WEF 2015: Going digital no more an option but a necessity now, says TCS chief N Chandrasekaran

DAVOS: Betting big on the 'Internet of Things' as the third major wave in technology space, IT major TCS' chief N Chandrasekaran has said that going digital was no more an option, but a default now.

While digital economy and emerging trends in the technology space remained a key point during various sessions at the World Economic Forum here, Chandrasekaran said 'Internet of Things' (IoT) would transform every company, industry and even the society going forward.

Taking over as the chair of the IT governors steering committee of the WEF, Tata Consultancy Services' Managing Director and CEO said: "Going digital is no longer an option for all of us, it is the default."

IoT is the interconnection of uniquely identifiable and embedded computing devices within existing Internet infrastructure.

As the chair, Chandrasekaran will work with WEF and CEOs of other global IT companies in 2015-16 to define an agenda of priorities for the IT industry, as they help other industries navigate an era of transformational change.

As per the discussions here, over 50 billion devices are expected to be connected to each other by 2020, driving a large-scale re-imagination of how societies live, interact and do business.

In his opening remarks during a Harvard Business Review breakfast session on IoT, Chandrasekaran said: "The Internet of Things will transform every company, industry and society.

"This is the third wave of the connected economy - the first wave through the world wide web allowed sources of information to be connected.

"In the second wave, the social web allowed for individuals to connect, and now in the third wave, have IoT connecting multiple electrical and electronic devices across homes, offices, factories and cities."