As the world's biggest manufacturing power, China is well placed to lead the Internet of Things transition. Which is why this week GE, the world's biggest industrial company, opened what it calls a "digital foundry" in Shanghai. The centre will help Chinese companies develop and commercialise products for the industrial internet of things, which involves factory machines and industrial goods communicating with each other and their surroundings.

If you manage factories, airlines, hospitals or farms, you probably know something about the Internet of Things. If you don't, your thoughts on the IoT may start and end with wondering why a coffeepot needs to talk to a toaster. But the fact is that the continuing development of precision technologies could dramatically transform our planet's fundamental infrastructure.

Yes, there is a ton of hype surrounding the Internet of Things. But the common assumption that the IoT is progressing at a linear rate is wrong.

Number crunching can be valuable for firms exploiting their existing resources, but can backfire for companies seeking to branch out with new products or services.

South Korean shipbuilding giant Hyundai Heavy Industries (HHI) has signed a memorandum of understanding to develop Internet of Things applications for ships with SK Shipping, Intel, Microsoft, the Ulsan Center for Creative Economy & Innovation (UCCEI) and the Daejeon Center for Creative Economy & Innovation (DCCEI).

The Internet of Things (IoT) has finally matured to where frictionless retail is becoming real.

Ortec Consulting has launched its Big Data Portal, providing analytics as a service.