Iris biometrics market set to expand nearly 4X by 2030

The global iris biometrics market is set to expand nearly 4X by 2030, with significant adoption being witnessed during the COVID-19 pandemic for safety reasons, according to a new report from Persistence Market Research.

Unlike software-based biometric solutions such as face and voice recognition, iris biometrics requires specific hardware to verify a persons identity, hence, it is less common in consumer-facing deployments.

But latest advancements and innovations in the biometrics space have made this technology more accessible in terms of cost and installation. Iris biometrics technology is becoming more prominent across various industries, including healthcare, consumer electronics, government, and others.

Organisations have started adopting iris biometric solutions for the purpose of access control and consumer identity verification, which is significantly driving market growth.

The report found worldwide sales of the iris biometrics market reached US$2.6 billion in 2019, and the market is anticipated to exhibit an impressive CAGR of 14% through 2030.

According to the report, iris recognition solutions are gaining traction over fingerprint and face biometrics solutions. This is mainly attributed to the exceptional accuracy and speed among the biometric technologies currently available in the market.

Iris recognition biometrics technology has the potential to solve problems caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, such as facial recognition's inability to recognise people when they are wearing masks.

Among the regions, South Asia Pacific is exhibiting a high growth rate, owing to rising demand for digital services such as mobile banking, digital payments, and mobile wallets, across the region.

"Iris recognition is fast becoming a part of everyday operations for a number of law enforcement and government agencies, for the purpose of personal identity verification, as iris recognition remains one of the most accurate forms of identification available," the report says. 

"This shift toward iris biometrics technology is creating lucrative opportunities for biometric solution providers."

Rising Adoption of Iris Biometric Solutions in Hospitals & Medical Institutes

Iris recognition is an automated method of biometric identification, using visible and near-infrared light to take a high-contrast photograph of a person's iris. According to the report, data breach, medical identity theft, and duplicate medical records are some of the major challenges hospitals and medical institutes face.

According to the Institute of Medicine, half of hospital deaths each year occur due to medical errors from patient misidentification. The report says for protection against such accidents, iris scanning technology is the most prominent biometrics technology being used currently. Increase in demand from the healthcare industry favours iris recognition, as it is contactless, scanning users from a distance. Various healthcare facilities use iris recognition to authenticate patients, physicians, and staff.

Thus, rise in adoption of iris biometric solutions among hospitals and healthcare institutes is propelling the growth of the iris biometrics market.