The Global Market for IoT & Embedded Operating Systems: Real-Time & Secure Computing Revitalizes Commercial OS Market

INSIDE THIS REPORT:

The embedded operating system (OS) and IoT market will experience steady growth, driven by the increasing adoption of IoT and smart devices and the growing need for advanced real-time capabilities. High-value embedded computing applications such as remote monitoring and control, predictive maintenance, and autonomous systems feature low latency and other application requirements for flexible I/O support, multicore performance, and accelerated workload processing, demanding a well-supported OS. This report defines and examines the market for IoT and embedded operating systems, quantifying and qualifying market dynamics through an in-depth discussion of recent events, engineering trends, and vendor strategies. This report also analyzes market dynamics according to leading vendors, geographic regions, and vertical markets.

WHAT QUESTIONS ARE ADDRESSED?

• Which industries and regions are set to emerge the strongest and will be drivers of growth over the next five years?
• How should OS vendors capitalize on increasing safety and security concerns?
• Which software capabilities should OS vendors enable to offer a more complete software platform?
• Will the increased adoption of open-source solutions affect OS vendor strategies?
• How will future safety certifications for Linux affect safety-critical markets?
• Which industries will be affected the most because of emerging global economic concerns?

WHO SHOULD READ THIS REPORT?

This research report is written for those making critical business decisions regarding products, markets, channels, and competitive strategies and tactics. This report is intended for senior decision-makers who are developing and using embedded, IoT, and cloud services technology, including those in the following roles:

• CEO and other C-level executives
• Corporate development and M&A teams
• Marketing executives
• Business development and sales leaders
• Product development and product strategy leaders

VENDORS LISTED IN THIS REPORT:

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY:

With the advent of the Internet of Things (IoT) and Industry 4.0, the demand for intelligent and interconnected devices has grown significantly, leading to a surge in deployments and requirements for embedded OSs. Realtime application requirements and increasing demand for (multi-)OS capabilities are growing alongside system complexity and multicore processor use. Additionally, many traditional OS vendors are using their products as a foundation for providing other software offerings, such as those that support greater connectivity and security, as software complexity increases. The embedded OS market is in a state of rapid change for deployment opportunities and requirements as well as the composition of its competitive landscape.

Open-source OSs are becoming increasingly popular for their flexibility, cost effectiveness, and generally greater availability of software tools. Despite these benefits, open-source OSs still face mounting safety and security challenges. Yet, there is significant interest in certifying open-source OS to increase adoption in safety-critical industries. Hypervisors are the biggest enablers for driving open-source OS deployments in safety-critical industries by supporting multi-OS systems. Mixed-criticality embedded systems are becoming more important in automotive, A&D, and industrial automation verticals and will fuel further Android/Linux adoption in remote monitoring and control, predictive maintenance, and autonomous systems.

Economic uncertainty is increasing as 2023 progresses, with bank failures, increasing interest rates, and global tensions rising. Despite these setbacks, certain industries, including automotive, defense, and telecommunications, will see stable growth. Defense budgets are increasing worldwide in response to rising global tensions, which will in turn drive demand for commercial embedded OSs in the sector. Additionally, the automotive industry will experience significant growth over the next five years driven by autonomous systems and the race towards the software-defined vehicle. For telecommunications, increased 5G station deployments subsidized by governments will drive edge computing adoption, and hypervisor and container usage as a result. The embedded OS market is set for a dramatic change given the evolution in IoT and embedded computing applications and software development.

KEY FINDINGS:

• Comprising more than half of global OS revenues combined, the market is led by the automotive, A&D, communications, and industrial automation verticals.
• Multi-OS systems are gaining popularity, particularly in automotive, as a means of using operating systems that support different safety-critical standards and/or application requirements, such as RTOSs and Linux.
• Open-source OSs for embedded applications continue to grow in use, and projects run by The Linux Foundation, such as the Enabling Linux In Safety Applications (ELISA) project, the Zephyr project, and Automotive Grade Linux (AGL), are working to extend Linux within safe and secure applications.
• OS vendors should look to expand their software stack beyond OSs by adding components such as hypervisors and cloud agents to help OEMs shorten development times, as developers will be able to focus on building applications and services on top of a reliable OS platform.

REPORT EXCERPT:

EXPANDING THE SOFTWARE STACK CAN CREATE NEW VALUE FOR OS VENDORS

Outside of operating systems, vendors are looking to support other aspects of the software stack, as the complexity and sophistication of embedded software continues to grow. OS vendors need to incorporate or add other aspects of software development, such as security features, file systems, web browsers, cloud agents, and embedded databases. By integrating these components into a cohesive software stack, OS providers can offer a complete solution for OEMs and other engineering houses.

In particular, containers and hypervisor solutions have seen significant growth and are now crucial aspects of the software stack for OS vendors. Hypervisors are used to support multi-OS systems, while containers are being more commonly deployed in applications such as telecommunications to support cloud-native development. Containers are expected to grow in usage over the next three years to 22.4% from 18.1%.

ABOUT THE AUTHORS:

Dan Mandell

Dan Mandell supports a variety of syndicated market research programs and custom consulting engagements in the IoT and Embedded Technology practice. He leads VDC's annual research services for embedded processors, boards, integrated systems, edge gateways, and other computing hardware. Dan's insights help leading technology providers align their go-to-market planning and competitive strategies with the dynamic embedded landscape and its constantly evolving buyer behaviors, technology adoption, and application requirements. His working relationship with VDC dates back to 2005 and includes time supporting Business Development as well as the AutoID practice. Dan holds a B.S. in Information Systems Management from Bridgewater State University.

Chris Rommel

Chris Rommel leads VDC's syndicated research programs and consulting engagements focused on development and deployment solutions for intelligent systems. He has helped a wide variety of clients respond to and capitalize on the leading trends impacting nextgeneration industrial and device markets, such as security, the IoT, and engineering lifecycle management solutions. Chris has also led a range of proprietary consulting projects, including competitive analyses, strategic marketing initiative support, ecosystem development strategies, and vertical market opportunity assessments. Chris holds a B.A. in Business Economics and a B.A. in Public and Private Sector Organization from Brown University.