<p>In-memory computing (IMC) will reach the enterprise mainstream by 2016, creating a market worth $1bn (700m) by 2016. So say analysts at Gartner.</p><p>The research firm cites the "rapid maturation of infrastructure technologies" coupled with a continued dramatic decline in the cost of semiconductor tech as the primary reasons for this change.</p><p>IMC allows applications to run advanced queries or carry out more complex transactions on large data sets much faster than existing hardware, theoretically taking minutes or seconds to process what used to take hours.</p><p>"The relentless declines in DRAM [dynamic random access memory] and NAND [Negated AND or NOT AND logic gates] flash memory prices, the advent of solid-state drive technology and the maturation of specific software platforms have enabled IMC to become more affordable and impactful for IT organisations," said Massimo Pezzini, vice president at Gartner.</p><p><a href="http://www.computing.co.uk/ctg/news/2258941/inmemory-computing-market-to-be-worth-gbp700m-by-2016-says-gartner">Keep reading...</a></p>