OPC UA 2025

I was one of the early proponents of OPC UA. I started studying, talking and writing about it in 2010. That’s almost fifteen years ago. I even wrote two books about it (OPC UA – Unified Architecture: The Everyman’s Guide to OPC UA and OPC UA: The Basics: An OPC UA Overview For Those Who May Not Have a Degree in Embedded Programming).

I immediately recognized it as a possible revolutionary technology. At first glance, many dismissed it (wrongly) as just another communications technology – a competitor to Modbus TCP, EtherNet/IP and PROFINET. It wasn’t that at all. Instead, it’s a platform for solving many common problems on the factory floor. With its ability to model data, provide secure communications (before everyone wanted secure communications) and its ability to standardize how we move data, it was a huge step forward for our industry.

So, what’s happening today? A lot!

OPC UA continues to shape the future of automation technology:

Security Features – Every control engineer I talk with mentions how much more secure their plant, infrastructure or control system is. OPC UA addressed that in its very first release. Its security framework enables security by providing message signing, encryption, and certificate-based authentication.

Integration of AI – You probably saw this coming. AI is everywhere and, yes, it’s now becoming part of OPC UA. The OPC Foundation now has a working group dedicated to integrating Artificial Intelligence (AI) with OPC UA. This initiative intends to enable natural language data analysis, AI-driven user interfaces, and automated code generation and documentation.

IIoT Interoperability and Cloud Communications – I am not a cloud guy, but another working group, this one the OPC Foundation’s Cloud Initiative is focusing on interoperability between IT and cloud applications. If they are successful, we will get a reference architecture and the ability to maintain OPC UA Information Models in the cloud.

OPC UA Field eXchange (UAFX) and Real-Time Communication – This one fascinates me. Could we be on the path to a single way to move data between devices on the factory floor? OPC UA FX offers a way to get deterministic controller-to-controller and device-to-device communication. Real-time, open data exchange in industrial environments! That would be amazing.

Integration with Emerging Technologies – I am not holding my breath on this one. People are talking about OPC UA with the metaverse, augmented reality (AR), mixed reality (MR), and virtual reality (VR). I worked on a prehistoric version of this stuff in college, but this stuff is so far out there that I can’t imagine what might come of it. Exciting, nevertheless.

As we move through 2025, you will hear more about these developments. The OPC foundation exhibits at major tradeshows in the US and in Europe. The next time you are at a show, stop by the OPC Foundation booth to learn more about what is available today and tomorrow.