IBM kills Watson IoT Platform

IBM Watson IoT Platform allows manufacturers to collect and start processing data from connected devices. Whether from buildings or vehicles, the platform provides a UI to monitor and manage one's fleet.

In 2018, IBM touted Watson IoT Platform's next evolution would be delivering a future-proof Industrial IoT solution. However, after selling Watson Health, the Watson IoT Platform sister initiative, to Francisco Partners at the start of 2022, IBM kept scrutinizing its unprofitable lines of business. This week, IBM communicated it will "sunset the Watson IoT Platform service on IBM Cloud effective December 1st, 2023 without a direct replacement".

This is, of course, not the first time an IoT solution gets shit down. Google introduced Cloud IoT Core, a fully managed service for securely connecting and managing devices, at the Google I/O conference in May 2017. Earlier this year, Google announced it would retire its Google Cloud IoT Core is being retired on August 16, 2023.

What options are left for IBM Watson IoT Platform users? Share your thoughts below!