Digital Innovation Magazine - June 2019

June 2019

Industry Experts

Six business leaders on using technology to help save the planet

the 5G challenge 100 start-ups that could make good use of 5G

Laya Healthcare’s Director with Responsibility for IT and Cyber Security shares an insight into the company’s tech future

DIARY DATES WEAREDEVELOPERS WORLD CONGRESS 2019

ICEE.FEST 2019

6-7 JUNE

13-14 JUNE

CityCube, Messedamm 26, 14055 Berlin

The Grand Cinema and More, Băneasa Shopping City, Bucharest

EDTECHXEUROPE 2019

AI & BIG DATA EXPO EUROPE 2019

18 JUNE

19-20 JUNE

The Brewery, 52 Chiswell Street, London

RAI Amsterdam, Europaplein 2-22, 1078 GZ, Amsterdam

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Welcome to the June edition of Digital Innovation Magazine, brimming with fascinating features on all things tech, exclusive interviews and diary dates for the most hotlyanticipated industry events – cast your eye over to page 2 for more!

Our cover interview this issue comes courtesy of Ian Brennan, Director at Laya Healthcare with Responsibility for IT and Cyber Security (p24).

It was a real pleasure for me to chat with Ian, covering such a broad range of topics, from women in STEM and his company’s key partners, through to digital transformation and IT security. Thanks Ian, it was great to learn more about IT at Laya and the company’s tech future.

As ever, our overriding theme for June is innovation. We bring you our guide to the latest technologies set to change the way we live our lives on page 38, as well as reports on the increased use of AR and VR experiences in the retail industry (p74), and how magnets could help AI get closer to human-like efficiency in object recognition tasks (p16)… Watch this space!

Plus, that’s not forgetting our six industry experts, who share their views on how technology can be used to boost our eco credentials (p62), and the EU Commission’s guidelines for building trust in AI, having highlighted the ‘unimaginable’ ethical risks (p6).

It’s another action-packed edition… Enjoy!

Editor Anna McMahon

Director Danielle Harris

editorial@digitalinnovationeu.com

d.harris@digitalinnovationeu.com

Senior Digital Designer Daniel May

Director Tom Barnes

design@digitalinnovationeu.com

t.barnes@digitalinnovationeu.com

+44 (0) 203 890 1189 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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Meet Laya Health Ian Brennan

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Our guide to the latest innovations set to change the way we live Could magnets help AI to replicate the human brain?

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AI and its associated ‘unimaginable’ ethical risks

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Competition to find the start-up that could make good use of 5G 4

hcare’s n

Smart shopping through AR and VR experiences Six industry experts on using tech to help the environment

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74

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presize.ai is our June issue’s start-up of the month

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Dell’s new cloud-based endpoint management platform 5

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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The Unseen Side of AI The EU Commission’s AI expert group has published its assessment of the rapidlyadvancing technology and warned it has ‘unimaginable’ ethical risks.

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The EU Commission’s high-level expert group of presented its work on ethics guidelines for tru AI last month, in which it highlighted the steps for building trust in AI and the ethical risks to which included tracking and identifying individ ‘scoring’ people without their knowledge, and p lethal autonomous weapons systems.

T AI

he guidelines have been several years in the making. They are the final version of proposals made in draft at the beginning of the year, which urged that AI be both humancentric and trustworthy. At the same time, the expert group also launched a pilot project to test the guidance in practice.

On the subject of tracking individuals, the experts foresee biometric data of people being involuntarily used such as “lie detection [or] personality assessment through micro expressions”, whilst noting that citizen scoring criteria must be transparent and fair, with scores being challengeable.

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When it comes to lethal autonomous systems, the experts warn machines with cognitive skills could “decide whom, when and where to fight without human intervention”.

Experts from various fields across Europe sit in the group, including academic lawyers from Birmingham and Oxford universities. They concluded, “It is important to build AI systems that are worthy of trust, since human beings will only be able to confidently and fully reap its benefits when the technology, including the processes and people behind the technology, are trustworthy.”

f AI ustworthy s required o society, duals, powering

AI is a technology that is both transformative and disruptive 9

The EU’s ambition is to boost public and private spending on AI to ₏20billion every year for the next decade to make more data available, foster talent and ensure

trust, while closing the current gap between European developments and those in Asia and North America.

In order for AI to be trustworthy and thereby gain public acceptance, the group recommended three components:

the Commission will strengthen cooperation with like-minded partners 10

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It should be lawful, complying with all laws and regulations.

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It should be ethical, complying with ethical principles and values.

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It should be robust from a technical and social perspective, so it does not cause harm unintentionally.

