The 25 Hottest IoT & 5G Services Companies: 2022 Edge Computing 100

As part of CRN’s Edge Computing 100, here are 25 providers that are specializing in 5G, IoT and edge services.

IoT And 5G At The Edge

5G is officially mainstream and gaining traction as wireless carriers continue to work on extending the footprints of their next-generation networks. 5G, together with edge computing, is powering and strengthening brand-new use cases that are popping up in new places on the network.

5G is serving up blazing-fast internet speeds and less latency while edge computing brings compute, storage, and data analysis closer to the location where it is needed. It goes without saying that IoT has been waiting for a technology like 5G to give applications the speed they need and the opportunity to connect many devices and endpoints to the internet without bogging down or bottlenecking the connection. And vendors are taking advantage of this symbiotic relationship as service providers team with technology companies to combine connectivity with endpoints, managed services, and security.

The 5G, IoT, and edge markets have given way to a new generation of startups that are tackling application development and those that are getting creative with connectivity. But legacy telecom service providers and wireless specialists can’t be counted out – enterprises and channel partners are hungry for IoT and these vendors are building entire practices that involve their own extensive networks and in some cases, third-party technology to fill the gaps. Partnerships between some of the biggest companies, as well as merger activity, have centered on enabling enterprises at the edge in the last couple of years.

As part of CRN’s Edge Computing 100, here are 25 providers that are specializing in 5G, IoT and edge services.

Aarna Networks

Amar Kapadia

Co-Founder, CEO

Aarna offers private 5G and enterprise edge computing application automation software. Aarna Edge Services, its SaaS platform, provides zero-touch orchestration as a service for edge infrastructure and public clouds. Aarna Edge Services supports compute, storage and network from the edge to the cloud.

Adaptiv Networks

Bernard Breton

CEO

Adaptiv Networks comes to market with its cloud-managed SD-WAN ser vice: Adaptiv Enterprise Connect. The offering lets enterprises target new applications and users at the edge while delivering exceptional user experiences across all business cloud services and private corporate applications.

AT&T

John Stankey

CEO

AT&T’s Multi-Access Edge Computing offering t ie s together the telecom giant’s cellular network architecture for real-time high-bandwidth, low-latency access to mobile applications. The company is helping businesses harness LTE and 5G at the network edge.

Cambium Networks

Atul Bhatnagar

President, CEO

After going public and acquiring Xirrus in 2019, Cambium’s wireless technology became even more appealing to the enterprise. The company is focusing on bringing 5G connectivity to the masses and going after industrial IoT use cases.

Celona

Rajeev Shah

Co-Founder, CEO

Celona burst onto the scene in 2020 with a platform that lets enterprises create 5G/4G LTE private networks, filling a major gap in the connectivity market. The company in September unveiled a 5G LAN Device Certification Program to simplify deployment and adoption of private LTE/5G networks.

Comcast Business

William Stemper

President

Comcast Business’s offerings play into its core competencies: telecom and voice. The company in 2021 acquired software-defined networking specialist Masergy, which has built up Comcast Business’ SDN muscle at a time when SD-WAN and cloud-based everything are in high demand.

CommScope

Charles Treadway

President, CEO

CommScope, with the Ruckus portfolio it acquired in 2018, has been pushing the boundaries of wireless. Its 5G and LTE wireless network o­fferings are deployed in stadiums, campuses and public spaces, and it is delivering Network-as-a-Service o­fferings to address edge computing use cases to enterprises and people worldwide.

Cradlepoint, Part of Ericsson

George Mulhern

Chairman, CEO

Cradlepoint, which was acquired by Ericsson in 2020, brought its wireless edge networking expertise to the telecom equipment giant. Cradlepoint is unlocking the power of LTE and next-gen cellular technologies with NetCloud Exchange, an extension of its cloud-managed Network-as-a- Service offering.

EdgeQ

Vinay Ravuri

Founder, CEO

Two-year-old EdgeQ bills itself as a 5G systems-on-a-chip company that is bringing AI to the edge of the network with 5G. The company is entering trials with worldwide OEMs and operators with its 5G Base- Station-on-a-Chip technology and is selling its AI-powered chips to enterprises.

floLive

Nir Shalom

CEO

IoT technology startup floLive is enabling access to public and private spectrum for enterprise usage. The company offers cloud-based connectivity management, device management, billing and core network services with flexible deployment models to help enterprises kick o­ their IoT projects.

