The ever-growing world of connected devices and machines, known as the Internet of Things (IoT), has become a powerful force of business transformation across almost all industries. The impact of IoT is evident in today’s connected world. And it’s just getting started.
Industry experts anticipate the Internet of Things will grow from 4.9 billion connections in 2015 to more than 25 billion by 2020. We’re helping developers unlock the potential for improved tools that further IoT development. The AT&T Foundry team in Israel and members of our Technology and Operations team here in the US, created a new cloud-based solution that enables IoT developers to turn their ideas into reality faster than ever before.
The solution is called AT&T Flow Designer. It’s a cloud-based visual development tool aimed at speeding the time required to build new IoT applications. IoT-focused solutions can be complex as they typically require a developer to have expert knowledge of device, network, and application programming. Flow Designer takes out much of that complexity and lets developers with little to no background in writing IoT applications use a simple drag and drop interface of pre-done bits of code to create powerful data flows – leaving the developer free to build quickly. The online tool allows developers of IoT applications to create and deploy otherwise complex applications and environments with ease and speed. That equates to less barriers for businesses and developers who want to take advantage of the Internet of Things and provide valuable products for businesses and consumers.
AT&T Flow Designer was unveiled at the ninth-annual Developer Summit Hackathon last week. Hackathon developers with almost no IoT development experience had the advantage of using Flow Designer to produce polished IoT prototypes. For example, developers of the “GreenGuest” app – designed using Flow Designer to manage energy used in hotel rooms –won $5,000 for the Kicker Contest at the hackathon.
We are committed to continue setting the pace for accelerating innovation in IoT. With more than 18 million connected devices on our network alone, and counting, it’s no wonder we are considered a trusted resource to help businesses accelerate and realize mobile services by serving as an enabling platform for the IoT industry. The future of IoT is only getting brighter.
