2024 IoT & Embedded

Developer Survey Report

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 Introduction

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Introduction

Welcome to the 2024 IoT & Embedded Developer Survey Report.

The 2024 survey report expanded the focus to include the embedded systems industry, examining how
IoT trends also influence embedded development. Key areas of analysis include:

● Security and Deployment: Challenges and priorities as developers address cybersecurity risks.
● Open Source Engagement: How open source drives innovation in IoT and embedded applications.
● Developer Preferences: Preferred features and frameworks for application development.
● Safety Certifications: The role of certifications in software adoption for embedded systems.
● Hardware and OS Choices: Leading hardware architectures and dominant RTOS for embedded
devices and edge nodes.

We trust this report provides valuable insights into the evolving landscape and welcome your feedback.

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Executive Summary

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Executive Summary
● Industrial and Automotive Sectors Lead: IoT development remains strong in industrial automation (34%) and
automotive (29%), maintaining their position as top sectors while reflecting steady growth from previous years.

● Rising Focus on Sustainability and Lifestyle Solutions: Increased activity in energy management (29%),
environmental applications (23%), healthcare (18%), and home automation (25%) signals a shift toward IoT
solutions that prioritise sustainability, efficiency, and improved quality of life.

● Key Security Priorities in IoT: Communication security leads at 40%, followed by over-the-air updates rising to
32%, and secure boot increasing to 19%. This shift suggests a priority on maintaining device integrity and
secure communication as primary defenses against evolving threats, while analytics/anomaly detection, now at
16%, is seen as a secondary layer after establishing core security foundations.

● Evolving Safety Certifications Highlight Industry Needs: Nearly 47% of developers emphasise safety
certifications such as IEC 61508 and ISO 26262, particularly in automotive, medical, and industrial sectors.
This reflects a growing demand for safety-critical solutions and the industry’s focus on trusted, certified
technologies for embedded systems.

● Impact of End User App Design on IoT Solutions: End user app design plays a crucial role in IoT development,
with most respondents acknowledging its influence on solution effectiveness. This emphasis indicates that user
experience and functionality are key drivers in shaping IoT applications, aligning design choices closely with
performance and usability goals.
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Executive Summary
● Embedded Linux (46%) and FreeRTOS (29%) lead as RTOS choices for constrained devices, yet the growth of Zephyr
(21%) and Eclipse ThreadX (13%) indicates a shift toward solutions balancing performance with integration ease.
ThreadX’s adoption highlights its appeal for safety-critical IoT applications, positioning it as an emerging competitor
in the evolving RTOS landscape.

● While Hardware or Platform Support is the top influencing factor for selecting RTOS for constrained devices , the
licencing model plays a major role in considering an RTOS as 34% of respondents, reflecting concerns around costs
and legal flexibility.

● Key Security Priorities in IoT: Connectivity and Threat Defense: Connectivity (48%) has overtaken security (35%) as
the leading concern for IoT and edge developers in 2024. Key security measures include communication security
(40%), over-the-air updates (32%), and secure boot (19%), which remain primary defenses against threats. Analytics
and anomaly detection (16%) are emerging as secondary layers for proactive system protection.

● ESP32 and RISC-V are gaining traction in constrained devices, while x86_64 and ARM Cortex-M remain popular for
performance needs. The decline in older ARM versions, like ARMv6, reflects a shift to newer ARM cores, solidifying
ARM’s versatility across various applications.

● Developer Language Preferences: C (55%), C++ (36%), Python (32%), and Java (29%) are the top programming
languages for constrained devices, with Rust showing steady growth in adoption.
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Executive Summary

● IIoT Protocol Trends Show Growth in MQTT and Emerging Technologies: MQTT (56%) continues as the most widely
adopted IIoT communication protocol, up 7% from 2023, demonstrating its scalability and reliability. Emerging
protocols, such as Eclipse Zenoh, have gained traction, rising to 4.29% (from 1.79%), signaling developer interest in
innovative communication technologies.

● Open Source Technology Adoption and Engagement Surge: Open source technology remains integral, with 75% of
developers actively using these technologies in 2024, up from 63% in 2023. Additionally, 24% of developers now
serve as committers, illustrating a growing commitment to transparent and collaborative development models.

● The regional distribution in 2024 aligns closely with 2023’s data, confirming continued strong engagement from
Asia-Pacific and Europe. This consistent geographic representation highlights the ongoing global nature of IoT and
embedded development.

● Evolving Demographics: A strong presence of experienced developers, with 29% having over 10 years of experience
and 26% with 5-10 years. New talent is also rising, with 27% having 0-2 years of experience, while mid-level
developers (2-5 years) have declined to 13%.

