Internet of Things (IoT) has the highest priority

Internet of Things (IoT) is an emerging concept where various things (devices)

gets connected with internet (wifi). In layman’s term Internet of Things connects
everything that has on/off switch- with each other, or with the internet. It operates
with an idea that all products or devices are connected by a single medium through
which one could control everything without being physically present at that point.
Now, cars, homes, appliances, and various other products can be connected to the
internet which can enhance our overall experience. With IoT, people can operate
things such as turn on music, turn off lights, turn on heater, or lock and unlock
doors without touching and with being in distance.

The best or well-known example of IoT can be IoT devices such as smart speakers
like Amazon Alexa or Google Home, Apple smartwatches, Internet-connected
baby monitors, Internet connected webcams, etc.

Other example includes; home security which insures the smart and secure home.
IoT connects various sensors, alarms, camera, lights and speakers with the help of
internet - 24/7, which can be controlled with the help of smart phone. For example:
If you ring a bell of a smart house, person inside the house can see you, hear you,
and open door for you through his/her phone. Also, smart home can operate
through your smart phone even when you are not at your home. You can close
doors, you can turn off gas, switch off lights or turn off ACs, incase you forgot to.
The concept of smart home is getting popular even in Nepal and companies such as
smarthome.np, thegabuilders, startupsnepal, etc are providing such services.

Likewise, activity tracker such as Apple Smart watch is also the product of IoT.
The sensory devices attached with these smartwatches can track our health in real
time by wearing it. It can measure our heart rates, oxygen levels, blood pressure,
fatigue, and can even remind us to take medicines. IoT devices tapped with sensors
can also provide At-home health monitoring which can reduce the emergency cases
or number of hospital visits. For example: Doctors can check your heart rate, or
your well-beingness without being physically present. With IoT, healthcare
professionals can more watchful and connect with patient proactively.

Such features of IoT can also be extremely useful in Business. Its smart functions
can be useful for businesses to get connected with its customers or to track the
consumer behavior. It can help organizations for consumer interaction, response,
and in payments. It acts like digital personal assistance which gives information
about anything and everything happening around the organization and can also be
used for command or get things done. It assists for remote data collection and store
those data with the help of voice recognition and command response.

In long run, IoT will be helpful to reduce cost and help for revenue generation. It
will bring down the employee cost, maintenance cost, and help for customer
relations. It can remind businesses to what to do and what not to do, by analyzing
the condition of the business. It can also remind mechanics for the need or time for
repairment and maintenance of machines. Likewise, it can bring solutions to
various departments of the company simply by detecting and reminding every bit
of irregularities that can happen in an organization. It brings the best user
experience which connects with everything around, without any disturbances and
with one tap on your smart phones. It will save time and can bring efficiency and
productivity to the business. IoT will definitely reduce cost for the organization
with unlimited possibilities.

Likewise, IoT can also be useful for the developing country like Nepal. It can help
government to keep track of everything and can change everything into smart
process. It can be used for road safety, smart city, pollution control, smart
agriculture, intelligent healthcare management, environment monitoring, utility
management etc. IoT enriches the IT industry especially for the process of job
creation. With the increasing need and demand of IoT, related careers will
increase, increasing the job possibilities. Designing, troubleshooting, and support
of IoT products needs extensive training and a specific set of skills - which is a
new employment opportunity.

Overall, looking at the benefits provided by IoT, I think it should have to highest
research priority. As IoT has potential to deliver solutions to each and everything,
it will be improving our future in security, health, education, smart cars, smart
homes, smart retails and many other aspects of daily life. With increasing demand
of IoT it will need extensive research to unlock the huge possibility it can provide.

Future is of Internet of Things, and it is just getting started. Few years from now,
IoT will connect us in ways that are difficult to imagine today. IoT applications,
especially combined with artificial intelligence and automation, will improve
efficiency, decision making, convenience, wellness, and conservation. IoT
possibilities has power enable our creativity and trigger innovation in various
industries.

Although, there are various security concerns for implementing IoT, I believe
extensive research in such beneficial sector can reduce such concerns in future.