Those developing and using AI should bear in mind that while the technology could bring benefits to a wide range of sectors, such as healthcare, energy consumption, car safety, farming, climate change, detecting fraud and cybersecurity threats, and financial risk management, it could also impact negatively on “democracy, the rule of law and distributive justice, or on the human mind itself”.

The experts continued, “AI is a technology that is both transformative and disruptive, and its evolution over the last several years has been facilitated by the availability of enormous amounts of digital data,

major technological advances in computational power and storage capacity, as well as significant scientific and engineering innovation in AI methods and tools.

AI systems will continue to impact society and citizens in ways that we cannot yet imagine.”

The Commission’s three-step approach sets out the key requirements for trustworthy AI:

1. Seven essentials for achieving trustworthy Artificial Intelligence Trustworthy Artificial Intelligence should respect all applicable laws and regulations, as well as a series of requirements; specific assessment lists aim to help verify

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the application of each of the key requirements:

• Human agency and oversight: Artificial Intelligence systems should enable equitable societies by supporting human agency and fundamental rights, and not decrease, limit or misguide human autonomy.

• Robustness and safety: Trustworthy Artificial Intelligence requires algorithms to be secure, reliable and robust enough to deal with errors or inconsistencies during all life cycle phases of Artificial Intelligence systems.

• Privacy and data governance: Citizens should have full control over their own data, while data concerning them will not be

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used to harm or discriminate against them.

• Transparency: The traceability of Artificial Intelligence systems should be ensured.

• Diversity, non-discrimination and fairness: Artificial Intelligence systems should consider the whole range of human abilities, skills and requirements, and ensure accessibility.

• Societal and environmental wellbeing: Artificial Intelligence systems should be used to enhance positive social change and enhance sustainability and ecological responsibility.

• Accountability: Mechanisms should be put in place to ensure responsibility and accountability for Artificial Intelligence systems and their outcomes.

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AI

The Commission wants to bring this approach to Artificial Intelligence ethics to the global stage because technologies, data and algorithms know no borders 13

Ethical AI is a win-win proposition that can become a competitive advantage for Europe 14

2. LARGE-SCALE PILOT WITH PARTNERS In summer 2019, the Commission will launch a pilot phase involving a wide range of stakeholders.

Already today, companies, public administrations and organisations can sign up to the European AI Alliance and receive a notification when the pilot starts. In addition, members of the Artificial Intelligence high-level expert group will help present and explain the guidelines to relevant stakeholders in member states.

3. Building international consensus for human-centric Artificial Intelligence The Commission wants to bring this approach to Artificial Intelligence ethics to the global stage because technologies, data and algorithms know no borders. To this end, the Commission will strengthen cooperation with like-minded partners such as Japan,

Canada or Singapore and continue to play an active role in international discussions and initiatives including the G7 and G20. The pilot phase will also involve companies from other countries and international organisations.

Andrus Ansip, EU Vice-President for the digital single market, said, “Ethical AI is a win-win proposition that can become a competitive advantage for Europe, being a leader of human-centric AI that people can trust.”

International technology giant, IBM, which is part of the expert group that helped develop the guidelines, has also come out with strong support for the EU’s move. Martin Jetter, Senior Vice President and Chairman of IBM Europe, said, “We believe the thoughtful approach to creating (ethics guidelines) provides a strong example that other countries and regions should follow.”

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HUMAN BRAIN

MAGNETIC ATTRACTION Could magnets help AI get closer to human-like efficiency in object recognition tasks?

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COMPUTERS AND AI CONTINUE TO USHER IN MAJOR CHANGES IN THE WAY PEOPLE SHOP. IT IS RELATIVELY EASY TO TRAIN A ROBOT’S BRAIN TO CREATE A SHOPPING LIST, BUT WHAT ABOUT ENSURING THAT THE ROBOTIC SHOPPER CAN EASILY TELL THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN THE THOUSANDS OF PRODUCTS IN THE STORE?

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ew research into using magnetic networks that ‘mimic’ human brain activity could hold the answer.

Researchers at Purdue University have developed a process to use magnetics with intricate, brain-like networks to program and teach devices such as personal robots, self-driving cars and drones to better generalise about different objects and be more efficient. The researchers accomplished this by developing a system of nano-magnets, which have a random probability or

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stochastic behaviour, similar to neurons in the brain.

Kaushik Roy, Purdue’s Edward G. Tiedemann Jr. Distinguished Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering, said, “Our stochastic neural networks try to mimic certain activities of the human brain and compute through a connection of neurons and synapses. This allows the computer brain to not only store information, but also to generalise well about objects and then make inferences to perform better at distinguishing between objects.”

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Kaushik presented the technology during the annual German Physical Sciences Conference in Germany. The work also appeared in the Frontiers in Neuroscience.

