Microsoft admits Azure Sphere is not for everyone, purchase Express Logic

Microsoft’s secure IoT OS play is called Azure Sphere, an end to end solution which makes it easy for hardware manufacturers to add smarts and remote management securely to their devices.

Today, Microsoft announced that it has acquired Express Logic, a leader in RTOS for IoT and edge devices powered by microcontroller units (MCUs); over 9 billion of which are produced every year. The technology will allow Microsoft to support more resource-constrained devices, including battery-powered devices and devices which have less than 64KB of flash memory- safely and securely.

“While we recommend Azure Sphere for customers’ most secured connections to the cloud, where Azure Sphere isn’t possible in highly constrained devices, we recommend Express Logic’s ThreadX RTOS over other RTOS options in the industry because of its additional certifications and out-of-the-box connectivity to Azure IoT Hub,” said Sam George, Microsoft’s Director of Azure IoT.

Microsoft hopes to improved access to low capacity sensors like light-bulbs, air conditioners and medical devices.  Further to this, billions of new connected endpoints can be unlocked, enabling a wider range of devices to seamlessly connect to Azure, and enable new intelligent capabilities.

Microsoft announced in April 2018 they will invest $5 billion dollars in IoT devices over the next 4 years. The ultimate goal is “giving every customer the ability to transform their business, and the world at large, with connected solutions”.

Via ZDNet