IoT news of the week for March 2021

Microsoft buys IIoT consulting firm: Microsoft is continuing to invest in the industrial IoT, purchasing Houston-based company The Marsden Group. The terms of the deal were not disclosed, but I find it an indication that Microsoft is getting more serious about its plans to really solve industrial clients’ problems as opposed to just trying to throw existing cloud services at them. The Marsden Group has helped companies such as BP, Shell, and Unilever design networks to monitor their own factory or drilling operations. In 2019, the CEO of The Marsden Group spoke at Microsoft’s Ignite conference about how his firm had custom-designed a sensor module for Unilver that helped it save $3 million. One of the biggest complaints I hear about Microsoft is that the Azure IoT services don’t really solve the problems industrial clients face at scale. This deal will help Microsoft fix that knowledge gap. (The Seattle Times)

The farm has some unique security challenges: Smart agriculture is a big business, and many farmers have been using self-driving tractors, sensor modules, and drones to improve their yields for years. But a researcher from Nanjing Agricultural University in China argues the entire field (sorry) needs a specialized form of cybersecurity that addresses the unique challenge of running what is essentially an open-air factory in a rural setting. Poor connectivity and high latency makes farm networks vulnerable to certain types of attacks, while some farming equipment directly interferes with popular wireless networks. The article provides a good view into areas that might require specialized research if we want to protect our crops. (IEEE Spectrum)

The VA is going big on digital medicine: After signing a deal to get data from Fitbit devices worn by veterans, the Department of Veterans Affairs has now signed a partnership with the Digital Medicine Society (DiMe) to establish best practices for digital medicine at scale. The VA operates more than 1,200 facilities and is the largest health care provider in the U.S., so I view this deal as validation for the DiMe, which is a relatively new organization formed to establish best practices around digital medicine. (DiMe)

Karamba scores investment from Samsung SDS: Samsung SDS, the Korean electronics giant’s software organization, has both invested in and signed a deal to resell Karamba Security’s embedded IoT security software. Samsung SDS will use Karamba’s software to extend the scope of its cybersecurity offerings to include protection of IoT devices against cyberattacks throughout the device lifecycle. Like Microsoft’s Azure Sphere, Karamba’s software requires software on the embedded device and a link back to a cloud. However, it has a tiny software footprint that means it can be installed on the smallest microcontrollers. — Stacey Higginbotham

Tuya raised $916 million through its IPO: Tuya went public on Wednesday, pricing 43.6 million shares at $21. The company, which makes an IoT platform that supports millions of devices, priced higher than its expected range of $17-$20 per share. On its first day of trading, it rose 19%, to $25 per share. For more on Tuya, you can read my story from when it filed for the IPO two weeks ago. (Investors Business Daily)

The enterprise access industry faces its trust issues: This is a great essay by a friend of mine who consults for access control companies, which is a fancy way of saying building access and security. The essay is a heartfelt realization that the visitors and employees of organizations providing access control are freaked out by the dystopian nature of security cameras and tools like facial recognition. It references the Verkada hack from last week, which exposed surveillance cameras in everything from hospitals to schools. I think it’s good that we’re grappling with what it means to have surveillance that isn’t just manned by humans, but that can become a digital footprint that can be analyzed and stored for all time. (The Inside)

Silicon Labs gets ARM’s most advanced security certification: In 2017, as concerns about IoT device security were boiling, ARM announced its Platform Security Architecture (PSA) standard for security. The PSA framework would ensure that the physical chips in a device were secure to varying levels. The framework has three different levels, with the third being the most secure and the most time-consuming to get because it requires extensive physical tests. Silicon Labs says it has achieved Level 3 certification. And in the article discussing the news, we also get a sneak peek into areas where IoT deployments are growing. (EETimes)

More chip news for low-power edge devices: AP Memory and Ambiq have teamed up to provide IoT modules that would have more memory and incredibly low power consumption. Ambiq is an innovative chip company that lowers the amount of power consumed by an ARM chip by as much as 10x. It has been working on this technology for the last 12 years, and we’re starting to see it appear in more deals as the market demands longer battery life or the use of energy-harvesting technologies for sensors. With the latest deal, Ambiq will work with AP Memory, which makes low-power memory chips. Together, they can build sensors that can work for longer on a battery and store more data. (Ambiq)

Kevin shares his thoughts on why Apple killed the HomePod: The short version is that it was pricey and didn’t support a future where Thread becomes a dominant protocol in the home. (Stacey on IoT)

Particle will offer cellular for 100 devices free: Particle now offers developers free connectivity for their first 100 devices, but it is also creating a new twist on cellular data plans in the process. For more, check out the article. (Stacey on IoT)