The switching dynamics of a nano-magnet are similar to the electrical dynamics of neurons. Magnetic tunnel junction devices show switching behaviour, which is stochastic in nature.

The stochastic switching behaviour is representative of a sigmoid switching behaviour of a neuron. Such magnetic tunnel junctions can be also used to store synaptic weights.

The Purdue group based their technology on experimental behaviour observed in rat brains. They proposed a new stochastic training algorithm for synapses using spike timing dependent plasticity (STDP), termed StochasticSTDP, which has been experimentally observed in the rat’s hippocampus. The inherent stochastic behaviour of the magnet was used to switch the magnetisation

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RESEARCHERS AT PUR DEVELOPED A PROCESS T INTRICATE, BRAIN-LIKE N AND TEACH DEVICES SUCH SELF-DRIVING CARS AN GENERALISE ABOUT DIFF MORE EF

RDUE UNIVERSITY HAVE TO USE MAGNETICS WITH NETWORKS TO PROGRAM CH AS PERSONAL ROBOTS, ND DRONES TO BETTER FERENT OBJECTS AND BE FFICIENT

states stochastically based on the proposed algorithm for learning different object representations.

The trained synaptic weights, encoded deterministically in the magnetisation state of the nano-magnets, are then used during inference.

Advantageously, use of highenergy barrier magnets (30-40KT where K is the Boltzmann constant and T is the operating temperature) not only allows compact stochastic primitives, but also enable the same device to be used as a stable memory element, meeting the data retention requirement.

However, the barrier height of the nano-magnets used to perform sigmoid-like neuronal computations can be lowered to 20KT for higher energy efficiency.

Kaushik said, “The big advantage with the magnet technology we have developed is that it is very energy-efficient. We have created a simpler network that represents the neurons and synapses while compressing

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WE SHOULD STRIVE FOR MACHINES THAT CAN DO WHAT HUMANS DO, BUT I DON’T THINK WE’RE EVER GOING TO MAKE IT. I USED TO BELIEVE WE WERE GOING TO MAKE IT Steve Wozniak, Apple co-founder

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the amount of memory and energy needed to perform functions similar to brain computations.”

The AI breakthrough could also help robots make optimised decisions in route planning – an algorithmic conundrum known as the Travelling Salesman Problem. Kaushik explained how the brain-like networks have other uses in solving difficult problems such as combinatorial optimisation problems and graph colouring. The proposed stochastic devices can act as “natural annealer”, helping the algorithms move out of local minimas.

Their work aligns with Purdue’s Giant Leaps celebration, acknowledging the university’s global advancements in AI as part of Purdue’s 150th anniversary.

It is one of the four themes of the yearlong celebration’s Ideas Festival, designed to showcase Purdue as an intellectual centre solving real-world issues.

However, Apple co-founder, Steve Wozniak, warned Purdue University of the danger associated with untethered AI. He spoke at the festival, expressing his doubts that computers will ever truly catch up with the human brain. He said, “We should strive for machines that can do what humans do, but I don’t think we’re ever going to make it. I used to believe we were going to make it.”

Steve went on to say computers will forever lack the ability to solve problems in a strategic and deductive way, even if they do it considerably faster than humans. He added, “Even if you had a computer that could do a billion million things a second, it would never solve a problem that way; you need an approach to get there quickly. Human brains have always been able to do that. So, I’m not worried about the human brain being replaced for those decisions.”

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

Written by Anna McMahon • Produced by Tom Barnes

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Ian Brennan, Director at Laya Healthcare with Responsibility for IT and Cyber Security, discusses women in STEM, digital transformation, IT security, the company’s key partners, and Laya’s tech future.

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Ian Brennan manages all aspects of including cybersecurity, at Laya Hea better business value and driving cu functionally-rich IT solutions across sales, customer service and claims.

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s is the case for any business leader, Ian faces a number of challenges in his role as IT lead. He explained, “Everyone is transforming digitally at a very quick pace.

To move as quick as – or quicker than – the market is a real challenge. But, if you were to ask me what my biggest challenge is, I would say it is to do with finding and retaining the right calibre of people within the organisation, as, here in Ireland, it is extremely dynamic.”

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the IT function, althcare, delivering ustomer-centric, s the company, for From a gender perspective, Laya benefits from having a good number of male and female employees in most departments. However, when it comes to IT, females are in the minority. Ian said, “I see women in leadership positions in IT, but there are never as many as I would want.

It is difficult to get women to consider roles in STEM. Early on, are they thinking that science, engineering, IT, construction or architecture

Essentially, what we have done is pushed the ability for our members to be able to interact with us in any way, and on any device 27

could be interesting for them? At Laya, our directors are three women and three men. It is the ideal match as far as I am concerned because we all bring something different to the table. We really need to encourage young women to look at STEM careers.”

