AI transforming smart video

Smart video analytics is a powerful technology that processes and analyses video data to gain insights and make data-driven business decisions. With the rise of artificial intelligence (AI) and AI-driven features, smart video is becoming increasingly popular in Europe. According to Western Digital's latest study on the use of smart video systems in European organisations, more and more local businesses will adopt this technology in the next 12 months.

Of the 1,362 companies surveyed in the UK, the Netherlands, Germany, Italy, France and Spain, a quarter (25%) are willing to implement the technology and invest a significant amount (43%: up to $100,000) in their new systems.

It does not come as a surprise that the interest in AI-enabled smart video and its use cases has increased significantly in recent years and has led to a surge in companies' data requirements. Interestingly, AI is already having a significant impact on smart video capabilities, especially when it comes to advanced system features. When asked how the proliferation of AI has changed the elements of smart video, respondents cited scalability of operations (44%), system efficiency (44%), customisation of surveillance (44%) and analytics (43%) as the most important factors. To meet these changed factors and keep up with the evolution of cameras, AI-advanced features, and data storage innovations, companies must adapt and scale their storage systems accordingly, depending on the use case.

“Today, cameras not only record in 4K and deliver multiple video streams, but also support real-time data analysis at device level thanks to on-camera AI chips. They are increasingly delivering media-rich, detailed and sharp data recorded at a minimum of 24 frames per second (fps), doubling or even tripling the storage capacity required by organisations”, says Darragh O’Toole, Product Marketing Manager of Western Digital, Europe.

At the Edge, where most of European businesses’ data lives (50%), the adoption of AI and 4K video is driving demand for high capacity, high performance, and high endurance storage solutions to store ever-increasing amounts of data and enable long, always-on recording. Especially necessary in the case of security, which stays the most relevant use case for European businesses.

Many cameras operate 24/7, 365 days a year to prevent theft (34%), investigate incidents (33%), and monitor employees’ health and safety (32%). In recent years, however, there is also an increasing number of newer use cases at the edge, like real-time alerts (23%) and heatmapping (22%), that enable customers to optimise their business. In retail, for example, smart cameras can help in many ways - from shop layout to improving the customer experience by detecting in-store movement.

With AI-powered insights, shops can accurately count and record the number of people entering or leaving a shop, helping them to better plan their business and optimise displays. These examples show that edge data is becoming even more business-critical and calls for longevity and reliability. In addition to this, this information is also prompting European companies to back up their camera data in case of a sudden loss of network availability. To this end, companies in the region prefer a local storage solution such as a central data centre (48%) to the cloud.

When looking at the core, high-quality data streams require storage that is engineered with advanced capabilities to improve ATA streaming, reduce frame loss, and improve overall video playback. To support AI workloads and allow customers to tap into the power of deep learning applications, data centers and the cloud require specialised and robust storage that delivers high-capacity and high performance.

Darragh O’Toole summarizes: “Every organisation has different requirements for its smart video storage depending on the use case. What they all have in common, however, is that they must meet the new capacity and scalability demands of their systems for the future. Unsurprisingly, the majority of organisations surveyed (53%) are increasingly opting for high storage capacity of between 13 and 22 TB. This way, they can equip their systems for future data needs and optimise their businesses to meet challenges and opportunities posed by AI.”