Lionel Sujay Vailshery
Research expert covering cloud computing and emerging tech industries
With the advent of smart sensors and connected technologies, massive amounts of data produced that demand real-time processing that has been enabled by the internet of things. This demand is met by leveraging edge computing technology to make this data useful with a quick turnaround time. Edge computing has been made possible with the advancement of cloud computing technologies and advancing network technologies allowing companies and individuals to take advantage of services offered by cloud computing providers such as Amazon, Microsoft, and Google to store and process their data in virtual space or the “cloud”. However, the transmission of data between the endpoints and the cloud datacenters hosted by the provider consumes a great deal of energy and is hampered by latency, meaning that cloud solutions may not be appropriate for every case.
With a rapid growing number of devices able to connect to each other, more and more of them require faster computing with low latency for various use-cases driving computing at the “edge” of the network. The so-called “Third Act of the Internet” according to the Linux foundation reports, the edge of the network of devices is where a lot of the data storage and processing will take place in the future, giving rise to the term edge computing.
Edge computing is about delivering computing capabilities to the local points of a network, through which greater performance, lower latency and lower costs in operations are achieved. For example, smart home devices perform little to no computational work; requests are mostly sent from the device to servers owned by the smart speaker provider. Using edge computing, smart speakers would be able to receive and process a user’s request entirely on the device itself.
The need for localized network infrastructure and computing power is highlighted by the ever-growing Internet of Things (IoT), a term used to describe the network of connected devices. A growing amount of data is generated at the endpoints, burdening the traditional network structure.
The emergence and application of 5G, the fifth generation of cellular network technologies that allows for much greater bandwidth and density of connected devices, accelerates the growth of IoT while paving the way for edge computing. AI-optimized processors, which provide greater computing power, also enable wider adoption of edge systems.
Edge computing has become a big market and continues to grow at a great speed – the forecast global revenue is set to reach 350 billion U.S. dollars by 2027. Some industries such as manufacturing, and telecommunications have already put implementations of edge solutions on the schedule. Businesses look to gain benefits such as new core business functions and capabilities as well as the improvement of monitoring, response, and site reliability from their edge strategy. The interest in edge has exploded since 2015. In 2015, there were only 720 new papers related to edge computing on Google Scholar – that number has grown to more than 42,700 in 2023.
Detailed statistics
Edge computing market value worldwide 2019-2026
Detailed statistics
Edge computing market share 2020, by region
Detailed statistics
Global power footprint share of edge computing infrastructure 2028, by vertical
Edge computing market value worldwide 2019-2026
Edge computing market revenue worldwide from 2019 to 2026 (in billion U.S. dollars)
Main anticipated areas of edge computing investment 2023
What percent of your organization's total investment for your primary edge use case do you anticipate being allocated to the following services?
Most anticipated edge computing use cases in production 2023
Which of the following edge use cases does your organization expect to be using in production within the next three years?
Most anticipated connections between edge computing types 2023
What edge computing types are you planning to connect in the next three years?
Number of new papers on Google Scholar related to edge computing worldwide 2010-2023
Number of new papers related to edge computing published on Google Scholar from 2010 to 2023
Companies' technology deployment status 2023, by technology type
Deployment status of emerging technologies in companies worldwide in 2023, by technology type
Public cloud services market size 2017-2024
Public cloud services end-user spending worldwide from 2017 to 2024 (in billion U.S. dollars)
IT data center systems total spending worldwide 2012-2024
Information technology (IT) spending on data center systems worldwide from 2012 to 2024 (in billion U.S. dollars)
Worldwide server market value 2023-2025
Worldwide server market value in 2023 with forecasts for 2024 and 2025 (in million U.S. dollars)
Expected endpoints for primary edge computing use case 2023
Which types of endpoints will you use for your primary edge computing use case?
Internet of Things (IoT) spending worldwide 2023
Prognosis of worldwide spending on the Internet of Things (IoT) from 2018 to 2023 (in billion U.S. dollars)
Cloud gaming market revenue worldwide 2017-2027
Global cloud gaming market revenue from 2017 to 2027 (in billion U.S. dollars)
Forecast 5G share of mobile connections 2030, by selected country
Forecast share of 5G mobile connections in selected countries worldwide in 2030
Forecast number of 5G mobile subscriptions worldwide 2023-2028
Forecast number of mobile 5G subscriptions worldwide from 2023 to 2028 (in billions)
Global 5G subscriptions 2018-2029
Number of 5G subscriptions worldwide from 2018 to 2029 (in millions)
Global 5G IoT installed base 2020-2023, by segment
The 5G Internet of Things (IoT) installed base worldwide in 2020 and 2023, by segment (in millions)
5G priorities for companies' future worldwide 2023
Organizations' future priorities for 5G worldwide in 2023
Global public IT cloud services revenue 2016-2023, by segment
Public IT cloud services market revenue worldwide from 2016 to 2023, by segment (in billion U.S. dollars)
Public cloud services used worldwide 2024
Usage of public cloud services worldwide as of 2024
Global public cloud desktop as a service spending 2019-2024
Public cloud desktop as a service (DaaS) end-user spending worldwide from 2019 to 2024 (in million U.S. dollars)
Enterprise public cloud platform and infrastructure service usage worldwide 2017-2024
Current enterprise public cloud adoption worldwide from 2017 to 2024, by service
Leading technologies for effective zero trust implementation worldwide 2024
Which technology do you consider most critical for effectively implementing a zero trust strategy in your organization?
Most used AI-driven tools in critical national infrastructure (CNI) in the UK 2024
Which of the following AI-driven tools do you primarily use in your operations?
Global emerging IT security technologies and architectures 2024, by deployment status
Emerging IT security technologies and architectures worldwide in 2024, by deployment status
Leading Secure Service Edge (SSE) use cases worldwide 2024
Which Secure Service Edge (SSE) use case do you plan to start with?
Mon - Fri, 9am - 6pm (EST)
Mon - Fri, 9am - 5pm (SGT)
Mon - Fri, 10:00am - 6:00pm (JST)
Mon - Fri, 9:30am - 5pm (GMT)
Mon - Fri, 9am - 6pm (EST)