Ian’s IT team is currently six years into the organisation’s digital transformation, having made it a priority to use technology to make life

Protecting organisations in an increasingly complex threat landscape.

WWW.WARD.IE

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We set up portals corporate clients our penetration te Ward Solutions, to This ensures our s high as possible easier for Laya’s members. Ian explained, “Essentially, what we have done is pushed the ability for our members to be able to interact with us in any way, and on any device. In the last six years, we have made it possible for our members to self-service if they wish. There’s a members’ area where you can go in to amend your address or your policy, and we have built an app so you can claim your day-to-day expenses more easily. If you go in to see your consultant who charges you 150 euros, you take a picture of the amount on your phone, you key in the details, you submit the claim, and that goes straight into our claim handling system.

The old-fashioned way of filling in a claims form, and then after it has all been sorted out, receiving a cheque, is so slow.

Nowadays, if you go in to see your GP at 8am and send in

s for specific and then get est partner, o test them. security is as

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We want to be that trusted member for our partners, offering a really good experience in terms of managing their own health and wellbeing Ian Brennan, Director at Laya Healthcare

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your claim as you are walking out, the money could be back in your account by the afternoon, having gone through all our checks. It’s a really good members’ service, while, at the same time, it’s a really efficient service, without the need for teams and teams of people.”

Ian has been asked to speak at numerous CIO and cybersecurity events in Ireland and overseas.

Opening Zerodaycon in Dublin last year, he emphasised the

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importance of CSOs addressing cybersecurity basics again and again, as well as the importance of relating it in business terms as a process rather than a project. Ian said, “We have millions of people’s healthcare records, and that’s unfortunately a very attractive target. We take our responsibility seriously, with really strict regulations from the Central Bank of Ireland, and GDPR, which has been transformative, in my mind, in a very positive way.

“It makes every business have to answer why they are capturing the data, why they are processing it, and why they are keeping it so long. They are all very fair questions. It all comes down to going back to basics, which I get my team to focus on day in, day out. For example, are you keeping your systems patched? Are you aware of all the vulnerabilities? Do you know all the equipment that’s being added to your network? Are you controlling what’s accessing your core network? Are you making sure that the people who have privileged access to your systems only have the right access? This is IT security in a nutshell. When you look at the breaches, it’s not rocket science – it’s just a case of missing these ‘cyber-hygiene’ factors. Very often, the simple things get missed.”

We work with Smarttech to make sure we have really strong governance and understand everything that’s going on. They are treated like an employee of this company, not like an outsource supplier.

That is the key difference for us

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Maximising the benefit of products is paramount, and RPA is one such product which has been a huge success for the organisation, having invested a lot of time and effort in the last two years. Ian added, “RPA has produced fantastic results for us. Having a digital

dealing with those complex cases that really need a person to make a judgement.”

Laya works in partnership with a number of trusted partners, having developed a relationship with them and striving to challenge them on a daily basis.

One such partner is Smarttech247, which runs Laya’s security operation centre. Ian said, “We

Blue Prism software mirrors the activities of a person on a particular system, interacting with as many applications as you require. It does a huge amount of our mundane, hard processing, back office stuff, and it’s extremely powerful worker that can work alongside your team, which automates 95 per cent of the tasks, means employees can concentrate on the 5 per cent exception cases. It is hugely efficient and extremely accurate. A digital worker works three times faster than a human because they are unrelenting.

They can do the boring or mundane tasks, allowing people to do what they should be doing, whether interacting with others or 34

work with Smarttech to make sure we have really strong governance and understand everything that’s going on. We look at the alerts and make sure they understand any changes we are making to the networks. They are treated like an employee of this company, not like an outsource supplier. That is the key difference for us.”

In addition, Laya Healthcare partners with Blue Prism,

Alongside your team, a Digital Workforce frees your sta to do the job that matters most: improving patient outcomes.

We work with more than 400 healthcare providers globally who use connected-RPA to deliver strategic digital transformation and business value through automation.

Key business outcomes include:

Whatever business outcome you seek, let Blue Prism and our partners guide you to the beneďŹ ts of becoming a Connected Entrepreneur Enterprise.

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which provides robotic process automatic software, as well as Ward Solutions, which are responsible for most of Laya’s penetration tests. Ian added, “Blue Prism software mirrors the activities of a person on a particular system, interacting with as many applications as you require. It does a huge amount of our mundane, hard processing, back office stuff, and it’s extremely powerful. We also have corporate customers who need access to a range of courses to improve

their employees’ wellbeing, for example. We set up portals for specific corporate clients and then get our penetration test partner, Ward Solutions, to test them. This ensures our security is as high as possible.”

