Digital transformation has transcended buzzword status and has become a pervasive reality across all industries. As the world becomes increasingly interconnected, with machines, sensors, devices, and humans all generating massive amounts of data, enterprises are beginning to recognize the immense benefits of harnessing this data. However, capturing and storing data alone is not enough to fully unlock its value. The true power lies in integrating data into every aspect of our operations, creating an Intelligent Ecosystem.
Take, for example, a pharmaceutical company that produces a life-saving drug, and another enterprise that captures and analyzes patients’ medical data to predict and prevent health issues, while also prescribing the right composition of medicines. The latter enterprise, with its ability to seamlessly integrate data across the healthcare ecosystem, will gain a competitive advantage and capture disproportionate value in the industry. It’s becoming increasingly clear that the future of competition will no longer be solely about individual products, but about the strength and efficiency of the entire ecosystem.
Global Datasphere is Expanding Beyond Our Imagination
Post-COVID and with the increasing reliability of 5G, ‘things’ are getting connected at a pace like never before, resulting in an accelerated digital transformation that touches every individual’s life. In fact, as per IoT Analytics’ estimates, more than 17.2 billion IoT devices or ‘things’ will be connected to the cloud by the end of 2023, and the number will grow to 27 billion by 2025, giving us a true sense of increased digitization worldwide. Data is generally produced at data centers (traditional or cloud), edge (such as sensors, actuators, or IoT gateways), and endpoints (such as IoT devices, smartphones, etc.).
According to IDC, data is expected to grow at a CAGR of 21.2% up to more than 221,000 exabytes (221,000,000 petabytes, a whopping number), and out of this, nearly 64% of the data will be generated outside traditional data centers. This means that ‘things’ will be connected but more intelligently with increased intelligent edge processing.
Emerging Technologies for Enterprises: Staying Ahead in the Game
Executives in various industries are increasingly emphasizing the adoption of digital technologies to make their enterprises more competitive in this new ecosystem. Consequently, as per IDC, spending on digital transformation in 2022 has risen to USD 1.8 trillion, and global spending is projected to reach USD 3.4 trillion by 2026. For example, medical device companies are striving to become digital health companies, not just simply medical product manufacturers. This can help them establish new business models and revenue streams.
Digital technologies are playing a key role in making products and processes more efficient, helping enterprises to carve out new use cases at a rapid pace, and opening doors to deliver elevated customer experiences. Below are five key technologies that are the drivers of digital transformation trends, disrupting industrial evolution:
● Cloud and Platforms
On-demand data storage, such as cloud, is bringing the power of large-scale computing to the fingertips of enterprises, helping them build platforms that can unlock new revenue streams with as-a-service business models, deliver personalization, and provide more control to end-customers.
● IoT and Edge Computing
The latest sensors and surge in connectivity are making IoT more and more dominant across industries, expanding the whole digital ecosystem. In addition, with improved hardware and processors, edge computing is becoming the reality giving more confidence to enterprise for the implementation of low-latency and faster response times use cases.
eInfochips, an Arrow Company and Qualcomm Technologies have expanded their strategic collaboration with the establishment of “Edge Labs” – a Center of Excellence (CoE) – to help customers accelerate the development of connected intelligent edge devices.
● Intelligent Technologies
Data fabric created by intelligently capturing records of connected products and from traditional enterprise record systems, has allowed technologies like AI (Artificial Intelligence) and ML (Machine Learning) to shrink the line of difference between machines and humans. This data can now be effectively processed using techniques like image processing (e.g., for product defect detection), natural language processing (e.g., for robotics and automation), and speech recognition (e.g., for in-car infotainment control), among others. Consequently, this has empowered enterprises to develop more intelligent products, make operations efficient, and deliver personalized experiences to their customers.
● Augmented and Virtual Reality
AR (Augmented Reality), VR (Virtual Reality), and MR (Mixed Reality) are making it easier to provide remote assistance and far better user experience. With the evolution of Metaverse, increased ROI for AR/VR is soon going to be a reality.
AR/VR technology is rapidly transforming various industries by offering enhanced user experiences and efficiencies. Statista’s prediction of a 177.4% compound annual growth rate (CAGR) for AR/VR technology in on-site assembly and safety by 2023 underlines the immense potential and growth prospects for this technology soon.
● Connectivity
3G, 4G and now 5G; connectivity is improving to provide low latency, extended coverage, and high bandwidth, allowing enterprises to work on new use cases that require real-time monitoring, analysis, response, and control of products remotely. Furthermore, private 5G has fulfilled enterprises’ need to have full control over their network and infrastructure.
When these technologies are integrated, they can assist enterprises in achieving their sustainability goals by providing more accurate insights into the real world and improving their predictive capabilities to make efficient use of natural resources.
What Value will Enterprises Realize with These Technologies?
● Accurate and Timely Monitoring
With connected devices and the cloud, real-time data transfer from on-ground activities has made monitoring of products and processes easier.
● More Control
Device functionality can be controlled remotely with the possibility of over-the-air (OTA) upgrades, and enterprises can have better control over personalizing the user experience.
● Improved Efficiency and Optimization
Having data from across products and processes, intelligent technologies have made it possible to gain insights into what’s working and what’s not, enabling enterprises to optimize the environment correctly and improve efficiency.
● Better Autonomy
Not only can insights be automated, but with automated actions, enterprises can now make their devices and environment autonomous by intelligently integrating different technologies such as sensors, cloud, connectivity, and AI.
To conclude, in the future, the success of any enterprise, irrespective of their industry, will be decided by their capability of creating a differentiated ecosystem. This means developing software-centric products and engaging with partners that have expertise across different areas, from silicon to systems to digital.
eInfochips has helped more than 500 clients across multiple areas bring device, silicon, and digital technical expertise to their product development. The company has accelerated their clients’ time-to-market for products/platforms and optimized their R&D and technical operations spend.