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Development Is Increasing Across All Segments

While the two top market segments for

solution development continue to be
industrial automation (34%, up from 33%
in 2023) and automotive (29%, up from
23% in 2023), developers indicate
increased activity in several areas. The
growth of IoT and edge solutions is
especially noticeable in energy
management (29%, up from 24% in 2023)
and environment (23%, up from 18% in
2023), as sustainability and efficiency
become more critical to developers.
Additionally, the rising focus on
healthcare (18%, up from 12% in 2023)
and home automation (25%, up from 21%
in 2023) highlights the expansion of IoT
into sectors tied closely to personal
well-being and smart living.

Q: For which industry or industries are you building IoT solutions? (Select all that apply)
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Developer Embedded OS Preferences on Constrained Devices

45% Linux (45%), and FreeRTOS (29%) are

the top embedded OS choices for
constrained devices. The introduction
29% of Eclipse ThreadX (Azure RTOS), with
21% 21% 13%, further shows that developers are
exploring new RTOS options that offer
13% a balance between performance and
ease of integration, particularly for IoT
and safety-critical applications.

Linux FreeRTOS Zephyr Bare Metal Eclipse

(no OS) ThreadX

Q: Which embedded operating system(s) do you use for your constrained devices? (select up to three)
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Developer OS Preferences on IoT Gateways & Edge Nodes

67%
Linux (67%, up from 58%), Windows
(26%, down from 29%), and Android
(22%, down from 25%) lead as the top
26% OS choices for IoT gateways and
22% edge nodes, with No OS/Bare-metal
solutions rising to 10% (up from 7%).
Azure Sphere dropped to 4%, falling
10% out of the top four.
4%

Linux Windows Android Bare Metal Azure

(no OS) Sphere

Q: Which operating system(s) do you use for your IoT gateways & edge nodes? (select up to three)

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Developers Work With a Broad Range of Linux Distributions

Q: If using Linux for your IoT solutions, what distribution do you typically employ? (Select up to three)

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Control Logic Surpasses AI as Most Common Edge Workload

Control Logic remains the top edge computing workload, with 41% (up from 40% in 2023). Data exchange between
multiple nodes saw a significant increase to 33% (up from 25%), while Artificial Intelligence slightly decreased to
32% (from 37%).

Q: If your IoT solution leverages edge gateways and/or edge nodes, what types of edge computing workloads are you running? (Select up to three)
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Connectivity Continues To Be the Top Developer Concern

Connectivity (48%, down from 52%)

remains the top concern for IoT and
edge developers in 2024. Security
(35%, up from 33%) has further
solidified its position as the
second-most important issue. Data
collection & analytics processes
(24%) and deployment (24%)
continue to be key concerns,
though connectivity still dominates.

Q: What are your primary IoT development concerns? (Select up to 3)

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Developer Language Preferences on IoT Gateways
& Edge Nodes

39%
Python is the preferred
32% 29% development language for
IoT Gateways and Edge
Nodes with 39%. Followed by
15% Java at 32%, C++ at 29% and
Javascript at 15%.

Python Java C++ Javascript

Q: Which of the following programming languages do you use to build on IoT Gateways & Edge Nodes? (Select up to three)

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 Developer Language Preferences on Constrained Devices

55%

C (55%), C++ (36%),

36% Python(32%), and Java(29%)
32% 29%
are the programming
languages of choice for
development on constrained
devices. Rust continues its
gradual rise.

C C++ Python Java

Q: Which of the following programming languages do you use to build on constrained devices? (Select up to three)

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MQTT’s Continued Leadership in IIoT Communication Protocols
2024 2023

● More than half (56%) indicate that

MQTT is their preferred IIoT
communication protocol. A 7% growth
from 2023 56%

● HTTP/HTTPS and TCP/IP usage

49%
increased by (+5%) and (+6%)
compared to 2023
32%
30%
● MQTT + Sparkplug checked in at 8%. 27%
24%
● Newer protocols like Eclipse Zenoh 8% 7%
gained ground, rising to 4.29% (up
from 1.79%), indicating growing MQTT +
MQTT HTTP TCP/IP
interest in emerging technologies. Sparkplug

Q: What communication protocol(s) do you use? (Select up to three)

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5G Propels Cellular to the Top Connectivity Option

Cellular WiFi Ethernet Bluetooth/Bluetooth

(LTE, 4G, 5G, etc) Smart
46% 45%
59% 31%
Top connectivity technologies being used are cellular at 59% (44% in 2023), WiFi at 46% (38% in 2023), Ethernet at 45%
(38% in 2023) and Bluetooth/Bluetooth Smart at 31% (23% in 2023).

