Digital Innovation Magazine - March 2018

March 2018

ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE SwissCognitive – The Global AI Hub – reveals what the future has in store

NEW HEIGHTS

CIO Day’s CIO of the Year award winner – Bouke Hoving of KPN

MEET JANINE COOK

Photo courtesy of Acubens/fotography

BOUKE HOVING

Quality TaskForce is the leading name in online quality assurance software

IBM’s Vice President of Systems Division in the UK and Ireland

GADGETS • FUTURE OF FITNESS • ELECTRIC CARS • INDUSTRY INTERVIEWS

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he team and I are so excited to bring you the launch issue of Digital Innovation Magazine. It has been a real labour of love over the last few months, but we could not be more proud of the end result. With the aim to be the leading online European technology magazine, we have been overwhelmed by the support we have received from our industry. Our first issue celebrates the work of some of Europe’s leading technology companies, dedicated to achieving the highest results in their respective fields.

I have been fortunate enough to chat with both Bouke Hoving, Vice President of Networks and IT at KPN, as well as Ben Sykes, CTO of Swiss company Quality TaskForce. It has been a real pleasure to learn more about their companies and the roles they play in today’s technologically-advancing world. Bouke recently celebrated winning the prestigious CIO of the Year Award for his leadership skills and business and boardroom credibility. Raising a glass in celebration, Bouke described his achievement as a real team effort. We would like to take this opportunity to pass on our congratulations to all the team.

For those who like to keep their finger on the pulse, we present our pick of the latest must-have gadgets for 2018 (page 6), the best electric cars on the market (page 24), plus a brand new piece of technology for fitness fanatics (page 52).

And that’s not forgetting our exclusive interview with Janine Cook, Vice President of IBM’s Systems Division in the UK and Ireland. You can find out exactly what she means by her twice-yearly ‘swaggers’ by turning to page 14!

Editor Anna McMahon

Managing Director Danielle Harris

editorial@digitalinnovationeu.com

d.harris@digitalinnovationeu.com

Senior Digital Designer Daniel May

Managing Director Tom Barnes

design@digitalinnovationeu.com

t.barnes@digitalinnovationeu.com

0203 868 6115 enquiries@digitalinnovationeu.com All rights reserved. Every effort is made to ensure the accuracy of material published in Digital Innovation Magazine. However, the company cannot accept responsibility for the claims made by advertisers or contributors, or inaccurate material supplied by advertisers.

Digital Innovation is a trading name of HBL Europe Ltd. Company Registration Number: 10933897. Company Registered in England and Wales

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ELECT 52 FUTURE OF FITNESS

SWISSCOGNITIVE

QUALITY TASK FORCE

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TRIC CARS

6 INNOVATION IN GADGETS

CIO OF THE YEAR

IBM’S JANINE COOK 5

I N N O VAT I O N I N G A D G E T S

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Keeping you up to speed with the coolest new gadgets to hit the market in 2018.

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rom self-mowing lawn mowers to robotic pets, from blast chiller microwaves to the latest in customised sports watches, there’s a flurry of exciting, new products for today’s tech-savvy individual, many of them seen for the first time at CES in Las Vegas earlier this year.

Sony Aibo Robotic Pet The latest generation of the Sony robotic pet, Aibo, is an ivory-white puppy, primarily intended to be a toy, but with the artificial intelligence capabilities of a robot.

Here’s our rundown of the most unique and highly anticipated gadgets of 2018 for your all-important wishlist.

Casio Pro Trek Smart Outdoor Watch This latest offering from Casio can be customised to offer optimum functionality for your chosen sport, be it kayaking, cycling, hiking or fishing.

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Vimble S Phone Stabiliser Capture professional videos every time without a shaky hand in sight. The Vimble S for smartphones will allow you to manage zooming, exposure and other vital camera controls, all at the touch of a button.

Frigondas Blast Chiller Microwave The Frigondas is a countertop blast chiller and microwave. It can chill a beer on a hot day, freeze food to preserve its freshness, and microwave a meal for instant consumption.

Sevenhugs Smart Remote The world’s first remote for everything, the Smart Remote is universal, simple, and completely customisable.

From television and smart bulbs, to amplifiers and more, it offers complete control at your fingertips.

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Blink Video Doorbell The Blink Video Doorbell is a battery-powered doorbell and video security camera, enabling you to see, record and speak with visitors to your door from anywhere in the world.

HiMirror Mini The HiMirror Mini is a smart mirror that analyses your skin for dark spots, wrinkles and enlarged pores, giving you a score while offering vital skincare recommendations. It’s cheaper than a facelift!

OjO Electric Scooter A light electric vehicle for adults, the OjO is not your average scooter! Combining sleek looks with the capability of reaching a top speed of 20 miles per hour, OjO is set to transform the daily commute.

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Internal Batteries

Dual Haptic Feedback

USB Connection

Touchpad

MicroSD Storage Slot

HD Camera (8MP)

Android OS Cobra Display Engine Full Colour See Thru Display

Noise Cancelling Mics

Vuzix Blade Smart Sunglasses The revolutionary Vuzix Blade Smart Sunglasses provide handsfree mobile computing and connectivity. The wearer can reach out and manipulate virtual 3D objects in the real world. It’s like having your computer with you wherever you go.

HERO6 Black GoPro Despite the GoPro’s break from the spotlight in recent years, they are back with the HERO6 Black. Creating action videos beyond your wildest dreams, not only is it entirely waterproof, but it is also hands-free, using voice control technology.

