Assembly Select Committee Convenes

First informational hearing on the internet of things (IoT)

Photo Credit: Assembly Democratic Caucus

State legislators, legal scholars, key academics, industry experts, government liaisons, and consumer representatives convened today for the first hearing of the California State Assembly’s Select Committee on Emerging Technologies. The committee examined the benefits and challenges associated with the commercialization of the IoT and the impact it may have on consumers, state and local governments, and businesses.

“From mobile devices, to wearable health and fitness trackers, to connected vehicles, the Internet of Things is all around us and quickly becoming the Internet of Everything,” said Assemblymember Ed Chau (D-Monterey Park).  “There is no part of our society today that is untouched by the internet and the devices connected to it, so the time is right for the Legislature to discuss an important issue that we are going to be dealing with for years.”

The IoT is an emerging technology that looks to digitize the physical world with smart “things” or products that contain embedded software systems, sensors, and network connectivity.  It is estimated that there are more than ten billion Internet connected devices or “things” around the world and this number is expected to increase dramatically to an estimated 25 to 50 billion by 2025.  The commercialization of the IoT has the potential to open new markets, create jobs, increase productivity for “smart” communities, and create value for consumers, companies, economies, and government.  However, the IoT is expected to create complex technical challenges with privacy, cyber-security, and interpreting the massive amount of information generated by IoT devices with data analytics.

“While anonymity may have been the norm in the first days of the Internet, the information collected about us today and our IoT devices can be aggregated and used to create an increasingly accurate digital profile of us,” said Assemblymember Chau.  “We as legislators must engage with multiple stakeholders to find a balance between consumer protection and business innovation with this emerging technology.”

The hearing was titled, “The Challenges and Opportunities of the Internet of Things (IoT),” and it included expert testimony from Mark Spates, President, Internet of Things Consortium; Camille Crittenden, Ph.D., CITRIS Deputy Director, UC Berkeley; Steve Eglash, Ph.D., Executive Director, Stanford Data Science Initiative, Artificial Intelligence Lab, Secure Internet of Things Project; Kiva Allgood, Vice President, Business Development, Qualcomm Technologies; Angela McIntyre, Research Director, Gartner; Jeremy Gillula, Ph.D., Staff Technologist, Electronic Frontier Foundation; Matthew Levy, ‎Ph.D., Assistant Professor of Information Systems, San Francisco State University; James Dempsey, Director, UC Berkeley Center for Law and Technology; Joanne McNabb, Director of Privacy Education & Policy, California Department of Justice, Office of the Attorney General; and Robert Callahan, Executive Director, California, The Internet Association.

Below are audio clips from Assemblymember Chau about the IoT:

Assemblymember Chau explains what the “Internet of Things” (IoT) is. (:13)

http://www.asmdc.org/audio/20151015EmergingTechHearingChau1.mp3

Assemblymember Chau says almost anything can become a “smart” thing. (:10)

http://www.asmdc.org/audio/20151015EmergingTechHearingChau2.mp3

Assemblymember Chau says there are already billions of “smart” things in the world and billions more will be coming on line over the next decade. (:17)

http://www.asmdc.org/audio/20151015EmergingTechHearingChau3.mp3

Assemblymember Chau says the IoT will be part of a growing tech economy. (:10)

http://www.asmdc.org/audio/20151015EmergingTechHearingChau4.mp3

Assemblymember Chau represents the 49th Assembly District, comprised of the communities of Alhambra, Arcadia, El Monte, Monterey Park, Rosemead, San Gabriel, San Marino, Temple City and portions of Montebello and South El Monte.