New Delhi: Adoption of Internet of Things (IoT), which provides the core tools to automate data collection and generate insights, is still at a niche stage in India due to various challenges such as lack of clarity on what to prioritise and right talent and skills, says a new report.
Technical challenges of connectivity, compatibility, interoperability, and cybersecurity are other challenges that are holding back IoT adoption in India, according to the report released by Deloitte India in collaboration with Confederation of Indian Industry (CII).
The challenges of adopting the right IoT platform has meant that the overall return on investment has not been exciting for management which in turn has put more hurdles in realising the potential of this technology considered to be crucial for Industry 4.0.
However, the report, titled “Internet of Things (IoT): The rise of the connected world”, suggests that “organisations should consider investing in technologies such as IoT during the downturn and be ready to operate”.
This is because studies have shown that companies that invest in key technological advances during downturns such as the one the world is facing due to the Covid-19 pandemic are better positioned to leapfrog competitors when economic conditions improve.
According to Deloitte, IoT, Artificial Intelligence, Cloud, and big data/analytics are the “big four technologies” that could provide the bedrock to connect organisations, generate data, and drive more intelligent operations.
Across the world, spending on software and hardware related to IoT is projected to grow rapidly, from $726 billion in 2019 to $1.1 trillion in 2023, according to a market research report.
A recent IoT industry spending report revealed that Asia/Pacific accounted for most of the spending on IoT in 2019, with India spending $20.6 billion.
However, after Covid-19, the focus is on conserving cash in India and the Deloitte report projects a de-growth in 2020, possibly going into the first half of 2021.
Growth after the second half of 2021 is expected to be much faster after a Covid-19 vaccine/treatment is found, it added.