Google Pixel 2 Earbuds Talk to more people in more places with real-time translation using the Google Pixel 2 Buds, designed for high-quality audio, with the addition of Google Lens, letting you search for things in your field of vision using the phone’s improved camera.

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Robomow Robotic Lawn Mower After 20 years in the robotic mower business, Robomow has launched its most innovative, user-friendly and fastest mower, designed to relieve you of the burden of cutting your grass.

Caveasy One Wine Rack The first smart wine rack system, the Caveasy One is ideal for wine lovers who want to enjoy their wine simply. Take a picture of the label, and put the bottle in the rack to simplify your wine cellar management.

Samsung Electronics Family Hub Refrigerator A fridge that allows consumers to do what they have never been able to do before, the new Family Hub Refrigerator syncs up food storage with meal preparation and keeps family members organised, as well as providing enhanced entertainment.

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Volocopter Vertical Take-Off and Landing (VTOL) Aircraft The first manned, fully electric and safe VTOL, the Volocopter has 18 quiet rotors, simple operation via a single joystick, and the highest degree of reliability thanks to its superior design.

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IN THE SP OTLIGHT

AN EQUAL OPPORTUNITY TO DO THE INCREDIB

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O BLE!

Janine Cook, Vice President of IBM’s Systems Division in the UK and Ireland, talks to us about her business, her views on people in the workplace, and... swaggers about a bit!

Produced by Tom Barnes

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So, tell us, Janine, what is the business that you lead for IBM?

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Well I am responsible for all things infrastructure.

We call that division Systems, but we don’t brand Systems specifically outside IBM. Rather we brand our products and solutions, so names like IBM Z, Power Systems and Spectrum Storage are more commonly known. It’s a huge portfolio of things, but the best way I would describe it, is that it covers everything anyone would need to run their business digitally, on their own premises as opposed to in a public cloud, and the products needed to turn that infrastructure into a private cloud, and connect with a public cloud.

The breadth of the portfolio is a blessing and a curse really. We have some very strong “point solution” competitors who we have to go head-to-head with successfully in specific product areas, but the huge positive is the heritage of innovation and research behind IBM’s products and the continued investment and patent leadership to keep our clients being able to do bigger and better things with that technology. For many clients, it’s important to deal with one organisation and not have to spread that risk, and IBM offers that. Systems UKI grew very healthily in 2017. Because the market for my product areas was pretty static last year, that meant that I’ve taken share from my competitors, 16

which tells me something. It tells me that clients like what we’re doing and how we’re doing it. In such a competitive space, particularly storage, that’s a massive indicator that we’ve got things right.

Talk to us about the things which IBM Systems has done with its products?

What haven’t we done?! In 2017 Systems revamped its entire portfolio.

We rebranded to IBM Z on the mainframe, launched new Flash Storage to address the fast growing All Flash market, and we’ve been making new announcements on the Power Systems range since December, including new Scale-Out servers in February, continuing through to third quarter this year.

With the growing popularity of public cloud, won’t demand for your products dry up other than for the large Cloud Service Providers?

That’s a good question. There’s certainly been a slow down in the market place for on-premise IT requirement over the last 10 years or so, but you have to remember that the general requirement for data storage and processing power is increasing constantly over time.

And whilst there has been a shift for

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A big part of our growth in 2017 has been in the storage area. We don’t ‘go it alone’ either.

Our success is very much a team effort

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some companies from on-premise to public cloud infrastructure, it doesn’t make the total requirement for IT any smaller. Applications don’t run on thin air…the infrastructure must be hosted somewhere. It’s just that some of it has shifted to the Service Provider space.

And IBM’s products play perfectly into that. Service Providers typically need scale, and they need it elastically as their clients expand. They also need reliability and security – their business value hinges on the service levels they can provide their clients around speed of deployment and up-time, whilst giving that reassurance that despite the data being hosted in an off-site location shared with other companies, it’s still easily accessible and secure. And Service Providers need to do all this whilst keeping to strict budgets and cashflow models – they are in business to make a profit after all! So we provide innovative payment models to make this possible. Take Bluechip for instance. They’ve invested in IBM’s Spectrum Storage Suite software, combined with our IBM FlashSystem hardware, and followed a strict software defined strategy. Our products were right for them in all these areas.

Does that mean you’re only focussing on Service Providers? What about your existing client base and new customers you could try to reach?

Of course we’re not just focussing on the Service Provider marketplace – it’s big growth and our products play well there, but no. We have a huge installed base of loyal clients. You only have to look at our IBM Z product range. IBM launched the first mainframe 54 years ago and

we have innovated and moved the possibilities of what those clients can do with mainframe on every year since then, often working closely with those clients to give us the valuable feedback on what their business needs.

Besides, there are many reasons why data and processing needs to happen “in situ” on a company’s premises.

Some industries, like Financial Markets, find benefit in the proximity of their processing from an exchange. Other industries have regulatory requirements for keeping their data on-premise.

And let’s not forget Brexit and GDPR (General Data Protection Regulation).

That’s making everyone think very carefully about what client data they hold and where. But the big thing for me is the massive growth in the uses for AI (Artificial or Augmented Intelligence).

According to IDC, Accelerated Compute Infrastructure will see a CAGR of 21.9% over the next 3 years. Technical workloads such as biological sciences, chemical engineering, CAD, Healthcare, molecular modelling. quantum mechanics, social media and weather forecasting are driving this. But every industry is being disrupted by the opportunities to tap into these areas, for instance distribution companies using weather and traffic information to route vehicles and provide their clients tracking information on where the goods are. This area of growth is very exciting. IDC, “WW Accelerated Server Infrastructure Forecast”, 2017–2021, Aug. 2017.

