So I’m on my commute back home after a rather eventful day (Tuesdays always seem to be) when I get this MasterCard alert. It turns out, I’m still in the
Back to the Future
mode!
MasterCard is apparently planning to turn your
average items into contactless devices
.
My first immediate thought is the basement full of “average items” that need cleaning up. On a serious note,
this is the first major move into a full blown Internet of Things (IoT) revolution.
This has the potential to usher in a whole new breed of startups with enormous application potential.
Just to give you an overview of the potential:
In 2013
Gartner
projected that the Internet of Things (IoT) installed base will grow to
26 billion units by 2020
Also in 2013,
ABI
Research predicted that
more than 30 billion devices
will wirelessly connect to the Internet of Everything (IoT) in 2020
The
Pew Research Internet Project
conducted research among a large majority of the technology experts and engaged Internet users. 83 percent agreed with the notion that the Internet of Things (IoT), embedded and wearable computing will have widespread and beneficial effects by 2025.
The fact that designer Adam Selman, Capital One, NXP, GM, Nymi, Qualcomm, Ringly and TrackR is a big deal. A lot of people will be hoping this effort spills over into the wider IoT space resulting into more investment.
What the IoT partners are saying
Christina Mercando d’Avignon, founder and CEO of Ringly:
“We created Ringly to keep women connected to the people, messages and notifications that are important to them. Through our partnership with MasterCard, Ringly will not only be able to keep people connected, but will provide another layer to how our customers can use their jewelry while on the go. Our mission is to make women’s lives more manageable through beautiful jewelry and discreet technology.”
Adam Selman, fashion designer:
“Technology is vital to the fashion industry, from textiles, printing techniques, and innovations in garments, it keeps fashion changing and evolving. Usually technology’s role in fashion is behind the scenes. What sets the MasterCard program apart is that it features the technology, while still remaining invisible, yet interactive and totally functional with the wearer. It’s exciting to be part of a project that is creating something new and fresh. At the end of the day, that’s what fashion is all about.”
The next wave of innovation is about to start. IoT adoption is already here. Households are more interconnected than ever before. What do you think this means in the longer term for IoT? What impact will this have?
“So I’m on my commute back home after a rather eventful day (Tuesdays always seem to be) when I get this MasterCard alert.”KEVIN MOSERI