Imagination is the end point in the IoT space, said experts @ Techcircle Big Data Forum 2014

With everything you can imagine getting connected, from turbines to generators to automobiles, the world will be a changed place in the next decade. At the Techcircle Big Data Forum 2014, eminent panellists discussed the opportunities in the Internet of Things (IoT) space. One of the panels, 'Internet Of Things (IOT) & Big Data', highlighted some interesting implications of IoT.

The panel was moderated by Arihant Patni, MD, The Hive, and saw participation from Vinay Nathan, co-founder and CEO, Altizon Systems; Flutura CEO Krishnan Raman; Apurva Shetty, co-founder and COO, SenseGiz Technologies; and Leny Thangiah, head of research Group - data-centric systems at Siemens Corporate Technology. Following are some of the forward-looking observations made by the panellists:

Arihant Patni, MD, The Hive

What if I were to tell you exactly what you ate for lunch with the help of the sensors in your badges. It's scary but that is the direction in which the world is going. There are smart cities, smart health, and smart homes. There are a lot of smart things going around. And there is a lot of information coming from sensors all over the globe. But it's not just about data; it's about what you do with it. Predictive analytics has the power to prevent air planes from crashing, or power plants from blowing up.

Leny Thangiah, head of research- data centric systems, Siemens Corporate Technology

Gone are the days when information was very cryptic. Now there are open standards and companies are joining together. We have also realised that it is not possible to build everything on our own. Neither can we create one platform for all sectors. We have to look at domain specific solutions. Startups have the opportunity to sell solutions to a big company, if they are not acquired by them.

Apurva Shetty, co-founder and COO, SenseGiz Technologies

Imagination is the end point in the IoT space. In the wearables and equipments space, opportunities exist in the form of say orchids speaking about themselves; robots doing all the work; emergency alert to family if something is wrong with you; reminder for taking phone and bag before leaving the home, etc.

Apart from heart rate monitors and fitness trackers, swiping your hand to switch off fans when you feel cold, to gesture-based photo clicking and so on can be interesting ideas to provide solutions for. The whole idea is- why not bring the physical world in the digital world. The only problem is that investors are not that open to invest in hardware in India.

Krishnan Raman, CEO, Flutura

We operate at the intersection of machine data and Big Data analytics in the energy sector, mainly around oil and gas. There are already many sensors that are pumping in the data. The value lies in providing lead indicators to alert any kind of deterioration.

Vinay Nathan, co-founder and CEO, Altizon Systems

We work on industrial side of IoT. I believe IoT is all about getting machines connected, driving data from them and basically providing applications around predictive analytics especially around maintenance, and equipment efficiency for the industrial world. For instance, when we were working with the auto sector, we found that it had some equipment that is built in-house while the others are sourced from local vendors as well as big guys.

There are sensors but very few are connected in a meaningful manner. And there is hardly any kind of operational dashboard that is provided to the management and supervisory layer which provides data automatically. There is a huge gap and opportunity in data infrastructure side. In the consumer space, connected health paradigm and home automation is probably the next big wave that we anticipate.