But why does IT infrastructure have an influence on this area? Surely it’s all about the software?

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In order to augment what a human brain can do, applications of AI require the computer to “learn” something that our brains have already figured out. “Machine learning” puts such vast demands on infrastructure that it really does matter what you use. IBM’s new POWER9 processor has been specifically designed for the AI era. An example of this is that IBM modified our microprocessor silicon to “talk” at the same speed as a GPU, then using NVidia’s NVLink technology between CPU & GPU, we make Machine Learning orders of magnitude faster than other platforms by using IBM Power Systems technology.

Another example is Power AI. This is the collection of all Deep Learning frameworks, but optimised for use with Power Systems. Frameworks included are Caffe, Tensorflow, torch, theano, Chainer. And this is all pulled into one “RPM” – one instruction, so it’s really easy to implement. For instance, taking 8 hour workloads down to just 30 minutes.

Power runs Machine Learning workloads “biblically” faster!

And for requirements where real-time response is key, processing needs to speed up, so you use multiple servers, which in turn creates a speed bottleneck over the network connecting those servers. IBMs “DDL” (Distributed Deep Learning) is a transparent “library” which knows how many GPUs are being used, how many servers are in the group, and then distributes the workload accordingly, enabling it to scale in a near-linear fashion.

We say near-linear – it’s like 95% linear across up to 256 GPUs in test.

For some workloads, examples like medical imagery for cancer detection for instance, a data set will be much bigger than 1 GPU can handle. It’s not an option to take the resolution down and cut down the data size. So our way around that is to use “LMS” (Large Model Support). LMS uses the main system memory to hold the massive data set, and then move portions of the needed data set into the GPU as it’s needed for the processing, but LMS ensures this happens without reduction

I run twice-yearly gatherings ca where we share and celebrate o what we have delivered for our 20

with this brand new one. Companies ALL have multi-vendor storage environments – fact. The thing we do differently is to lead with Software Defined messaging.

We take a very different approach to We’ve seen the IBM logo on the Red Bull Racing cars in Formula 1! What is how to help a client with their data.

We acknowledge that all companies your relationship with them? have different vendors’ products in their Yes! We are very excited about our infrastructure, but provide them tools relationship with Red Bull Racing…now to manage their data over this whole Aston Martin Red Bull Racing of course. patchwork quilt so that they can treat We’ve just signed for another 3 years to be an Innovation Partner with the Team, their storage as one data pool. This is what IBM Spectrum Storage Suite and they use our Spectrum Storage does, and we have market leadership in Software to better manage their data from computational fluid dynamics and Software Defined because of it. And do you know what? Many times the client strategy simulation. Aston Martin Red asks IBM to quote for storage hardware Bull Racing have seen huge efficiencies later in the relationship because they in their I/O because of this. We’re very know and trust the software. We proud to be working with them! prove that we’re in it for the long term You talk about the clients liking what relationship with our new clients, and they seem to like it! A big part of our you’re doing, but also the “how”…? growth in 2017 has been in the storage Share “how” you are doing things area. differently.

Well for instance look at our approach We don’t “go it alone” either. Our success to marketing storage products in the is very much a team effort. Systems last couple of years. The last thing a has a huge channel of Distributors, client wants to hear is that the vendor Solution Providers and ISVs (Independent they are talking to has the fastest, most Software Vendors). My team puts a huge scalable, reliable, secure product and effort into embracing and enabling this it’s affordable…BUT in order to take channel, who each bring their own valueadvantage of all those great features, add to our clients, be it with product or they are being asked to rip out their industry knowledge, technical support, existing storage systems and replace in performance. So in summary, yes the infrastructure really matters with AI applications!

alled ‘Swaggers’, our successes on clients 21

services and complementary software products. And IBM Systems has always worked with our key technology partners, embracing technology areas like Linux from an early stage in its commercial adoption. IBMs OpenPOWER foundation membership is an example of this.

I’ve talked about NVidia already, but companies like Nutanix, Hortonworks, SAP, Oracle…the list is endless.

So what about your people? Does that contribute to making IBM Systems successful?

Absolutely yes! I spend a lot of time personally mentoring individuals both inside and outside IBM. I’m passionate about networking. I’m actually a curator for the Kingston Ted Talks – an experience which I enjoyed immensely.

We had a huge audience on the day.

I’m also passionate about having different points of view in a team – if 22

everyone on a project thinks the same, it never goes anywhere and it will just stagnate. It takes some facilitating, but the best teams are diverse ones, be that from background, point of view, knowledge base and seniority. Even gender. I have worked in IBM for 32 Years, doing lots of different roles, from sales through to business operations and finance, and it’s this ability to move discipline and IBMs ability to value each one which I think has contributed to my own career success.

I’m personally very proud of IBMs history in diversity, or what in reality is “inclusion”. We’ve won the Catalyst award for diversity and inclusion for the fourth year running. IBM uses the term “new collar”. There are so many roles in technology which don’t require the traditional academic route of university education, and we’re a part of making that happen. I have several

apprentices in my division performing key client facing roles. I even have Chris Achiampong who featured in the Governments promotion campaign for apprentices!

What should we be looking out for in the future?

Well 2018 is another busy year for product developments. We’re announcing much more on the Power Systems range through to third quarter, new IBM Z and LinuxOne servers in April, and Storage announcements in July. IBM have a big global event called Think2018 which will be held in Las Vegas, US 19-22nd March where we invite our clients, developers and channel to join us to gain (and share)

expertise for the benefit of all, to make their enterprises smarter. AI and the Systems infrastructure portfolio will be central to this, and of course I’ll be there meeting with as many people as possible!