So, what does the future hold for tech at Laya? Ian answered, “We have a huge amount of data, and what we want to do is to use that data to help our members live healthier lives. If we can say, based on what we

We have a huge amount of data, and what we want to do is to use that data to help our members live healthier lives Ian Brennan, Director at Laya Healthcare

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are seeing, there’s a reasonable chance that you’re going to go down a certain road, we can help them to improve their lifestyles.

We have various services such as cardiac screenings and health coaches to educate and inform our members to make better choices for themselves. That is 100 per cent down to technology – wearables, apps, and information on our website. There’s a whole raft of things we can use to give our members the information they want. And that information is specific to our members – it’s not

one-size-fits-all.

It has to be tailored, and we want to be that trusted member for our partners, offering a really good experience in terms of managing their own health and wellbeing.”

For further information on Laya Healthcare, visit www.layahealthcare.ie

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TOP 10

We look at the latest in to change the way we

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nnovations set live our lives.

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echnology is moving at such a pace that our daily lives are almost unrecognisable from the way previous generations used to live.

Science has changed the way we do things, making everyday tasks even easier. And with more technological advances expected to come our way over the decades ahead, here are 10 of the most hotly-anticipated future innovations:

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Intelligent Fridges

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e are accustomed to having smart fridges in our homes, which have been programmed to sense which products are being stored inside them, keeping track of the stock and determining when a food item needs to be replenished. But, imagine a world in which the fridge can order any groceries that are running low! Smart fridges are getting more and more advanced each year. Eventually, every kitchen will have one and there will no longer be the need to go supermarket shopping again!

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Wearable Screens

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he future could be a screenless one, with touch-capable projector-like devices that beam usable screens onto our skin, clothing or other surfaces.

You might not even require a smartphone device anymore – rather, something you wear or have implanted under your skin, as we have already started seeing with rail ticket chips, for example.

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Hyperloop Explained

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Hyper-fast Trains

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high-speed underground transport system, Hyperloop, is currently being built and tested in America. The first route planned will go from Los Angeles to San Francisco, while another route is expected to run between New York and Washington, with a journey time of 29 minutes, rather than two hours 56 minutes. Hyper-fast trains that go underground and underwater could revolutionise not just public transport, but international travel too.

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Virtual Homes

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e are used to seeing 3D drawings and models of new homes, but with 3D rendering, homeowners can take a virtual tour of the buildings before they move in, enabling them to get a better idea of the sense of space and where they wish to place their furniture. With life-like presentations, clients can experience first-hand what the building will be like and advise architects accordingly during the initial planning stages.

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Robots

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obots are taking on jobs in the workplace, especially those considered to be dull, difficult or dangerous. The latest machines have been adapted to support the needs of the military, whether fighting on the battlefield or giving soldiers extra strength and abilities. They are no longer a thing of fiction – the future could even see them helping around the house as butlers or chefs!

Li-Fi

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i-Fi uses light to transmit data, rather than Wi-Fi’s radio waves, and is theoretically capable of transmitting data at much higher speeds. It is also less prone to interference, and there’s a lot more potential for bandwidth.

If Li-Fi takes off, it is also likely to be considerably cheaper than Wi-Fi. 45

“New space technologies developed by private companies will bring about fundamental change that will influence business and our personal lives�

George Whitesides

CEO Virgin Galactic and The Spaceship Company

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Space Tourism

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ompanies such as Virgin Galactic, SpaceX and Amazon’s Blue Origin are working on projects that will send us all to space one day, set aboard a spaceship that takes us into orbit.

Expect hefty ticket prices!

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Lab-grown Meats

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cientists are looking at developing costeffective ways to grow edible meat in the lab, cutting down on the ecological damage that meat farming does to the world, and resulting in an ethical alternative that people can enjoy guilt-free.

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Smart Home Appliances

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echnology is bringing better treatment of patients with health conditions that were previously difficult to diagnose, and now there are even home appliances that can act as healthcare professionals. We already have intelligent toothbrushes, which keep an eye on your brushing technique, but what if your brush could use sensors to monitor your dental health and send data to your dentist? Meanwhile, smart mirrors of the future will be able to scan you and tell you about any potential health problems, vitamin deficiencies or underlying issues.

Gesture-based computing

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his concept has been around for a while, but it is reasonable to expect a future where we’re no longer restricted by mouse and keyboard. Instead, we could be relying on voice and action to manipulate data in a virtual space.

