Welcome to the Internet of Things revolution

When I was a child, time stood still in India.

My cousins ​​and I would run away if a car passed just so we could look at it, because cars were so rare. If you wanted to buy a car, you had to wait five years to get one because the government only allowed a certain amount to be made each year.

It took the state-owned company six years or more to install a telephone in his home.

Cars and phones were all the technology that was available to us in India.

Computers, new medical technology, and consumer gadgets like washing machines and air conditioners were some of what we just heard about.

But that was then …

Today, thanks to the Internet and satellite television, people all over the world are aware of new technologies at the same time. And that is one of the reasons why the latest technological trend that is bringing a revolution to all aspects of human society will be a global phenomenon.

The Internet of Things (IoT) revolution is sweeping the world right now.

According to the researchers, the global IoT market in 2020 will be worth $ 373 billion in terms of sales. Hardware will account for 52% of sales: devices ranging from personal wearable technology to smart homes and connected cars.

The remaining 48% will come from the software and analytics necessary to convert the large amounts of data generated by the hardware into usable information.

Leading market research firm IDC forecasts that China will spend $ 128 billion on IoT by 2020. India’s spending will be around $ 10 billion to $ 12 billion by 2020. And sales forecast for the Middle East and Africa are $ 11 billion for 2019.

When the personal computer (PC) revolution began, it was mostly confined to developed countries. Only in the much later stages, when computer prices fell significantly, did this revolution go global.

But unlike previous technological revolutions, IoT is a global revolution from day one. Children growing up in India today will be part of the IoT at the same time as their peers from richer and more developed countries.

Global reach of IoT

In fact, IoT will be the first technological revolution that has the real possibility of benefiting all countries at the same time.

IoT will give us information so that we have safer cars, buses, trucks, trains and airplanes. You will reduce waste and increase safety in factories and manufacturing. It will give us options on how to use energy to maximize its efficiency and reduce pollution.

That is why I believe that the IoT revolution is going to have a greater impact than the industrial revolution and the PC revolution. That’s why Cisco Systems, the world’s largest networking company, estimates that the total impact of the IoT revolution will be $ 19 trillion. And Ericsson, a device maker, believes there will be 50 billion connected devices worldwide by 2020.

And yet, despite these massive numbers, most people are skeptical. The companies that are going to benefit directly from the IoT revolution do not currently reflect the enormous advantage that they will capture as this technology trend unfolds.

This poor performance is due in large part to fear. You see, most people are too scared of the stock market to buy stocks that are about to rally 100%, 200%, or even 500%. And that is understandable. After all, the crash of 2008 and the enormous volatility we’ve experienced left many investors with significantly smaller portfolios and less tolerance for risk.

However, just understand that soon more stocks connected to the IoT trend will start to climb higher. For example, the recent IoT-related IPO Impinj (Nasdaq: PI) has rallied 171% in just two months. But don’t buy this or any other stock just because I’m using it as an example.

Now, IPOs are often small companies that are too risky. However, you can get into the global IoT trend by buying two exchange-traded funds (ETFs) that I’ve been telling readers about.

First up, there’s Industrial Select Sector SPDR ETF (NYSE Arca: XLI), which will introduce you to the industrial and manufacturing side of the IoT tech trend.

Second is VanEck vectors Semiconductor ETF (NYSE Arca: SMH), which will take you to the side of the electronic sensors of this trade, which is a critical element of the IoT technology trend.