Do you celebrate your successes?

Absolutely! Our Global Systems CMO Meg Murphy coined the hashtag #systemsswagger for talking about something we are proud of, which happens frequently. I run twice yearly gatherings called “Swaggers” where we share and celebrate our successes on what we have delivered for our clients, and not just IBM but with our channel and technology partners aswell.

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TOP MODEL S

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Electric cars are becoming increasingly popular, with prices coming down and mileage range going up, so we bring you our pick of the best.

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ith diesel and petrol cars under pressure, electric cars are now a feature of the mainstream motoring scene. The earliest models lacked practicality and performance, but today’s versions will deliver more than 300 miles of range, produce 0-62mph

times to rival some supercars, and even offer seven-seater variants for drivers that require a familyfriendly layout. Before you make a purchase, there are pros and cons to consider. However, electric cars do appear to be the future of modern motoring.

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BMW i3 Electric motor: 170bhp Range: 125 miles 0-62mph: 7.3 secs Max speed: 93mph Price: £34,070-£40,125 Uniting an impressive BMW design with the speed and manoeuvrability typically associated with its manufacturer, the i3 is a quick little car, as well as being fun to drive. Inside, it uses tactile, natural materials for imaginative styling, but all this doesn’t come cheap. A premium product with a pricetag to match!

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Hyundai Ioniq Electric motor: 118bhp Range: 174 miles 0-62mph: 9.9 secs Max speed: 89mph Price: from £24,995 The only car that comes with a choice of three different electrified powertrains – hybrid, plug-in hybrid, as well as the electric version – the Ioniq is impressively nippy, with enough torque to make acceleration feel brisk around town. The interior also adds to its appeal, with satnav and heated front seats on premium models as standard.

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Nissan Leaf Electric motor: 108bhp Range: 177 miles 0-62mph: 11.5 secs Max speed: 89mph Price: from ÂŁ21,990 The first vehicle to really convince drivers that electric cars are the way forward, the British-built Nissan Leaf is now in its second generation, featuring a sleeker design, longer range, and improved performance.

An innovative e-Pedal helps to further boost its range whilst also transforming the driving experience.

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Tesla Model S Range: 304 miles 0-60mph: 4.2 secs Max speed: 140mph Price: from £64,700 The quiet and comfortable Model S offers staggering performance and an impressive range, packed full of technology. Its controls are accessed via a massive 17-inch touchscreen that’s easy to personalise and updates wirelessly. What’s more, a pair of seats in the boot means that it can be converted into a seven-seater.

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Smart fortwo ED Smart fortwo ED Electric motor: 31hp Range: 99 miles 0-62mph: 11.5 secs Max speed: 80mph Price: from ÂŁ20,920 An electric version of the compact two-seater Smart, this car eliminates the dreadful jerkiness of the singleclutch automatic, making for a smoother ride. Its charging time of two and a half hours is reasonable compared to other models, plus it feels quick off the mark when hitting the pedal. In sum, a small and affordable electric car that excels in the city.

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Tesla Model X Range: 259 miles 0-60mph: 4.9 secs Max speed: 130mph Price: from ÂŁ70,500 A full-size SUV based on the Telsa Model S, this is the ideal electric vehicle for those who might have previously chosen a Mercedes GLS or Range Rover.

A great family car, seating up to seven, its low running costs and practical interior are hard to fault. However, given its size and weight, it can’t quite match the range of the Model S. 37

B U S I N E S S I N T E RV I E W

FULL STEAM AHEAD KPN is the leading Dutch telecommunications provider.

We spoke to the Executive Vice President Networks and IT, and CIO of the Year Award winner, Bouke Hoving, about the company’s most recent developments.

Written by Anna McMahon • Produced by Danielle Harris

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ith this in mind, Executive Vice President Networks and IT, Bouke Hoving, is determined to up the ante by leading the business into the next stage of its transformation.

Bouke said, “We sell telecommunication services to Dutch consumers as well as business customers. We try to do that in such a way that we combine our fixed and mobile networks into one proposition, so we can position ourselves as a leading telecommunications provider, where we deliver a package of internet, television and mobile. That’s what the company stands for, while also bringing IT components into the telecom package.”

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I asked Bouke if he could provide a little further information about this latest digital transformation. “It is called simplification in the outside world – what I used to phrase a technologyled business transformation. We are really looking for ways to improve the customer experience by deploying new technology.”

Bouke was awarded CIO of the Year Award 2017 (CIO Day) for his forward thinking. The award aims to give recognition to the best performing CIO in that year, focusing on leadership aspects and business and boardroom credibility, as well as such performance aspects as IT performance, IT agility and project performance/

“KPN’s next step sees the company strengthen its partnership with telecom software, solutions and service provider ZTEsoft”

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attractiveness. Motivated jury chairman, Bernhard van Oranje, explained, “With Bouke Hoving, we have chosen a leader who can put his vision into words and does everything he can to help his organisation move forward. He has proven that as well. He really made the difference for his company.”

Bouke believes his win is due to the transformation of KPN into a customerdriven organisation with an integrated and user-friendly range of products and services. His fellow nominees included Arthur Govaert (Radboudumc), Jaco van Goudswaard (Kadaster), Leo Brand (Vopak), Olli Hyyppä (NXP) and Ton van Rhijn (CZ). Bouke said, “It was tough competition. I was hoping to win but it was

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This partnership is basically covering what we see as the next phase of our transformation Bouke Hoving on ZTEsoft

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a surprise. For me, this award was about comparing ourselves cross-sector in a Dutch context against competitors and companies in a digital transformation programme. It was recognition that we have come quite far in the transformation of KPN towards a digital telecom company.”