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“The Digital Innovation team are incredibly professional and it was my pleasure to be part of the August 2018 edition. At each stage, Danielle and her team were highly prepared and very thorough. I was impressed with the level of diligence and attention to detail that they paid throughout the whole process. It was good to work with a team who had an extremely high level of contextual expertise in the industry in terms of breadth and depth, and they had clearly done their research properly. I wish them every success and it was a real career high to be involved with the project, and I’d like to thank the Digital Innovation team for everything they have done for me” – Jen Stirrup, Director – Data Relish

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5G NEWS

SHOW YOUR BU

Vodafone has partn London to identify could make go

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WCASE USINESS

nered with Unbound y 100 start-ups that ood use of 5G.

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British multinational telecommunications provider, Vodafone, has more than: 470 Million

14 Million

9.8 Million

Mobile Customers

Fixed Broadband Customers

TV Customers

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ith connectivity underpinning everything in today’s digital world, it’s the vital foundation for the applications and technologies that we rely on in our daily lives, from maps, contactless payment and video calls, through to a whole range of mobile communications.

As we move further into the digital age, Vodafone is building upon these technologies, which is where 5G comes in. In a nutshell, 5G

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is a next-generation network robust and powerful enough to support the advanced applications we are striving for, making future technologies, such as connected homes, driverless cars and augmented reality, possible.

It is set to completely transform the way we do business by bringing enormous data capacity, rapid speeds, and incredibly low latency. And as the first 5G networks begin to arrive, we can anticipate unparalleled levels of disruption.

Watch the highlights from Unbound London 2018 55

Feature

Low Latency 5G will reduce the current delay between interactions to as low as 1 millisecond, allowing for faster, more interactive gaming, for example.

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Capa

An enormou speed of 1 per second 100Mbps wil VR massifi other use c require high connec

es of 5G

acity

us download 10 gigabits d instead of ll enable AR/ ication and cases that h throughput ctivity.

Slicing This provides us with the ability to ‘slice’ the network into multiple layers, so if too many users come onto one layer, others will not be affected.

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Unbound is innovation together ri innovation

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In this way, 5G is likely to be transformative for many businesses, and the company has acknowledged this by launching the new Vodafone 5G Challenge. Working in partnership with Unbound London, the challenge aims to find 100 pioneering start-ups from all over the world, which could really benefit from the new capabilities of 5G. Being selected means the start-up in question will be ‘recognised as a leading light in 5G by Vodafone and Unbound’. They will have the opportunity to collaborate

s the UK’s largest n festival, bringing ich sources of n from across Europe

with Vodafone, and, additionally, the top 20 chosen start-ups will exhibit their solution at Unbound London, with five able to pitch on the main stage.

The Prize • 100 start-ups recognised as a leading light in 5G by Vodafone and Unbound.

• The top 20 will exhibit their solution at Unbound London.

• Five will pitch on the main stage.

• The opportunity to collaborate with Vodafone.

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The 5G Challenge is aimed at start-ups working in areas including automotive, industry 4.0, healthcare, smart cities, media, entertainment and gaming

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Unbound is the UK’s largest innovation festival, bringing together rich sources of innovation from across Europe.

Brands, corporate executives and investors come together to meet with Europe’s most disruptive start-ups, forging partnerships and exploring new opportunities. Chaired by Yossi Vardi, the festival connects over 5,000 founders, entrepreneurs, investors, corporate and brand executives, and thought leaders with sources of innovation from around the world, bridging the gap between business and the world’s digital and technological pioneers.

including automotive, industry 4.0, healthcare, smart cities, media, entertainment and gaming. They should either be using 3G or 4G, but in a position to drastically improve their solution with the addition of 5G, or be relying purely on the new capabilities of 5G for their solution.

The 5G Challenge is aimed at start-ups working in areas

For further information, visit www.unbound.live/london

To find out which applicants have been chosen as part of the Vodafone 5G Challenge, visit Unbound London next month. A true celebration of innovation, it takes place on Wednesday 17th and Thursday 18th July at the Old Truman Brewery in Shoreditch.

Watch Vodafone make the UK’s first live holographic call using 5G 61

ENVIRONMENT

Six industry experts explain how tech organisations can positively contribute to the wellbeing of our planet.

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ith research finding that digital businesses are often created twice as fast as non-digital organisations, the question of how tech firms can

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support the environment is of significant interest. Here, six industry leaders share their views on how tech companies can play their part.

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Utilising tech talent for the greater good

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yve Managed Hosting Operations and Compliance Director, Graham Marcroft, highlights the importance of harnessing all the innovative thinking in the tech sector to benefit the planet.

He said, “The tech industry is awash with innovation, and companies should be using this to think out of the box when it comes to reducing environmental impact. Unfortunately, Hyve’s concept of powering data centres using exercise bikes was just an April Fool’s Day joke, but as an MSP, we are always trying to be more efficient for our customers and the environment.

