In an opening salvo of what is surely to be a barrage of internet-of-things (IoT) announcements next month at CES, Intel has announced its IoT Platform, focusing on a horizontal approach to building an interoperable ecosystem for the IoT. The platform aims to simplify connectivity and increase security of data to and from from IoT devices, two key areas that need considerable improvement to scale deployment of IoT devices and networks. With its new ultra-low-power, cheap Quark processors, and a bevy of recent software and hardware acquisitions, Intel is well placed to take a stab at the IoT market -- but it'll face stiff competition from the likes of Qualcomm, which has been gradually grinding away at the IoT for a few years already.
Intel’s announcement mostly focuses on how the company is utilizing its recent software sector acquisitions to build a complete IoT platform(Opens in a new window):- Wind River (purchased in 2009 for $880 million) will provide functionality for device configuration, management, data capture, and data analysis.
- McAfee (acquired in 2011 for $7.7 billion), now part of Intel Security, will provide increased security for gateway devices.
- Intel Mashery (acquired in 2013 for a reported $180 million) API tools will provide services to make it easier to build and manage APIs for IoT solutions.
Intel's internet of things (IoT) platform
In addition, Intel announced relationships with system integrators and solution vendors that included Dell, SAP, Accenture, and Booz-Allen. These kinds of relationships show how Intel is attempting to remake itself as a hardware and software platform vendor and not just a chipmaker. It’s interesting to note that Intel will claim around $1.8 billion in IoT revenue in 2014, fueled by its new Quark processors but also by sales of its Atom and Core based processors -- and software -- into devices outside the traditional PC space.
The main competition for Intel in IoT is arguably Qualcomm, which has become a dominant player in mobile chips and is now leveraging that position and its considerable experience and IP in mobile communications technology in the IoT space. The company is ahead of Intel with its platform and ecosystem, announcing it’s AllJoyn(Opens in a new window) open source platform last year and turning it over to the Linux foundation. Qualcomm’s AllSeen alliance already boasts over 70 companies that include Microsoft, Cisco, Panasonic, Sony, and many others.
Expect a lot more IoT platform announcements and alliances coming out of CES 2015 next month -- and of course, ExtremeTech will be there!
Now read: The internet of things and smart cities: Will an IBM computer be your next mayor?
