And that may be just the start. Intel CEO Brian Krzanich demonstrated at CES how a connected door lock might unlock automatically when a security camera recognized the owner's face. Hosain Rahman, CEO of Jawbone, described how his company's latest Up activity tracker could automatically tell your lights to turn on when it sensed you were getting up from bed.

"I don't have to program that," said Tom Kerber, director of research at Parks Associates, a technology consulting firm. "The devices are talking to each other and making those smart decisions on your behalf."

However, the show also pointed out that as the Internet of Things is rapidly developing, it's also facing some serious challenges, most notably a lack of standards.

For years now, many Internet of Things devices haven't been able to talk to one another because they use different communications protocols. That problem has started to be solved by hub devices that can translate among devices.

But a new problem is emerging: Many different companies want to establish themselves as the primary gatekeeper for the Internet of Things, and the ability of devices to communicate with one another is starting to be more about which companies have deals with each other.

From the article "Rise of connected homes raise security concerns" by David Jackman.