The market for the Internet of Things, the concept that every day objects have network connectivity, currently sits at $1.3 trillion worldwide, and could hit $3 trillion by 2020, according to a report from research group IDC.

IDC also says that Asian and European markets will start to outpace the U.S. This will not necessarily be the consumer side that makes the extra $1.7 billion, but more advancement in industrial automation.

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Robots capable of performing labor jobs will overtake human workers in factories, as more businesses look to cut the costs of an active workforce. This should increase productivity in factories and cut the cost of an expensive human workforce.

Some efforts to bring automation into the Chinese markets have already happened, but large industry giants like Foxconn still employ more than 1 million human workers. IDC claims in the next few years, companies will make every non-detailed part of the assembly line robotic.

Apple was one of the first companies to step away from the manufacturing part all together, employing Foxconn to take over. The high costs of labor are too intensive for some companies, and Apple has been profitable ever since the move away from factories.

On the consumer side, it is a lot more friendly to the worker. Instead of taking their job, the Internet of Things revolution will bring tools to make life easier and save the user money, like Nest's smart thermostat - saving hundreds per year on heating bills.

Even though these tools are a niche market right now, Google-owned Nest Labs wants to make it more relevant. Various Internet of Things groups have been set up, including companies like Samsung, Qualcomm, Huawei and Intel, to create one simplified platform. 

Apple has also been working on an smart-home platform, which will work on the iPhone. Users will be able to connect different smart-home devices to the platform, and the iPhone will work as the main hub for all of these different devices settings.

TagsIDC, smart home, nest labs, industry automation