Pablo Tomasi, senior analyst, Smart Cities and IoT, IHS Markit, said that Smart Citydevice shipments are expected to reach 1.4 billion by 2026 from 202 million in 2017.

The largest market will be Asia Pacific with more than 700 million smart city device shipments by 2026. Other key regions will be North America and Europe, with more than 400 million and 200 million shipments, respectively.

Vertical applications related to physical infrastructure and mobility show particular potential for growth; in 2026 these applications are expected to comprise approximately 65 percent and 22 percent of total device shipments, respectively.

The smart city market continues to grow, presenting great opportunities for all players, despite its current fragmented state. This fragmentation appears in the type of smart city projects developed, in the technology, in the ecosystem, and in the solutions.

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Fragmentation is evident in the wide array of competing technologies used for smart city initiatives. These include the proprietary, such as Sigfox, and the standardized, such as 4G and NB-IoT. Though few technologies will obtain a leading market share, the shakeout process will be long, and multiple technologies that target different use cases and needs will continue to coexist.