Datasets derived from the Internet of Things often lie on the fringe of the established alternative data universe. They are rarities or curiosities. In our IoT series, we shed light on the technologies that enable device connectivity, issues of data ownership, and alt data applications of IoT technology. In part one, we take a big picture view through providing an introduction to IoT search engines.

A BRIEF INTRODUCTION TO IOT

The Internet of Things is a vague concept. The conflation of this technology with science-fiction-esque narratives of futurism can sometimes make it hard to take seriously.

However, strictly speaking, IoT refers to the ever-growing network of physical objects that feature an IP address for internet connectivity, and the communication that occurs between these objects and other Internet-enabled devices and systems. Any device can be an IoT device if it can be controlled or communicated with via the internet.

Many commentaries on the alternative data market quote IoT as a key technological enabler of the phenomenon. Our aim, in the following series, is to ‘detangle’ the various components of IoT, to identify where potential opportunities may lie for investors, as well as where there may in fact be empty promises.

Before we look at the various datasets that can be gathered from IoT sensors, will begin with a dataset type that is interesting because it (a) monitors the deployment of IoT devices at scale and speed and (b) provides some contextual background to the way that connected devices interface with what we know to be ‘The Internet’.