Ambient IoT Alliance Formed for Batteryless Devices
A new industry group, the Ambient IoT Alliance, has formed to promote and develop standards for batteryless IoT devices. The alliance will focus on technologies that use energy harvesting, enabling ultra-low maintenance sensors and controls. This development could lead to self-powered, energy-autonomous lighting and building management systems, reducing lifecycle environmental impact.
- Founding members of the alliance include a mix of semiconductor giants like Intel, Qualcomm, and Infineon Technologies, alongside major technology users such as PepsiCo, and IoT innovators like Wiliot and VusionGroup. - The alliance's primary goal is to establish an open, multi-standard ecosystem for batteryless devices by working with standards bodies like IEEE (Wi-Fi), Bluetooth SIG, and 3GPP (5G Advanced) to ensure interoperability. - The core technology, ambient energy harvesting, enables devices to draw power from surrounding sources like radio waves (RF), light (photovoltaic), heat (thermoelectric), or motion (piezoelectric). This eliminates the need for batteries, significantly reducing maintenance and the environmental impact of disposing of an estimated 15 billion batteries annually. - Market projections for ambient IoT are substantial, with one forecast predicting 1.1 billion device shipments by 2030. Another report anticipates the global market will grow at a CAGR of 16.3% between 2025 and 2034. - Photovoltaic (solar) harvesting is expected to be the most common method, powering 57% of ambient IoT devices in 2030, followed by RF harvesting at 36%. - A key application relevant to building design is the reduction of copper wiring for sensors and controls, which lowers material, installation, and maintenance costs in smart buildings. - The massive amount of data generated by these low-cost sensors is seen as a crucial fuel for AI and machine learning applications, enabling more advanced analytics and automation in building management. - While the technology eliminates batteries, challenges remain, including the intermittent nature of ambient energy sources and the need for efficient on-device power management to store harvested energy.