“This is evidenced by our data centres investing over

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100million dollars in energy efficiency upgrades, and making an industry-first public commitment back in 2015 to long-term goals of using clean and renewable energy to power 100 per cent of their global footprint. “(This) is the perfect time for every business, person and tech company to review their carbon footprint and work out how they can improve. Whether this is through having less single-use plastic in the office, working with local governments to plant trees, or committing to initiatives like carbon balancing, there are many ways in which tech companies and businesses can make a difference.”

HYVE’S long-term goal IS TO usE clean and renewable energy to power 100 per cent of their global footprint

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“Better analytics of weather patterns can help supermarkets ensure they have the right amount of seasonal produce to meet demand for a particular weather period without wastage�

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The importance of understanding consumption

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ango Solutions CEO and Co-founder, Matt Aldridge, said, “There are many examples of data analytics applications that can play a small part in decelerating the process of climate change – the more focus that organisations place on this, the brighter the outlook for our planet.”

He continued, “Think about the waste problem in supermarket fresh food sales, for example.

Better analytics of

weather patterns can help supermarkets ensure they have the right amount of seasonal produce to meet demand for a particular weather period without wastage; better analytics of customer weekly shopping habits would mean the store could ensure it has met demand without having surplus fresh food.”

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Connectivity that doesn’t cost the earth

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radlepoint VP and GM EMEA, Jason Wells, explains how greater efficiency with wireless networks can generate a greener, more efficient world.

This efficiency can generate a smarter business world, and the pace of development is only going to continue to increase.

He said, “Smart devices enable a greater level of control and a more in-depth method of data collection than ever before, and they have an important role to play in both new and existing office buildings. Fast mobile internet connections are the backbone of this new Internet of Things (IoT) landscape. And while 4G is already supporting IoT development in office buildings, 5G will be the catalyst for even greater adoption.

“Over the next few years, as we move down the pathway to 5G, we will see more organisations taking this approach to deliver an increasingly connected workplace.”

“while 4G is already supporting IoT development in office buildings, 5G will be the catalyst for even greater adoption�

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“Online resources significantly cut down on the amount of paper used in a learning programme�

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Cut down emissions, not trees

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“Classroom basedtraining, on the other hand, tends to rely on handouts and quizzes that use up a lot of paper.

According to research conducted by Kyocera, the average office worker in the UK uses up to 45 He explained, “A good pieces of paper per day, eLearning programme – and a staggering twoas well as boosting your organisation’s productivity – thirds of that is considered can have a positive impact waste. Striving to create a paperless office is one on your organisation’s carbon footprint. Online of the most eco-friendly tactics an organisation resources significantly can use to help the cut down on the environment, and learning amount of paper programmes are a great used in a learning place to start.” programme.

killsoft Managing Director EMEA, Steve Wainwright, discusses how significant environmental improvements can be achieved through a paperless office.

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Data centres can make a difference

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ode4 Head of Data Centre Operations, Rik Williams, said, “Data centre providers have a responsibility to follow sustainable principles and should be thinking about how to fulfil the requirements of businesses that are conscious of the need to deploy environmentally-friendly IT solutions.

“Using this technology is not only better for the environment, but could save data centres between 40 per cent and 60 per cent on air conditioning, reduce customer costs, and, crucially, their impact on climate change.

Scale Computing Office of the CTO, Alan Conboy,

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added, “Data centres are used by almost all businesses in some way or another.

However, some can require huge amounts of power just to keep them cool, not to mention their operational power consumption.

“New technologies, like edge computing, compress the footprint needed to run IT out in the field. By using a data centre in a box that is smaller than a single refrigerator, enterprises can build their green efficiencies by using less power for operation and cooling.

“If every business made a small change, together we would make a big change.”

“If every business made a small change, together we would make a big change�

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V I RT UA L R E A L I T Y

Up to 100 million consumers will shop through AR and VR experiences online and in-store by 2022, says research and advisory company, Gartner.

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AN ANALYSIS ON THE AR AND VR MARKET BY THE WORLD’S LEADING RESEARCH AND ADVISORY COMPANY, GARTNER, PREDICTS THAT 100 MILLION CONSUMERS WILL SHOP IN AR ONLINE AND IN-STORE BY 2022.

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R and VR have the potential to shake up the customer experience by individualising retailers’ offers and enabling customers to visualise products in different settings.

Gartner argues retailers are ‘under increasing pressure to explain the purpose of physical stores, and take control of the fulfilment and return process for crosschannel execution’, and that a unified experience is key going forward.

Hanna Karki, Principal Research Analyst at Gartner, said, “At the same time, consumers are progressively defining the value provided by the experiences they receive from retailers. As a result of these pressures, retailers are turning to AR and VR to offer customers a unified retail experience inside and outside retail stores.”