Celebrating with a glass of wine with his nearest and dearest, Bouke added, “Being with my family and the team on the evening of the award ceremony was really nice.”

KPN’s next step sees the company strengthen its partnership with telecom

software, solutions and service provider ZTEsoft. Bouke explains, “This partnership is basically covering what we see as the next phase of our transformation. If you’re attending a summit or a digital transformation these days, the theme is how to move from digitising your customer interaction towards becoming digital. If you look at what we have done so far, we have transformed our operating model, built around products, into a more customer-centric business model. For example, previously, we were building our IT around individual products. If you then start to combine those products, customers get confused because the IT is

“Our future sees us look into those p IT to help us to implement this c

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processes that require more modern concept of instant gratification� not built around the customers, but the products. You therefore need to redo your IT, built around the customer.�

ZTEsoft specialises in providing business support system and operations support system products and services to telecom operators and other customers. The company is at the forefront of the digital transformation process, something that KPN will be exploring as it ventures into its next phase.

According to Bouke, “Customers come first at KPN. After the first phase, we

have seen customer satisfaction levels going up by more than 20 points. Now that we are entering this next phase, we need to look deeper into the core of our operating model, check all the processes, and determine whether they are still fit for the digital age. If you take the customer perspective, our customers demand instant gratification these days. Customers expect to walk out of a store and for their new mobile contract to be working before they leave. Similarly, when they are buying broadband, before they arrive home, they want it to be working. That bar for customer expectation is a very high bar.

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Digital Transformation is about Customer First Digital Transformation Offerings Customer experience is the key differentiator to compete in digital economy. ZTEsoft partnership with KPN focuses on creating the best customer experience by providing the technology and solutions to streamline business and operational processes and to get the most from network investments. For the future we will continue powering KPN’s digital transformation where customer is first!

ZTEsoft + Alibaba Cloud : At the forefront of Digital Transformation It is the very first time where industry’s digital transformation journey could benefit from the unprecedent power of transformation brought by high-end internet technologies and business models together with deep knowledge of industry business and operational processes. Alibaba Cloud and ZTEsoft will help service providers and industry players to transform into native digital players and to create massive value in the digital ecosystem.

Digital Transformation Fast Track Rapid implementation of business and operational enablement systems based on cloud native architectures and powered by AI and real time analytics.

Digital Business Enabler: E2E IoT platform Complete IoT enablement offering supports Connectivity Management Platform, IoT Application & Device Management and Cognitive Services & Data Management.

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ET Brain: AI for Improved Experience The ET Brain supports image and voice recognition, natural language processing and open source deep learning frameworks, to provide industry-speciďŹ c AI services and outstanding omni-channel customer experience.

Agile Cloud PaaS Delivery Delivering reliable and hugely scalable PaaS infrastructure by deploying the Apsara stack Enterprise service in a private cloud.

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For mobile, we are living up to those expectations, but for fixed, we are not.

We have been improving our delivery times and brought them down from 15 to seven days in the last few years, but we really need to have a very hard look at those processes.”

The automated processes in use date back to the sixties when the business was about disconnecting and reconnecting phone numbers. Bouke added, “Looking at the customer expectations in the digital world, nobody is asking a telecom company to disconnect a broadband internet line. Quite the opposite. So we really need to rethink those processes which were automated in the sixties for

“KPN remains at the forefront of the European telecommunications industry” telephone services and copied over for broadband internet connectivity, as they are inadequate.”

That’s all part of this next phase, ensuring that the processes can be reengineered. Bouke concluded, “Customers are rewarding us with positive feedback. Our future sees us look into those processes that require more modern IT to help us to implement this concept of instant gratification.”

And as the network becomes more software-defined, we will be able to see new business models emerging.

The future is very bright at KPN, and we would like to wish Bouke and all his team great success. It will be exciting to watch the company’s plans come to fruition, enabling it to enjoy unrivalled levels of customer satisfaction.

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FUTURE OF FITNESS

FITNESS 52

The Black Box VR is the world’s first full-fitness virtual reality gym, helping you transform your life through the power of immersive technologies.

FANATICS 53

Discover a whole new way to get fit – the addictive Black Box VR will make sure you never want to set foot inside a boring, unanimated gym again.

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sing virtual reality to develop a full-body work-out in the form of a 30-minute session, it uses a bespoke training machine and headset to get started.

Founded by fitness fans, Ryan DeLuca and Preston Lewis, the team behind online supplement retailer www. bodybuilding.com, the aim of Black Box VR is to create innovative products and experiences that promote lasting change in people’s lives. After trying virtual reality for the first time, Ryan and Preston felt they were experiencing a magically immersive technology that, if paired with resistance training, gaming principles and high intensity cardio, would be a winning combination for people trying to reach their health and fitness goals.

Virtual reality and fitness is a small but growing market. Black Box VR’s business plan is to first open boutique gyms across America, in which each member will enter their own ‘black box’ space for their work-out, and plans for an at-home version are in the pipeline. So, what’s the story behind this latest gaming craze?

Co-founder Preston Lewis tells us more.

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Q. When was Black Box VR founded?

A. In April 2016.

Q. What or who was the inspiration behind it?

A. My co-founder and I have been in the health and fitness industry for 15 plus years. With our passion for changing lives, we created award-winning health and fitness apps, built the world’s largest social fitness network, and delivered world-class content to millions of people. But, no matter how many innovative tools we created, we still saw a glaring problem. We continued to see the majority of our users struggling with long-term adherence to their fitness programmes. To be fair, our bodies literally fight against us as we try to stick to our fitness goals. They are programmed to be efficient with calories and induce pain when we are pushing too hard. On top of that, working out is immediate pain and delayed reward – it lacks the feedback loops that are needed to encourage follow-through.

