It was 1999 and for the first time we heard about Internet of Things (IoT). The term was first coined in 1999 by Kevin Ashton, a British researcher and co-founder of the MIT Auto ID Center. But today a new scenario opens up before us: that of the IoE (Internet of Everything, or the Internet of Everything), which we will talk about below.

The Internet of Things: An Overview of Today's World

The idea of ​​the Internet of Things was originally to connect physical objects to the Internet through the use of sensors and radio frequency identification (RFID) technologies. 

The target? 

Make supply chain management more efficient through automatic, real-time communication between devices, without the need for human intervention. 

Since then, the concept of IoT has evolved significantly.

Thanks to its ability to collect and process data in real time, IoT has improved our quality of life, made processes more transparent and facilitated greater personalization of services, allowing us to glimpse a future in which technology becomes increasingly invisible but deeply integrated into our lives.

Among these innovations, the Internet of Things (IoT) has had a significant impact, with billions of connected devices communicating with each other, generating real-time data and facilitating a wide range of applications. However, we are witnessing a step further: the Intelligence of Things (IoE or Internet of Everything), a concept that goes beyond the simple connection of devices, introducing a distributed and contextual intelligence that opens the door to a new era of connectivity.

When IoT is no longer enough

Il Internet of Things concept It is based on the connection of physical objects to the Internet. These objects are equipped with sensors and actuators that collect and transmit data. IoT allows these devices to communicate with each other and send information to servers or clouds, where the data is then processed. 

But, in itself, the IoT This does not imply that the devices can decide “by themselves”. 

Typically, in fact, the data collected by IoT devices requires external intervention (such as analysis by software on cloud or human management) to be translated into actions or decisions.

Some examples of IoT

• Smart thermostats
• Health monitoring systems
• Connected cars that transmit data about their location and engine conditions, etc. 

As you can see, these objects alone cannot decide and cannot necessarily improve our lives.
Unless we consider another system that underpins what has been described above, and that system is the Internet of Everything.

Internet of Everything

In addition to connectivity between devices, the IoE (Internet of Everything) integrates artificial intelligence, machine learning and local processing capabilities such asedge computing. 

This allows devices to analyze, interpret and act on data autonomously, without always having to go through a central system or a human operator.

In other words, the IoE does not just make objects communicate with each other, but adds a level of intelligence and autonomy. 

IoE devices can make real-time, contextual decisions, adapt to their environment, and learn from interactions. 

There are some macroscopic differences with IoT.

First of all, l'IoT focuses on connection of devices to collect and transmit data, while the IoE adds a layer.

Then, in IoT data processing is mainly done in cloud or in remote control centers, while in the IoE theedge computing, that is, processing data directly on or nearby devices, reducing dependence on external servers and improving speed and efficiency.

This makes IoE significantly more proactive and less passive than IoT.

For example, consider a home energy management system that, in addition to monitoring the temperature, learns the habits of its inhabitants, automatically optimizes consumption, and can autonomously adjust the operation of household appliances based on energy prices or weather conditions.

In short, we are talking about a completely different way of conceiving the role that machines have in our lives. A way that we could define as futuristic, but which is increasingly closer to us.