Amazon launches platform to build IoT apps for cars, lightbulbs and more
Amazon is taking a stake in the proliferation of connected cars, lightbulbs and sensors with the launch of a new platform from its cloud computing arm Amazon Web Services (AWS) that will allow businesses to build applications to connect devices to the Internet of Things.
Named AWS IoT, the platform will make it easy for devices to connect to AWS so that companies can process and use data generated by connected devices on a global scale. Manufacturers can set rules for how AWS IoT handles the data they send, and the actions they take.
Amazon said that AWS IoT will offer customers a pay-as-you-go service that handles the 'heavy lifting' involved in connecting any number of devices, allowing them to securely interact with each other, cloud services, and applications.
Philips, NASA JPL, and Sonos are some of the companies already using AWS services to support the back-end of their IoT applications.
Marco Argenti, vice president, Mobile and IoT, AWS said: "The promise of the Internet of Things is to make everyday products smarter for consumers, and for businesses to enable better, data-driven offerings that weren’t possible before.
"Now, AWS IoT enables a whole ecosystem of manufacturers, service providers, and application developers to easily connect their products to the cloud at scale, take action on the data they collect, and create a new class of applications that interact with the physical world."
The service also has a 'shadow' mode, which keeps the latest virtual version of a device in the system for others to interact with, even if the device itself has gone offline.
The beta version of the service is available now and launches with starter kits from Qualcomm, Intel, Broadcom and Texas Instruments.