That’s not to mention the boredom!

You stand there in the traditional gym, looking in the mirror, doing rep after rep, bored out of your mind.

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Contrast that with game design, and game designers have figured out how to keep people unhealthily addicted to games.

After trying virtual reality for the first time, we were blown away. We knew that this powerful technology, when elegantly paired with science-backed resistance training principles and the right game mechanics, would be a game-changer for the industry. Virtual reality is going to change the world in ways we don’t even know yet, and we are confident it is going to transform fitness forever, helping millions of people finally achieve their goals.

Q. Who is your target market?

A. We believe that through innovative engagement mechanics, user personalisation, real-time form tracking, coaching AI, game mechanics, deep data analysis and artificial intelligence, we will be able to reach a diverse demographic of people. Our core age group focuses on 25-40 year-olds that want to improve their health and fitness, have an affinity for games, and want work-outs that are datadriven, engaging and time-efficient.

Q. How unique is Black Box VR compared to other virtual reality products?

A. The uniqueness comes through the combination of immersive technologies with innovations in hardware and game design. Each element supports another to create a fitness experience like never before. One key differentiator is our patent pending Dynamic Resistance Machine that is specifically designed to deliver real resistance in a virtual environment.

Nobody in the market is delivering real resistance that corresponds to an 56

“The aim of Black Box VR is to create innovative products and experiences that promote lasting change in people’s lives” 57

immersive virtual sport like we are. The Dynamic Resistance Machine is mapped in the virtual environment, so when you reach out to grab a virtual handle, you are actually grabbing the handle in the real world. You can feel it. We’ve also created wearable devices that give you awareness of hand position without the need to hold a controller.

Q. How does the Dynamic Resistance Machine work?

A. It calibrates to how tall you are and

prescribes resistance based on your goals and fitness level. The machine itself runs through the game engine, so it responds to your gameplay and can change the weight and angles of tension without you ever having to make manual adjustments. This allows you to be fully immersed in the experience, while the number crunching, rep counts, weight counts and form tracking happen behind the scenes. Every successful rep you perform in the game corresponds to

some action in the Black Box VR game.

The dynamic nature of the machine opens up a vast toolset for us to use to give you the best fitness results.

Q. What kind of work-out can users expect?

A. It is a full-body work-out including science-backed routines that combine resistance training and high intensity cardio. The game can be a you versus you experience, or a competitive experience against another player, 58

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“It is a full-body work-out including science-backed routines that combine resistance training and high intensity cardio�

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or both. In you versus you, the player is trying to push to beat previous strength and skill levels to achieve higher ranks. The competitive aspect of play pits you against another player in a battle of fitness, as you push through previous plateaus and are crowned the competition winner. Just like traditional sports, there are an unlimited number of outcomes that keep gameplay exciting without overwhelming the user.

Q. How do you make fitness fun?

A. The Black Box VR experience is something we call a virtual sport. I’ve been in athletics my entire life and have always enjoyed the thrill of competition.

I’ve also had to push through the boring grind of countless gym resistance training sessions. With Black Box VR, we wanted to combine the two, minus the boredom! The great thing about sports is that they have simple rules and yet an infinite amount of variety in experience.

This variety comes in the form of training modes, championships, local and national leagues, team mentality and camaraderie, rivalries, inspiring stories of triumph, and more. All of these elements are combined with real resistance training in the Black Box VR experience.

Users take part in a virtual competition where their physical performance determines a victory or defeat. Every action they take, every rep they push in the real world, corresponds to an in-game offensive or defensive attack against an opponent. For example, each successful chest press rep at 100lbs of resistance might correspond to a level 5 attack on enemy troops. Or, each rep

of a 150lb squat could send a flurry of offensive strikes at a competitor’s base.

Black Box VR will take the addictive nature of gaming, combined with real physical performance, to usher in a new era of sports and fitness.

Q. Does this product work on specific muscle groups?

A. The Black Box Dynamic Resistance Machine is cable-based, so you can do a wide range of movements that hit all major muscle groups with real resistance. We have also built in active rest flows that give you the high intensity interval training to provide cardiovascular benefits.

Q. Where do you see Black Box VR in five years’ time?

A. Black Box VR locations all over the world will allow people to actually enjoy the journey to accomplishing their health and fitness goals. Immersive technologies will drive new ways of creating engaging sports experiences and even usher in a new era of virtual sports. Black Box VR will be at the forefront. Those looking to take their fitness to the next level will compete in Black Box VR sporting events, where a mix of in-game skill and physical performances will determine champions and future fitness celebrities. Innovations in the technology will also drive prices down, allowing Black Box VR technology to be accessible from the comfort of your own home. We are just getting started!

For further information on Black Box VR, visit www.blackbox-vr.com

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A RT I F I C I A L I N T E L L I G E N C E

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HOW

WILL AUGMENT YOUR BRAIN We keep getting mixed messages about Artificial Intelligence (AI) from the media each day, and many of us are confused and highly sceptical about its advantages and disadvantages.

Written by Anna McMahon • Produced by Tom Barnes

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To get a clearer picture, we talked to the founders of SwissCognitive – The Global AI Hub, Dalith Steiger and Andy Fitze, who are based in Switzerland, and share a huge passion for this new era.