For2Fi

Andrew Gregoire

Co-Founder, CEO

For2Fi got its start two years ago when MSP-owner-turned-wireless specialist Gregoire identified a hole in the market around business LTE. The company brings wireless LTE and 5G connectivity to customers exclusively via the channel, specifically targeting retail and hard-to-reach businesses that need connectivity.

Kore Wireless Group

Romil Bahl

President, CEO

Kore specializes in IoT connectivity systems that help businesses scale, deploy and manage IoT without friction. The company in September joined Ericsson’s IoT Accelerator ecosystem to help global enterprises expand their IoT business in the U.S. market and beyond.

Lumen Technologies

Kate Johnson

President, CEO

Lumen offers a secure platform for next-generation applications to harness data at the edge. The service provider announced Johnson as its new president and CEO e­ffective Nov. 7, and she and Lumen will help customers leverage its platform to power digital experiences.

Macrometa

Chetan Venkatesh

Co-Founder, President, CEO

Macrometa is offering its Global Data Network and edge computing platform. The company in September revealed a partnership with DevCycle to launch Edge Flags, what the two companies are calling the world’s first ultra-low-latency global feature flags solution for developers.

Qualcomm

Cristiano Amon

President, CEO

Qualcomm is leveraging its mobility expertise to give its IoT business a boost. The chipmaker in September said its automotive business pipeline increased to $30 billion thanks to its Snapdragon Digital Chassis for assisted and autonomous driving technology, as well as in-car entertainment and connectivity.

Samsung Electronics North America

KS Choi

President, CEO

Samsung has a number of edge initiatives. It is collaborating with fellow IT leaders, including chipmakers and cloud providers, to expand the 5G vRAN ecosystem for the creation of a scalable and flexible network that delivers carrier-grade performance, management and reliability.

Sierra Wireless

Phil Brace

President, CEO

Sierra Wireless has been focusing on IoT software and managed services thanks to its 2020 purchase of M2M Group, a group of companies focused on IoT connectivity. The Canadian telecom equipment maker builds small embedded 5G-capable wireless modules for IoT applications.

Skylo

Parthsarathi Trivedi

Co-Founder, CEO

Five-year-old SoftBank-backed Skylo has been busy building an affordable global two-way IoT network using satellite. The startup is helping businesses extend their coverage seamlessly by connecting existing compatible devices directly over satellite.

Tag-n-Trac

Venu Gutlapalli

Co-Founder, CEO

Smart IoT tracking technology provider Tag-n-Trac emerged from stealth earlier this year with technology that combines low-cost “printable” hardware sensors and a sensor-agnostic SaaS platform for supply chain management. The startup in January raised $10 million in Series A funding, led by Dell Technologies Capital.

Telstra

Vicki Brady

CEO

Australian-based carrier Telstra recently renewed its partnership with Cisco Systems to provide advanced connectivity management for IoT services with Telstra Control Center powered by Cisco to support a variety of industries including financial, retail and government.

T-Mobile

Michael Sievert

President, CEO

T-Mobile, the third largest wireless provider in the U.S., has been focused on next-gen connectivity needs. The carrier giant offers T-Mobile EDGE, or Enhanced Data Rates for GSM Evolution, a network technology that allows for faster transfer of data on Global System for Mobile Communications networks.

Ubidots

Agustin Pelaez

Co-Founder, CEO

Ubidots offers a platform that allows entrepreneurs to assemble and launch IoT applications without having to write code or hire a development team. The company’s technology today is used by a variety of businesses, including farms, health-care systems and several large universities.

Verizon

Hans Vestberg

CEO

Verizon has been going strong in edge computing with a little help from partners, including AWS and Microsoft. The carrier is offering Verizon 5G Edge with Microsoft Azure Stack Edge, a platform that brings compute and storage services to the edge of the network.

Versa Networks

Kelly Ahuja

CEO

SD-WAN-turned-SASE-specialist Versa Networks is helping enterprises tackle challenges around security and connectivity as 5G becomes mainstream. It believes that secure SD-WAN can simplify management across an expanding mobile footprint and that older wired internet services must coexist with 5G networks.

Windstream Enterprise

Tony Thomas

President, CEO

Windstream is attacking the IoT sector by way of voice and data network communications and managed services. The service provider giant earlier this year teamed with Cato Networks to release its first SASE offering: Windstream Enterprise SASE powered by Cato.