Q: What connectivity protocol(s) do you use? (Select up to three)

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Most Favored Security Technologies for IoT/Edge Solutions

40%
Communication security (40%)
remains the top security technology,
seeing a slight increase from 39% in 32%
2023. Over-the-air updates surged 24%
to 32%, up from 24%, making it the
second most popular choice. Data
encryption remains stable at 24%
(up slightly from 23%).

Communication Over-The-Air Data

Security Updates Encryption

Q: Which security-related technologies do you use on your IoT/edge solutions: (Select up to three)
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Status Quo for IoT Cloud Platforms

Amazon AWS continues to lead,

45% 22% 19%
increasing to 45.00% (up from 41% in
2023). Google Cloud Platform saw a
slight decline to 19% (from 20%),
while Microsoft Azure dropped to
22% (from 27%).

Other Private / On-premises cloud

saw a sharp increase to 16% (up
from 7%), indicating growing interest
in private cloud solutions. Red Hat AWS Azure Google Cloud
Platform
OpenShift usage also grew to 6%
(from 4%).

Q: Do you use any of the following platforms as part of your IoT solution? (Select up to three)
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Adoption of Real-Time Operating Systems
in Constrained Devices
Nearly half (49%) of respondents
indicating most of their devices
rely on RTOS for real-time
capabilities, essential in many IoT
applications. Additionally, 28%
report partial RTOS adoption,
using it only where specific
devices need real-time
performance. This suggests a
strong demand for immediate,
predictable responses in IoT
operations.

Q: If your solution leverages constrained devices, do those devices use a real-time operating system or not?
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Hardware Architecture Usage for Constrained Devices
2024 2023

In 2024, ARM Cortex-M3/M4 leads

MCU usage at 36% (up from 33%),
with ARM Cortex-M0/M0+ close
behind at 32%. ESP32 (Tensilica
Xtensa) rose to 28% (from 22%),
while RISC-V architectures saw 36% 33%
significant growth to 13% (from 33% 32%
7%). ARM Cortex-M7 usage
28%
dropped to 18%, and ARM
22%
Cortex-R appeared with 12%,
13% 7%
highlighting real-time applications.
MIPS and ARM Cortex-M85
declined slightly. ARM ARM ESP32 RISC-V
Cortex-M3/M4 Cortex-M0/M0+ (Tensilica Xtensa) Architectures

Q: What hardware architecture(s) do you use for Constrained Devices? (Select up to three)
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Hardware Architecture Usage for IoT Gateways and Edge Nodes
2024 2023

AMD/Intel x86_64 remains the

leader at 28%, with ARM v8-A
maintaining a second palace at 24%.
ARM v7-A declined to 17%, and ARM
28% 28%
v6 dropped significantly to
24% 24% 21%
10%(From 19% in 2023). ARM v7-M 17%
grew to 16%, showing increased 16%
interest in Cortex-M solutions. 12%
RISC-V adoption also rose to 8%.
AMD/Intel ARM v8-A ARM v7-A ARM v7-M
x86_64

Q: What hardware architecture(s) do you use for IoT Gateways & Edge Nodes? (Select up to three)
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Types of Data Being Stored from IoT/Edge Solutions

The most common types of IoT data

being gathered and stored are
Device information (48%) (up from
44% in 2023), followed by Time
series data, which saw an increase 48% 41% 36%
to 41.07% (up from 36%). Log data
also rose to 36% (up from 29%).

Device
Time Series Data Log Data
Information

Q: What type of IoT data/information do you store either in a database or data store? (Select up to three)
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The Role of Security Certifications in IoT Adoption

69% percent of respondents reported

that security certifications positively
impact their IoT product adoption and
purchase decisions. Among valued
certifications, Common Criteria (EAL)
was the most influential at 23%,
followed by PSA (any level) at 21% and 23% 21% 16%
FIPS 140-2 at 16%. SESIP (9%) had the
least impact. This indicates that
certifications are a critical factor for
most users in their decision-making Common Criteria
PSA FIPS 140-2
process. (EAL)

Q: Some IoT products and solutions possess security certifications. Which of the following security certifications would positively influence
your adoption or purchasing decisions? (Select up to three)
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Key Criteria for Selecting Real-Time Operating Systems
in Constrained Devices

54%
The top factors in choosing an RTOS
for constrained devices are
49%
hardware/platform support (54%)
and developer tooling (49%),
emphasising compatibility and ease 34% 31%
of development. Licensing model
(34%) and platform cost (31%) are
21%
also key, with runtime footprint (21%)
highlighting the need for lightweight
solutions.
Hardware Developer Runtime
Licensing Platform
/Platform Tooling Footprint
Model Cost
Support

