Edge Computing Spend To Reach $317 Billion by 2026

Edge computing spend is expected to surpass $300 billion by 2026, with a compound annual growth rate of 15 percent during the three year period. 

That’s according to a report by market research firm IDC, which estimated edge computing spend to be $208 billion in 2023, a 13.1 percent increase on 2022 spend. 

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IDC defines edge as technology actions which occur outside of a centralized datacenter, with edge as an intermediary between an endpoint and IT environment. 

“Edge computing has gone mainstream,” said Dave McCarthy, research vice president, Cloud and Edge Infrastructure Services at IDC, in the report. “The ability to distribute applications and data to field locations is a key element of most digital transformation initiatives. As vendors extend existing feature sets and create new edge-specific offerings, customers are accelerating their adoption.”

There are thousands of use cases for edge being deployed already, and we anticipate in the next five years the introduction of more advanced analytical and AI services could see deployment on the edge. IDC highlighted three use cases that will see the largest investments this year: content delivery networks, virtual network functions, and multi-access edge computing. 

“Despite different headwinds impacting spending behavior, especially in Europe, edge computing remains one of the most resilient and attractive areas of investments, growing globally at a double-digit rate over the next five years,” said Alexandra Rotaru, senior research analyst, Data & Analytics group at IDC, in the report. 

Cloud computing in general does not appear to be as affected by the cost cutting measures being brought in by most of the tech industry. While some areas may see a downturn in investment, it appears that cloud customers are shifting their resources in cloud, rather than reducing them. 

“Metrics related to enhanced innovation, performance, customer experience, or cybersecurity capabilities will enable companies across the world to expand their budget and build new edge infrastructures,” said Rotaru.