Has the Internet of Things Failed to Deliver?

If you read the above title and thought to yourself, “Isn’t it a little early to claim that the Internet of Things has fallen short of its potential?” you would be correct. However, that hasn’t stopped some people from claiming that the Internet of Things (IoT) has not only failed to meet expectations, but that IoT is dead.

As the Automation World article, “Is the Internet of Things Dead?” points out, these claims about IoT coming up short pertain to consumer products rather than to the Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT). We know that IIoT has been labeled as the next revolution in manufacturing, or Industry 4.0, it is currently proving its value, and will continue to do exponentially over the next few years.

The fact that IoT technologies are already benefiting manufacturing, despite being a shadows of where IoT technology is expected to one day be, indicates that claims of failure do not apply to Industrial IoT.

But is it true that the Internet of Things is dead for consumer products?

Probably not.

It’s more likely that people are getting impatient with the rate at which IoT technology for consumer products is advancing. The consumers who fell for marketing tactics by wearable device manufacturers expected their lives to be changed by a smartwatch or a pair of smartglasses are upset at the fact that their lives are still relatively the same despite what advertisements promised.

There are still a lot of issues with consumer-based IoT. There are security issues, and many devices just can’t do what people want them to do. This doesn’t mean that the Internet of Things has failed. IoT is the main focus of many manufacturers, and IoT for consumer products will continue to improve and become more capable.

It’s fair to get frustrated that IoT isn’t as advanced as you might want it to be, but it’s not accurate to say that the Internet of Things is dead – even for consumer products. Industrial IoT is the future of manufacturing, and it seems likely that IoT will be the future of consumer goods in time.