DataRobot is another key automation start-up that managed to secure approximately US$1bn in funding. It got listed in New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) in April 2018. The company, which is primarily a provider of cloud computing services, is backed by key investors such as EMC, Ford Motor Company, GE, Microsoft, and Vmware. Pivotal received the highest funding of US$1.7 billion. – a majority of them being based in California.
Even though the chemical and consumer goods industries are late bloomers, they are now not only transforming production but also creating smart supply chains and new business models.Ī large part of leading start-ups are from the U.S. Digitalization in healthcare is centered around medical devices and pharmaceuticals. The A&D industry also has one of the highest rates of digital adoption owing to the sheer complexity of its value chain. In fact, the automotive industry was the leader across all sectors in terms of digital adoption rates in 2020 and benefited from reductions in both time to market (TTM) and costs. Further, emphasis is now being placed on creating an agile and flexible production process through the use of modularized systems that can be reconfigured in quick time.ĭigital technologies are increasingly being customized to serve the needs across multiple industries with maximum application being witnessed in automotive, healthcare, aerospace and defense (A&D), chemicals, and consumer goods. Over the last few years, global manufacturers such as Adidas and Nike have started moving their production centers away from low-cost countries, closer to the consumer. Digital technologies have also begun to usher in an era of customization at a much lower cost in both the B2C and B2B segments. The digitalization of manufacturing across industries has resulted in the emergence of service-based revenue models to complement the already existing product-based models. Even though there are many technologies currently playing a role in Industry 4.0 and the smart factory, for the purpose of this report, we have focused on five key ones: additive manufacturing, artificial intelligence (AI), robotics, internet of things (IoT), and augmented and virtual reality (AR/VR). Global manufacturing giants such as Germany, France, the U.S., Japan, and Mainland China have all launched government-backed strategic initiatives to digitalize production across various industries. Companies are now experiencing major benefits in terms of lower costs, improved efficiencies, increased yield, mass customization, and most importantly, new revenue and business models.ĭigital technologies are disrupting all elements of the value chain including product design, supply chain, manufacturing, and customer experience, while creating new business models. Even though developments in electronics and information technology have resulted in the automation of manufacturing processes since the early 1960s, it is only the recent advances in digital technologies that are beginning to extend the scope of disruption. Industry 4.0 or the fourth industrial revolution is quite simply the use of digital technologies in the manufacturing process to produce higher-quality goods at reduced costs.