Q. Turning first to you, Dalith, how do you see the current state of the cognitive ecosystem?

A. It is still in its emerging phase, but it is developing at an immense speed.

Research is being done in every corner of the world, resulting in new knowledge and findings. AI is already being implemented in our everyday lives, but much more could be done. Its potential is incredible, but many of us worry about the risks associated with it. Needless to say, in my view, the advantages of AI should be absolutely exploited.

the conversation, as knowledge sharing is crucial in exploring the incredible possibilities that AI presents. Finally, one of the biggest improvements will need to take place in the mind-set of people: It is important that we start considering AI as augmented competence for humans and not something that would replace it.

Q. Turning to you now, Andy, where do you see the potential for AI? A. The knowledge that we currently have about AI indicates benefits for all layers of society. It is important that Q. Where do you see room for we start considering using AI in tasks improvement in the current cognitive that we would consider to be repetitive ecosystem? and unfulfilling, drawing us closer to A. The strong exchange of knowledge tasks that are more meaningful and and experiences across industries on a satisfying – tasks that AI would never global basis will be key to the sustainable be able to perform. That said, AI can development of AI. It is extremely be implemented everywhere and important to have everyone included in anywhere. The sky is the limit!

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“It is important that we start considering Artificial Intelligence as augmented competence for humans and not something that would replace it�

Dalith Steiger 65

“In my view, AI brings great benefits to healthcare. It can help to explain lab results, detect illnesses early, treat PTSD, assist complex surgeries, develop new drugs, personalise medication, and assist in end of life care�

Andy Fitze 66

Q. What are some of the current challenges faced by AI? A. The two major challenges that I would mention are expectation management and fear. If we consider the former, for some reason, people have the feeling, that developing and implementing AI is a piece of cake. In reality, it is not at all simple. Data needs to be available in good quality for a start.

However, before we can get to the actual implementation stage, we need to understand what AI can and cannot do.

As Dalith mentioned, it is a process in which everyone needs to be involved. To reveal what is truly possible, the conversation and development of AI needs to be addressed on a global level, ensuring transparency and exchange of knowledge. Bringing everyone on the same page is certainly not an easy task, but with the power of collective work and knowledge, we can achieve a lot. Fear is the other huge issue. Going into the unknown is not something that most of us like doing. But, with careful planning and preparation, we can overcome challenges. Planning for AI means research, experimentation and knowledge sharing, while preparing refers to educating the current and younger generations about the existing knowledge, potential and risks of cognitive technologies.

Q. Dalith, what do you see as the biggest risk in the world of AI? A. The biggest risk is actually what we know people fear the most – loss of jobs.

But, perhaps this is not even a risk – it is unavoidable. It is a fact that is already happening and will continue to do so.

At the same time, new opportunities will surface, and we must not forget that. We have experienced industrial revolutions before.

Q. What is the approach we need to take to make the most of AI and minimise risks?

A. People need to be prepared, on both an individual and society level.

On an individual level, we need to realise, to stay competitive, we need to be open to new technologies.

AI is here to stay, and new technologies will be built on it. To stay in the game, we need to keep up. On the level of society, education also needs to be brought in line with the development of AI. It is our responsibility to provide an infrastructure that enables the new generation to have the right skillset to develop with the emerging technologies.

Q. Back to you now, Andy, where will AI be most beneficial?

A. It is hard to say because it can be implemented across all industries.

Its true potential will depend on how society chooses to use it. In my view, 67

it brings great benefits to healthcare.

It can help to explain lab results, detect illnesses early, treat PTSD, assist complex surgeries, develop new drugs, personalise medication, and assist in end of life care.

A. What we have managed to achieve in a very short amount of time in dozens of international enterprises is to break down an invisible wall that made people stop seeing the benefits of AI. We have enabled them to become more aware of its potential, and helped them to Q. What are the biggest changes that see how it can be implemented in their you have seen in the last five years? organisation. We bring the topic of AI A. The biggest change is in the attitude, to many boardrooms, and play a key openness, and mind-set of people. We role in raising and forming strategies are becoming more and more aware around cognitive technologies, to of the developing technologies, and the make organisations more competitive fact that there is future development to and sustainable. Very importantly, come. People have started to realise that though, we serve as a facilitator AI is not something to ignore. between industries, organisations and governments, providing a neutral Q. Do you think that AI is about people environment where knowledge and – exactly the opposite what most of us experience can be exchanged, strategies would think? can be developed, and all questions in A. Definitely. AI is created by humans for the field of AI can congregate. humans. Even though risks are present, with the right strategies and by working Q. What is the main aim of together, they can be reduced.

SwissCognitive?

A. Our role is to connect as many Q. Dalith, it is suggested that influential parties around the world SwissCognitive is the missing link as possible, with the common goal of between the current state of AI and its sharing knowledge and experiences in future. Why is that?

AI. By bringing people, organisations and industries together, we can form strategies to benefit all layers of society.

Ultimately, we aim to raise awareness of the potential of AI, and help people understand how they can benefit from it in their everyday lives.

Q. Where do you see SwissCognitive in the future?

A. We hope that SwissCognitive will remain as an inspiring global platform for all parties involved in cognitive 68

The amount of data and knowledge that is available to humankind is enormous technologies, gaining global presence where all questions around AI can be openly debated.

Q. Our final question goes to you Andy. What keeps you excited about AI? A. Its incredible potential, and how it can shape our lives, environment, world, and future. The amount of data and knowledge that is available to humankind is enormous. Being able

to build on that with the help of AI is extremely exciting. Our children will go down roads we started paving today, leading to extraordinary opportunities – opportunities that, here at SwissCognitive, we can hardly wait to explore.

