Advanced Internet of Things Ecosystems: Architectures, Intelligence, and Communication Innovations

Dear Colleagues,

The Internet of Things (IoT) is rapidly evolving into an advanced ecosystem that integrates cutting-edge intelligence, next-generation network architectures, and novel communication paradigms. These advancements enable smarter, more adaptive, and highly connected environments, driving transformative changes across multiple domains, including healthcare, smart cities, industrial automation, and intelligent transportation. As IoT ecosystems grow more sophisticated, the seamless convergence of artificial intelligence (AI), cloud/edge architectures, and novel networking approaches is unlocking new possibilities. Embedding AI into IoT devices enhances efficiency, enabling real-time, energy-conscious operations while supporting multi-agent collaboration and intelligent cooperation between distributed IoT nodes for improved adaptability and performance. Cloud/edge–IoT (CEI) continuum architecture is a key enabler in this evolution, providing a dynamic and scalable framework that bridges computational resources across cloud and edge environments, ensuring efficient data management and processing, reduced latency, and enhanced intelligence at multiple levels of the IoT stack. While, innovations in networking technologies—including 5G and 6G, ultra-reliable low-latency communication (URLLC), and AI-enhanced network optimization for IoT applications—are accelerating IoT adoption and enabling groundbreaking applications and services. The advances are fostering intelligent environments that leverage IoT, AI, and contextual awareness to enhance human–computer interactions and automation. Additionally, the integration of communication and sensing functionalities is optimizing IoT system performance, further propelling the next generation of smart, connected ecosystems.

This Special Issue aims to bring together academia and industrial researchers to propose new IoT architectures, intelligence integration, and novel communication strategies that will shape the future of IoT ecosystems. This Special Issue will publish high-quality, original research papers. The potential topics of interest include, but are not limited to, the following:

• Cloud/edge–IoT continuum architectures;
• IoT data management and advanced IoT analytics;
• IoT applications and services;
• Industry 4.0 and the industrial IoT (IIoT);
• Advances in IoT protocols;
• Next-generation infrastructure for the IoT;
• IoT 5G/6G slice management;
• IoT orchestration;
• Future network architectures and protocols for the IoT;
• Edge AI, embedded AI, and cooperative intelligence for the IoT;
• Generative AI (GenAI) use cases for the IoT;
• Dataspaces in IoT applications;
• Green communication and the IoT;
• Visible light communications for the IoT;
• Ambient intelligence;
• Case studies of implementation in IoT Ecosystems.

Dr. David Sarabia-Jácome
Prof. Dr. Carlos Enrique Palau Salvador
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

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Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

• next-generation IoT
• edge computing
• GenIA
• network
• architecture
• IoT applications
• future networks
• ambient intelligence