Respondents to a Verizon Business survey found considerable optimism for IoT when it comes to return on investment (ROI), growth potential, and ongoing uses.
Respondents of the survey of 500 companies that use IoT services in their operations indicated that while measurable ROI is within grasp and emerging technology is fueling further optimism, there is a need for strong network foundations and well-managed IT integration to deploy IoT at scale.
Integrating novel technologies with legacy systems, updating network foundations, and securing and operationalizing the full ecosystem at scale often benefits from partnership and outside expertise.
Verizon’s View
Daniel Lawson, Senior Vice President, Global Solutions and IoT, Verizon Business, noted the key role that IoT plays as data powerhouse for businesses today.
“A business’s connected machines, IT systems, and overall operations produce an enormous amount of data— location, condition, anomaly, threat, operational progress and continuity, and so on,” said Lawson in a statement. “This survey tells us that IoT is highly valuable and scalable when implemented correctly, benefits from a full connected ecosystem, and is about to get a lot more interesting and dynamic with AI and other emerging technologies.”
The Impact of AI
Artificial intelligence (AI) stands as a core accelerator for IoT deployments as 84% of enterprises now consider AI a key enabling technology for their IoT strategies. This integration directly translates to faster implementation, with 70% of organizations reporting that AI has accelerated their IoT projects. Furthermore, 82% of businesses find that combining AI with video and camera data delivers valuable insights that support real-time decision-making.
The survey found IoT adoption is increasing rapidly, driven by expectations of near-term returns. More than half of all organizations cite efficiency and productivity gains as the primary driver for their IoT investment. Confidence in ROI is high, as 98% of enterprises expect to see tangible benefits from their deployments within two years, and most anticipate these returns in less than 12 months. This enthusiasm is fueling significant scale, with deployments of 10,000 or more devices expected to more than triple in the next year.
Strategic partnerships and complementary technologies are foundational to successful IoT initiatives as 87% of enterprises state that systems integration support from a mobile network operator is important or critical for a successful deployment. Looking ahead, 52% of organizations intend to use private wireless networks for their IoT projects over the next two years, representing a 24% increase over current usage. For those already in the process of deploying IoT, 81% see clear value in the capabilities of 5G.
Industries Impacts
Emerging technologies are set to enable the next wave of IoT innovation, though security remains a key consideration, according to respondents. Neary three quarters of companies plan to adopt 5G RedCap as well as expect to integrate satellites into their future IoT roadmaps. Network slicing is seen as essential for performance customization by 78% of businesses, particularly in Logistics and Supply Chain, where 60% prioritize this capability.
Challenges persist most notably with cybersecurity as their biggest hurdle cited by 43% of respondents. Meanwhile, eSIM adoption is surging, with a 240% year-over-year growth in the monthly average, led by personal mobility, energy, and logistics.
IoT is delivering clear, industry-specific advantages. In manufacturing and warehousing, 59% of organizations identify cost savings as the main driver for adoption. For the retail sector, a personalized customer experience is the leading application, with 83% of respondents currently deploying or planning to deploy solutions to achieve it. Within logistics and supply chain, 58% are currently using real-time shipment tracking, while 44% plan to implement warehouse automation and another 44% predictive maintenance within the next one to two years.
Momentum continues across other key sectors as 94% of automotive OEMs (94%) agree that 5G delivers the speed and bandwidth required for modern vehicle technologies. In transportation, a large majority of 72% currently use IoT for advanced fleet management. Healthcare is leveraging IoT primarily for remote patient monitoring, a use case deployed by 56% of organizations. And the energy and utilities sector is led by smart meters (60%) and smart grids (48%), with future plans focused on renewable energy management (40%) and energy storage optimization (38%).
All of this led Verizon Business’ Lawson to state “IoT is how that data gets collected and parsed to provide businesses with insights about how things are going and how they can be improved.”