Industry executives and experts share their predictions for 2021. Read them in this 13th annual VMblog.com series exclusive.
2021 will see the rise of open source software in Edge Computing architectures and the IoT
By Frédéric Desbiens, Program Manager
for Eclipse IoT and Edge, the Eclipse Foundation
As Edge Computing architectures and the
Internet of Things (IoT) continue to proliferate throughout multiple vertical
markets, one trend that enterprises have made abundantly clear is that, in
2021, they expect many edge computing solutions and IoT technologies to be
based on or leverage open source. This was confirmed in the most recent Eclipse
IoT Commercial Adoption survey published in March 2020, which found that 60% of
the organizations surveyed are factoring open source into their deployment
plans.
There are many reasons for this growing demand
for open source. One significant factor is that
businesses want to tailor information technology (IT) and operational technology
(OT) builds to meet their specific requirements. This is best accomplished with
solutions based on an open source model. In other words: while businesses
certainly appreciate the cost and time savings open source offers, what they
truly want and need is the control and flexibility it affords.
Perhaps predicting that open source software
will play a big role in edge computing and the IoT is too obvious. With this in
mind, let's drill down a bit more and make some educated predictions on just
how open source will impact IoT and distributed computing architectures in the
coming year.
Open Source IoT Predictions
Open
source AI/ML and IoT will become the foundation for automation in 2021
Automation was a key buzzword in 2020 and for
good reason. More and more IT departments are turning towards automating
applications as a means of increasing productivity for everything from Industry
4.0 to smart grid solutions. Open source AI and ML solutions will provide an
effective agile mechanism to realize this future. Eclipse DL4J is just one
example of an open ML solution that delivers powerful functionality for
automation in environments outside of a traditional data center, such as
manufacturing and warehouse settings.
Open
source will help solve SCADA software interoperability
This prediction is a bit specific to the
Industrial IoT (IIoT), but given the size of this market, everyone from Exxon
to Intel are carefully building solutions based on open source to address this
issue. While SCADA providers have fully
embraced IoT as a concept, sector growth has been limited by lack of
interoperability between proprietary systems. Open source IoT solutions, such
as Sparkplug, will enable new innovations that finally allow for true
widespread interoperability.
Remote
work and smart office applications will drive a need for open source IoT
solutions
The pandemic is forcing a complete re-think of
the office, from biometrics to security to environmental controls to worker
safety. A key means of rapidly developing new solutions on this front will be
to leverage open source solutions that drive permissionless innovation that are
easy to use by everyone.
Open Source Edge Computing
Predictions
2021
will mark the rise of the Hybrid Edge
Hybrid cloud was definitely one of the biggest
buzzwords of 2020, but in 2021, we believe this concept will be applied to edge
computing architectures. Just as hybrid cloud requires orchestration between
public, private, and distributed compute architectures, so too will enterprises
that may be deploying their own edge networks, using edge compute offerings
from a cloud provider, and operating separate edge networks for different use
cases (AI vs. IoT for example).
Cloud
providers will embrace open source edge computing
Late 2020 saw all three major cloud providers
- AWS, Azure, and GCP - deliver their own edge offerings. We believe 2021 will
not only see a continuation of this trend, but also see providers embrace open
source edge solutions as a means of differentiation and to speed innovation
within their own development efforts.
Smart
grid use cases will embrace the open source edge
After a year of horrific natural disasters
driven by climate change, combined with an incoming U.S. administration with a
focus on green infrastructure, North America will see a sharp rise in smart
grid innovation. The quickest way to get there? Open source edge computing.
For
organizations looking to leverage both edge computing and IoT, they need to
carefully evaluate their strategies and the open source alternatives that will
enable their software-defined initiatives to thrive. By doing so, they will enable
not just near-term efficiency, but lay a foundation upon which future
innovations can be built for years to come.
If
you care about open source in IoT and Edge Computing, you can find ways to
participate and get more information here - https://iot.eclipse.org/
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About the Author
Frédéric Desbiens is a program manager at
the Eclipse Foundation, the world's largest open source software foundation
focused on IoT and Edge, where he runs the organizations' efforts for IoT and
Edge Computing. His job is to help the community innovate by bringing devices
and software together. In the past, he worked as a product manager, solutions
architect and developer for companies as diverse as Pivotal, Cisco and Oracle.