June 2011, Press Backgrounder

The Internet of Things

Since its humble beginnings in 1969 as a University network called

ARPANET, the Internet has evolved and grown beyond our expectations.

Today, more than two billion people are connectedi, and each day, we buy

one million PCsii. Between us, we view 8.6 billion Facebook* pages, watch 2

billion videos on YouTube* and tweet 146 million times every dayiii. And, as

of writing this, there are currently more than 5 billion devices connected to

the Internetiv.

Despite this phenomenal uptake, we believe that if the Internet was a

movie, we’d still be at the opening credits. In other words, while the

Internet is huge, it’s going to get a lot bigger. By 2020, there will be 4 billion

people online, and 31 billion Internet-connected devicesv.

We’re entering a new phase of Internet evolution. It is expanding much

more rapidly than it has done in the last decade. Increasing numbers of

everyday appliances are connecting to the Internet, their environment and

to each other. Cars, fitness equipment, factory robots, retail signage and

vending machines are becoming ‘smart’ thanks to tiny embedded computer

processors and sensors, just like those in your laptop or mobile phone.

This smarter, connected world has the potential to completely change how

we live. Imagine cars that warn each other about traffic congestion;

interactive adverts in shopping malls that recognise your gender, age and

even mood and tailor the advert accordingly; medicine containers that

remind you when you’ve forgotten to take your pills; or wine glasses that

tell you when you’ve had enough to drink. The possibilities are endless.

Some call this new era the ‘Internet of Things’, at Intel we call it the

‘Compute Continuum’ – a world where computing happens on many of your

devices or appliances, devices that are always-connected, pervasive and

personal.

Just as Intel is known the world over for being at the heart of computing,

the Internet and the mobile revolution, so too Intel is leading the way with

smart embedded devices. Thousands of developers are using Intel® Core™

and Intel® Atom™ processor-based platforms in intelligent embedded

designs to transform cars, energy management, digital signage, and more.

Additionally, high-performance Intel servers are powering the data centres

that support the billions of Internet-connected devices and serve the

content we so copiously demand. They are creating a huge amount of

Internet traffic and it is growing fast. In 2010, about 245 exabytes of traffic

crossed the Internet and that is expected to reach 1,000 exabytes by 2015vi.

The Four Eras of Computing and the

Internet

Since summer of 1969, when the

University of California, LA, and the

University of Stanford connected via

packet switching technology for the

first time, the evolution of the

Internet and computing have been

inextricably linked. Together, they

have evolved through four different

eras:

The first era was defined by

computers the size of rooms,

otherwise known as mainframes.

These vast computers were

expensive, but by connecting to this

‘network’, researchers could share

resources and access computers

remotely.

The second era was the

democratisation of computers and the

Internet. Desktop PCs, laptops and

servers became much more

affordable and Internet access

improved significantly across the

world. Together, this meant that the

Internet was available to a much

wider audience.

The third era is marked by the

ubiquity of mobile phones and smart

computing devices notable for their

powerful processing ability. The

vision of mobile computing, with

Internet access from anywhere,

anytime starts to become a reality.

Today we’re on the cusp of the fourth

era that Intel calls the ‘Compute

Continuum’, others refer to it as the

‘Internet of Things’. This era is

characterised by billions of everyday

objects becoming intelligent as

computing power and Internet

connectivity are embedded into them.

People will barely see the all pervasive

and seamless computing that

surrounds them other than through

the devices they use.

That’s 1,000,000,000,000,000,000,000 bytes – or the equivalent of 250,000,000,000,000 digital

photos!vii

The Internet and intelligent devices are profoundly changing the way we live. At Intel, the compute

continuum is our vision of delivering a smarter, more secure, and always-connected computing

experience that spans a range of device segments – including laptops, cars, smartphones and smart

TVs – and the Internet data centres to which they connect. Intel is helping to enrich and simplify the

lives of people worldwide by putting our collective intelligence into billions of devices that are

connecting to the Internet.

Intel (NASDAQ: INTC) is a world leader in computing innovation. The company designs and builds the essential technologies that serve as the foundation for the world’s computing devices. Additional information about Intel is available at newsroom.intel.com and blogs.intel.com. Intel is a trademark of Intel Corporation in the United States and other countries. * Other names and brands may be claimed as the property of others.

i http://www.internetworldstats.com/stats.htm ii IDC Worldwide Quarterly PC Tracker, January 2011 iii IDC: stats quoted by Otellini in Intel Investor meeting, May 2011 iv http://newsroom.intel.com/servlet/JiveServlet/download/1186-28-2531/Day1_IDF_Keynote_Transcript_Otellini.pdf v IDC Directions 2010, ICT Outlook: Recovering Intel a New World, Doc# DR2010_GS2_JG, March 2010 vi Otellini, Q4 2010 call with press and analysts http://www.eweekeurope.co.uk/news/intel-sees-benefits-challenges-in-tablets-smartphones-18123 vii rough guide based on 10 mega pixel camera)