is to develop in the direction of software platforms. For example, some home automation companies, SmartThings, Ninja Blocks, etc., also provide software platforms, and they will use their own vertical applications as an opportunity for the platform. Not only startups, but large companies like GE and IBM, and operators like AT&T and Verizon, are also working hard to make achievements in platform services.

       An important question is, can a platform in one vertical field be successfully applied to another vertical field? In addition, whether the leading platform is open or closed will have an important impact on the future development of the Internet of Things.

       The Internet of Things is still like a newborn baby with an exciting future. What is certain is that the current chart will change a lot in the next few years or even months.