What Are the Benefits of Edge Analytics?
The strongest benefit of edge analytics is the benefit of improved latency; data can be analyzed and used both instantly and locally.
One use case is for autonomous vehicles, which use edge analytics in their operations. Computational tasks often must happen in a matter of seconds, which means that the analytical work must be handled instantaneously. That could mean cloud computing would be too slow to react in time. Such use cases, says Sunil, will benefit from the rollout of 5G technology.
Additionally, as IBM notes in an explainer on its website, processing analytics at the edge can help minimize security concerns: Data travels shorter distances, which creates less risk of disconnection and allows for continuous operation.
Contexts for edge analytics are wide. Smart cities, for example, can use edge analytics to assist with improving traffic safety on the fly.
Sunil points to specific edge analytics use cases, such as real-time analysis for oil and gas companies, as well as to broader industry implications such as in-store tracking in retail contexts, or personalized advertising.
“Big retail chains would like to know how somebody’s browsing online,” he says, “and then from there, the customer’s behaviors inside the store.”
Edge analytics can also empower occupancy management for social distancing — a major issue as offices and factories attempt to reopen safely amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
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Edge Analytics Providers
Edge analytics is often a combination of hardware and software working in tandem as a single solution, and what works for one organization may not work for another.
“Edge computing is very use case-specific,” Sunil explains, noting that it may require working with multiple vendors to help fully roll out a solution that meets your needs.
“Investments in edge computing can closely follow a framework, but it will heavily depend on the use case itself,” he adds. “The framework will have parts: investment in the infrastructure, investment in working with a network player and investment in hosting or services close to where you are. It could be a public cloud; it could be the data center.”
Ultimately, technology solutions will roll out across disciplines, requiring the use of Internet of Things solution providers, tools to build out data center solutions in locations where they’re needed and business intelligence software from vendors such as IBM and Tableau.
The cloud could also play a key role in maximizing the edge, particularly in the case of content delivery networks (CDNs), which have seen traffic increases of 30 percent or more in the months since the COVID-19 pandemic broke.
“The biggest players in cloud computing at this time, like the major public cloud players, and the enablers of cloud computing, like the CDNs and the network players, all of them will have a play in the edge computing space as well,” Sunil says.
What Is Cloud Analytics?
There are several benefits to edge analytics, but cloud analytics still serves businesses as well. Cloud analytics uses cloud resources to analyze different types of data. Use cases can vary significantly — from real-time reporting to in-depth Big Data solutions.
Despite the field’s maturity, there is still plenty of room to grow into cloud-based analytics. Research from IDC finds that the market for data analytics will grow to $247 billion in 2022 — a nearly 25 percent increase from this year’s projection.
Trying to decide between cloud analytics or edge computing isn’t a case of choosing one over the other. Often, they work together, especially during processes that are connected to the physical world rather than wholly online experiences.