Q: If some or most of your constrained devices run a real-time operating system, which of the following criteria
influenced your decision? (Select up to three)
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Importance of Certification for Safety

With 47% of respondents prioritising

safety certifications, IEC 61508 (24%)
and ISO 26262 (ASIL) (21%) are the
most relevant, reflecting their broad
industry impact. IEC 62304 (16%) and
EN 50128 (SIL) (14%) are also notable,
underscoring the importance of safety
in medical and rail applications. UL
47% 46%
603xx / 607xx (8%) remains more
niche, focused on appliance safety.
This highlights a growing commitment
to certified safety standards in IoT and
Prioritising Not Prioritising
embedded sectors.
Safety Safety
Certifications Certifications

Q: Certification for safety critical use cases is increasingly important in the embedded and IoT markets. Which of the following international
standards is relevant to your organisation from a safety certification perspective? (Select up to three)
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Impact of End-User App Design on IoT Solutions

Negligible Highly
influenced

App design significantly impacts IoT Minimally

solutions, with 27% of respondents
citing a strong influence, 30% noting
moderate influence, and 23%
reporting a slight influence,
highlighting the importance of app Somewhat
design in shaping IoT solutions.

Moderately

Q: How much influence does the design of the end user app have on your IoT solution?
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Top Criteria for Choosing Development Framework

When choosing an app development

framework, developers prioritise a
strong community (51%) and
network stack support (46%),
reflecting the importance of
collaboration and reliable
connectivity. Native OS integration is
also important for 35%, while
Autocode completion (34%) and
smartphone kernel access (16%) are
less critical but valued by some.

Q: Which are the two most important elements in the selection of an app development framework for building your end user app?

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Recommendations

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● Expand Security Focus: With communication security and over-the-air updates being top concerns,
prioritise these areas to enhance device protection and enable secure remote management.

● Promote RTOS Innovation and Adoption: The rising adoption of Zephyr and ThreadX reflects
increasing interest in performance-driven and safety-critical solutions. Companies should evaluate
and promote these RTOS options to align with specific use cases, balancing performance, safety, and
cost considerations..

● Lead With Sustainability Solutions: Focusing on energy-efficient designs and partnerships in energy,
healthcare, and environmental sectors to address the growing demand for sustainability-focused IoT
applications that enhance quality of life.

● Leverage Emerging Hardware Architectures: With increased interest in ESP32 and RISC-V, invest in
compatible development and testing frameworks to optimise for these architectures.

● Build Strong Development Communities: As a top framework selection factor, support robust
developer communities to enhance collaboration and leverage collective expertise across projects.

● Focus on Lightweight Protocols: MQTT remains the dominant IIoT communication protocol, so
companies should standardise and explore advanced options like Sparkplug for seamless IIoT
communications.

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 Methodology and Demographics

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Methodology
Sponsored by the Eclipse IoT, Eclipse Sparkplug, Oniro Working Group, and Eclipse ThreadX, the 2024
IoT & Embedded Developer Survey was conducted from May 15 to July 31 2024. The survey garnered
participation through social media channels, the Eclipse Foundation websites, and the enthusiastic
support of our valued members and partners.

A total of 747 respondents, comprising developers, committers, architects, and decision makers,
participated in the survey. These participants work in diverse industries worldwide.

Among the respondents, 75% identified as open source users, with 24% actively contributing to open
source projects (23% in 2003).

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In Which Region Are You Located?
North America

Europe,
18% Middle East
& Africa
42%

Asia Pacific

9% 31%
South America

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Which Best Describes Your Role?

38% 11% 12% 14%

Developer CTO or VP of Engineering/R&D Other
engineering Management

8% 9% 7%
IT Management Engineer/R&D (Hardware) Product Manager
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How Large is the Organisation You Work For?

3%

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How Much Experience Do You Have Developing IoT/Edge Solutions?

2024 2023

28% 29%
26% 25%
25%
23%
20%

13%
7%
4%

More than 10 No Developer

0-2 Years 2-5 Years 5-10 Years
Years Experience

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Open Source IoT/Edge Project Participation

75%

44%
34%
24%
9% 6%

Q: Which statement(s) best describes your IoT/edge open source project participation? (Select up to three)
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 Thank You!
To receive exclusive access to detailed industry research findings,
join the Eclipse IoT Working Group.

Learn more: Connect with us

iot.eclipse.org @EclipseIoT @Eclipse IoT
oniroproject.org @Oniro_Project @Oniro
sparkplug.eclipse.org @SparkplugWG @Sparkplug Working Group
threadx.io @Eclipse ThreadX
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