From Nanotechnologies to Industry 4.0: An Evolution of Terms

Abstract

The purpose of this article is to highlight the prominent place that nanotechnologies have in the development of so-called Ind. 4.0 and the IoT. In this sense, the authors analyze the course of the first two decades of the 21st century and how the terminology referring to technological development was modified after the 2008 crisis when the term nanotechnology fell into the background of other terms such as IoT or Ind 4.0. Finally, they draw attention to how, in material terms, there was no such change: nanotechnologies continued to have a significant presence and constitute the heart of Ind. 4.0.