UK IoT startups could generate billions of pounds for the economy, but only if stakeholders are willing to incubate and accelerate innovation

A recently published report commissioned by networking specialist Cisco suggests Internet of Things startups could generate over £100bn over the decade as their offerings catch on in industries ripe for IoT-centric transformation (healthcare, retail, transport and energy). But Tom Kneen, head of business development, the British Innovation Gateway (BIG) at Cisco told BCN the industry needs to overcome key barriers in order to enable the market to flourish.

The report, The Internet of Everything: Unlocking the Opportunity for UK Startups, looks at the potential opportunities for IoT startups in four key sectors: healthcare, retail, transport and energy.

It claims the healthcare industry currently has the greatest opportunity, with the potential to access over £48bn over the next decade through IoT innovation. This is followed by the retail industry with £37bn, transport (£11bn) and energy (£7bn).

Cisco has not shied away in past from dropping large numbers to illustrate the potential of a segment in which it has vested interests – the company famously claims there will be around 50 billion IoT devices by 2020.

But it said that large firms, SMEs, and government organisations in the UK need to cultivate more joint innovation partnerships if any industry stakeholders are to reap the financial benefits of such a proliferation in internet-connected devices.

“UK companies of every size are devoting time and ingenuity to designing and building IoE applications, from the smallest SMEs to the largest enterprises. These companies are not just digitising in the conventional sense but finding completely new ways to connect people, processes, data and things, from their supply chains to their office spaces and their customers,” said Phil Smith, chief executive, Cisco UK and Ireland.

“The UK’s startup community is a great source of innovation, and we’re confident that we’re only witnessing the first wave. In the coming months and years, we can expect these businesses to be at the forefront of the transformation of the UK economy as we fully embrace the possibilities of a digital future,” Smith said.

Cisco’s Tom Kneen told BCN there are still a number of barriers preventing the IoT market from really kicking off – and that access to technology isn’t one of them.

“The hardest part for today’s tech savvy entrepreneurs when developing an IoE startup is not writing the code or building the infrastructure, but being allowed to play at all,” he said. “But while many traditional tech start-ups can build entire businesses using little more than free developer tools and rented server space, most IoT start-ups typically need much broader business-focused skillsets. Particularly when you factor in aspects like dealing with regulatory and standards bodies, which are more prevalent in some industries than others.”

“In addition, a typical customer for an IoT startup may not be your single app-focused consumer, but a large enterprise or government department. Even finding the right person to talk to, or the appropriate level to engage at can be a challenge in such large organisations – let alone talking the same language.”

Kneen said to succeed in the IoT space companies need both hardware and software-based skills, but that the UK has a number of areas cultivating these simultaneously – “such as Cambridge and the Midlands, where the development of low-cost, low-power processors to pioneering connected car technology are in full swing.”