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“I will answer very simply: The Internet will disappear.” —Google Chairman Eric Schmidt
The first version of the Internet connected all computers… then cellphones… tablets… now even watches. But the next stage of the Internet—the “Internet of Things” (IoT)—will connect everything. The Web as we know it will be gone.
Humans have begun attaching tiny chips—microcomputers—to every physical item you can imagine. These chips communicate with each other using wireless Internet connections.
Schmidt again:
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There will be so many IP [Internet Protocol] addresses… so many devices, sensors, things that you are wearing, things that you are interacting with, that you won’t even sense it. It will be part of your presence all the time. |
So, the Internet will cease to live on your computer… Instead, you will live inside the Internet. It’s already begun. Here are some real-world examples:
- Data company Zebra Technologies installed radio frequency identification (RFID) chips in the shoulder pads of 17 NFL teams last season. In real time, teams tracked every player’s speed, acceleration, and positioning. Teams used the data to make fine adjustments during the game. These improved performance and reduced injury. All NFL teams will use the wearable technology next year.
- Spirits maker Diageo just released “smart bottles” of its Johnnie Walker Blue Label liquor line. Sensors track where the bottles are in their life cycles (e.g., in the store, at home, almost empty, etc.). Based on its status, Diageo sends targeted messages to the bottle owner’s smartphone—from coupons before purchase, to drink mix recipes, to auto-replacement deliveries when the bottle’s almost empty.
- Google has developed an edible “smart pill.” Your stomach acid powers it. It monitors your body’s vital signs, blood chemistry, etc. Then it communicates them to your doctor or a hospital. If an emergency arises, the pill calls 911 through your smartphone. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) says humans can ingest up to 30 smart pills per day.
It’s easy to see why Teeka Tiwari—editor of Mega Trends Investing—calls the Internet of Things “the largest mega trend we’ll ever see in our lives.”
MarketWatch expects the IoT market to reach $1.7 trillion per year by 2020 (up from $655.8 billion in 2014).
Some 34 billion devices will be connected to the Internet by 2019.
That means the IoT market will be larger than the personal computer, smartphone, tablet, smart TV, “wearables” (or “smart clothing”), and connected cars markets—combined.
Teeka has issued a series of special reports on how to invest in the IoT. They include the one business that holds the patent for a 100%-integrated smart chip (unlike the two-step process the rest of the industry uses). This gives the company an enormous competitive advantage over every other IoT-related business in the space… and offers shareholders a potential 400% upside from here.