Page 12 - SAMENA Trends - July-August 2022

FEATURED SAMENA TRENDS

SA-ME-NA Spotlight: Saudi Arabia

IoT Drives Transformation of Regional Economies

Across the world, people’s lives billion IoT devices by 2030
and businesses are becoming ever • IoT devices surpassed non-IoT IoT Trends in Middle East
more integrated and connected. devices in 2020 The next two years are critical for the Middle East
This has been accelerating through • There are more than 400 active region with big ticket events like Expo 2020-21 and
digitization touching and shaping IoT platforms in existence FIFA World Cup 2022. The expected influx of tourists
more and more aspects of people’s • Video entertainment is the and visitors means, it will be an explosive year for
lives. Governments, industries and biggest spending category in IoT the digital signage industry. Industry insiders are
businesses are rapidly transitioning • Over 10% of VC funding is IoT- now predicting that the Middle East and Africa
to online and connected offerings, related digital signage market is largely expected to register
increasingly incorporating the a compound annual growth rate of over 6 percent by
Internet of Things (IoT) in their drive The volume of connected IoT 2025. “The digital signage space is growing rapidly
to meet customer’s demand. devices has grown recently. And is driven by both the private and the public sectors.
This is a result of the prevailing circumstances as
According to the latest available data, there are well as the shifting consumer preferences. For 2021
approximately 7.74 billion connected IoT devices. and beyond, more businesses will adopt and deploy
disruptive trends such as the heightened use of
The number of current IoT devices (7 billion) artificial intelligence, automation and IOT which is
may seem staggering. But due to 5G and other already impacting the industry and region,” stated
technologies, this figure is expected to increase by CEO of Pixcom.
to 25.44 billion total IoT devides by 2030. Pixcom also predicts that Internet of Things (IoT),
AR and AI are among the trends that are likely to
Worldwide IoT Trends & Industry expected to grow year-over-year for influence the industry. As AI, AR and IOT further
Size the foreseeable future. According to develop and merge with technology like digital
According to research conducted by the latest available data, there are signage, the level of personalization will grow to a
Statista, it has been estimated that approximately 7.74 billion connected great extent. Productivity will increase as a result
global spending on the Internet of IoT devices. The number of current of Artificial Intelligence. Artificial intelligence and
Things amounted to 685.64 billion IoT devices (7 billion) may seem augmented reality are rapidly becoming household
US dollars in 2019 and is expected staggering. But due to 5G and other names as companies, ranging from big retailers
to reach 1.17 trillion dollars in 2024. technologies, this figure is expected to small restaurants, embrace these technologies.
• There are over 7 billion connected to increase by over 3x to 25.44 billion With digital signage already making customer
IoT devices total IoT devides by 2030. experience in retail more comfortable for the
• It's expected there will be 25.4 customer, AI, AR and IOT enabled will push this
even further. The ease with which consumers find
the products and the speed with which they become
aware of products suited for them will grow, as well.
(Reference: Pixcom, Arabadonline)
Countries such as Saudi Arabia, and the United
Arab Emirates are amongst the fastest-growing
nations in the region with respect to IoT. The market
size of IoT in Saudi Arabia is expected to grow at
an annual rate of 10% until 2025, surpassing the
$27 billion thresholds, per a state official. And if it’s
worth anything, they were the first country to grant
citizenship to a robot, so we will continue to hear
more about them in the future when it comes to
investing in technology. (Reference: AImultiple)

12 JULY-AUGUST 2022