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B U S I N E S S I N T E RV I E W

BEN SYKES

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NEW HEIGHTS QualityTaskForce is a global leader in high-quality testing, offering clients, both large and small, cost-effective solutions for their companies’ quality assurance measures. We spoke with CTO, Ben Sykes, about its success.

Written by Anna McMahon • Produced by Tom Barnes

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It has been six years since QualityTaskForce was launched, in answer to a gap in the product-testing market.

I

t was a natural progression for Ben and his team, responding to an increased need for quality assurance. And the story behind the company is a rather interesting one, with humble beginnings stemming from an informal chat in a noisy Swiss café.

Ben picks up the story. “We have quite a history. We were founded in 2012 in Switzerland, spun out of our sister company, b-mobile. What happened was that b-mobile was a large consultancy, offering our services to telecommunication companies, but as the years went on, we were taking more and more work in the area of quality assurance. Quality assurance and testing somehow didn’t fit so well with the core business, so Thomas,

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the CEO, and I sat down one day in a greasy spoon, and we decided to form QualityTaskForce, specifically to take on the quality assurance business.”

Since its launch, the nature of the quality assurance work has evolved. Ben explains, “As a Swiss business, we found EU markets incredibly difficult, as Swiss prices are significantly higher, so we were struggling to compete. Although the business was working well, it was always a problem. Our core story was that it didn’t matter if we were working with huge customers or tiny customers, large banks right down to very smallscale start-ups in app development or new technology. Whether working with these huge customers or these tiny customers, we always faced the same

“InsightPortal is a unique platform designed to improve the quality of your online business�

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question. What should we actually be testing our software on? Which mobile phones should we be using? Which tablets? Which web browsers? This was a problem everywhere. Our traditional model in answer to this problem was to provide some consultancy, so we decided to address this by getting into the product world and developing our own online tool to help our customers select the best devices to test their products. That was how InsightPortal was born.”

one-stop portal for advice and selfservice consultancy on the internet. And it was an instant hit with the company’s existing clients. Ben explains,” After we developed it, we sold it to our existing customers, and the feedback was absolutely fantastic. One customer, before they took our portal, had two full-time staff members doing this job of trying to understand which devices were the best ones for testing their products. Because of our portal, these two staff members were redeployed

InsightPortal is a unique platform designed to improve the quality of your online business, thanks to marketdriven test advice informing you on which products are necessary to be tested. The development centre is in Wroclaw in Poland, where a young, dynamic team drives the company forward, offering a successful graduate recruitment scheme, attracting the best development and marketing talent.

InsightPortal has shown incredible growth – news stories are now available inside the portal, so you can read all the latest from Google, Apple or Samsung, for example. Covering the whole of the market, InsightPortal has become the

into a much more useful part of the business, doing more productive things than trying to Google for 40 hours per week to understand the market. We provided cost savings immediately to this particular customer. Our portal subscriptions are 149 euros per month, and a full-time staff member in Switzerland is considerably more. It pays for itself in a matter of hours.”

As all the company’s existing customers chose to subscribe to InsightPortal, a decision was made to take the product to the next step, with a more public launch last year. Subscriber numbers have since grown. Ben says that it was 75

InsightPortal has been referred to by one customer as the Bloomberg of testing – a sentiment that fills Ben with pride, being the trusted source for customers

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purely accidental how QualityTaskForce was able to find its niche. He adds, “As a testing company, we work with a lot of external software vendors who sell testing tools and software. When we told them about InsightPortal, there was a eureka moment. Our data and advice is so useful to these software companies. They would traditionally be our competitors, but they are not anymore because they actually take our data from us.”

One such company is pCloudy, which provides access to real mobile phones over the internet. You no longer need to buy phones to test on, as pCloudy enables you to rent them on a perminutes basis. Speaking about the relationship, Ben said, “pCloudy integrated our data services into their portal so that, not only could they offer devices, but they could also offer advice on which devices should be used by the customer. It links the two things 78

together. They are providing devices; we are providing advice about devices.

They fit together very well. Now all our information services are available in the pCloudy portal for their customers, joining the dots together and helping their customers a lot more. Their business model is to sell device time, so if we tell customers what they need to be using, that enables pCloudy to sell more device time, as we are suggesting that more devices need to be tested. So, we have a double-benefit, both for the end-user, who gets good, data-driven advice, and to pCloudy, who sell more device minutes.”

InsightPortal has been referred to by one customer as the Bloomberg of testing – a sentiment that fills Ben with pride, being the trusted source for customers. He said, “Our data changes on a daily basis, and we bring into our database, millions of data points every day. We developed our first portal which

is now live, and a complete redesign is ongoing on at the moment, bringing new features and making it much more user-friendly. That’s our focus right now.

We will be bringing out our new service portfolio, which will be going into soft launch at the end of March. We would like to add end-users to the portal and expand our business-to-business integrations services. Our target is to keep growing. What is important for us is that our customers can be one-man bands working from home, or large multinational companies with offices on every continent. The business model caters for both.”

And it’s a business model that appears to be working. Ben added, “We will keep

doing what we’re doing, but we have to move with the market. The tech landscape is moving all the time, and we have to move with it. We are very nimble, so we can react quickly. If we have a customer that wants help to understand something, then we are doing it for them. Coming from an area of user experience and testing, we aim to delight our customers and users, and now we are using those exact same principles with InsightPortal to make sure we satisfy our customers’ day-to-day testing needs.”

So, just as Bloomberg satisfies our requirements for news, InsightPortal is satisfying its customers’ quality assurance needs with an ever-changing InsightPortal.

Why don’t you see for yourself?

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