A 2018 Gartner survey indicated that, by 2020, 46 per cent of retailers planned to deploy either AR or VR solutions to meet customer service experience requirements. Additionally, 77

the technologies behind these solutions have moved 15 to 30 per cent further along the Gartner Hype Cycle over the past 12 months.

Hanna added, “The impact of AR or VR in retail can be transformative. Retailers can use AR as an extension of the brand experience to engage customers in immersive environments and drive revenue. For example, IKEA’s Place app enables customers to virtually ‘place’ IKEA products in their space.

Additionally, AR can be used outside the store after a sale to increase customer satisfaction and improve loyalty.”

OF RETAILERS PLANNED TO DEPLOY EITHER AR OR VR SOLUTIONS TO MEET CUSTOMER SERVICE EXPERIENCE REQUIREMENTS 78

"TOYOTA’S R APPLICATION IN WITH BRANDW CONSUMERS THE TO LOOK INSI UPCOMING C

RECENT AR N ASSOCIATION WIDTH ALLOWS E OPPORTUNITY IDE TOYOTA’S C-HR MODEL"

With VR’s immersive interfaces, retailers can create task efficiencies or reduce the costs associated with designing new products. They can also enhance the understanding of information through advanced graphical visualisation and simulation technologies.

Pilots and implementation examples include Alibaba’s full VR shopping experience, virtual reality tours by Tesco, Adidas’ VR video to promote its outdoor clothing collection, and eBay Australia’s partnerships with Myer to create personalised stores.

Furthermore, Toyota’s recent AR application in association with Brandwidth allows consumers the opportunity to look inside Toyota’s upcoming C-HR model.

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Yet not everybody is in agreement with regards to the implementation of AR and VR in a retail environment.

A study from Censuswide, alongside payments provider, Klarna, found that four in five of the 2,000 shoppers polled said they had no interest in such technologies.

Even if customer engagement may be lacking for now, Gartner argues that it is

only a matter of time. 5G mobile network technology represents an opportunity to accelerate the adoption of AR and VR in stores.

Gartner’s recent 5G enterprise survey indicated that AR/VR applications of 5G attract the highest expectations for becoming drivers of new revenue, across all use cases and respondents. 5G capabilities can support multiple uses cases, such

"AS CONSUMERS DEMAND MORE PERSONALISED EXPERIENCES, THE RETAIL INDUSTRY MUST USE TECHNOLOGY TO TRANSFORM THE CUSTOMER EXPERIENCE AND REMAIN RELEVANT IN A COMPETITIVE MARKET" Anita Liu Harvey, Director of Strategy at Barclaycard,

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5G MOBILE NETWORK TECHNOLOGY REPRESENTS AN OPPORTUNITY TO ACCELERATE THE ADOPTION OF AR AND VR IN STORES

as real-time rendering for immersive video, shorter download and set-up times, and extension of brands and shopping experiences beyond stores.

management cycle of brands.

5G can optimise warehouse resources, enhance store traffic analytics, and enable beacons that communicate with shoppers’ smartphones.”

Sylvain Fabre, Senior Research Director at Gartner, said, “Gartner expects that the implementation of 5G and AR/ VR in stores will transform not only customer engagement, but also the entire product

Adding to Gartner’s insights, Anita Liu Harvey, Director of Strategy at Barclaycard, said, “As consumers demand more personalised experiences, the retail industry must use technology to transform 81

"IT’S CLEAR THAT CONSUMERS ALSO EXPECT THE CUSTOMER EXPERIENCE TO BE SEAMLESS FROM END-TOEND" the customer experience and remain relevant in a competitive market.

“Some brands have already started to take advantage of this. For example, this year, Zara introduced an augmented reality experience at selected stores, creating a new-age, futuristic take on window dressing. These stores have turned their shop windows into holograms, showcasing some of their latest products, which you can buy on your smartphone (at) the click of a button.

“It’s clear that consumers also expect the customer experience to be seamless 82

from end-to-end. As such, customers are signalling for a more convenient and almost ‘invisible’ payment process. From biometrics to contactless coffee cups, consumers have never had more choice about how they want to pay. It’s therefore crucial that retailers take personalisation seriously throughout the whole customer experience, including the payment journey.

“Furthermore, as consumers increasingly shop online, AR, VR and related technologies offer retailers the opportunity to overcome some of the new challenges facing the industry – in particular, the volume of returns.

Our research found that shoppers return £7billion of purchases every year, leading to a ‘Phantom Economy’ of revenue that ultimately cannot be recognised. By implementing technology such as virtual fitting rooms, retailers could offer shoppers the opportunity to virtually ‘try before they buy’, reducing the number of returns they receive and boosting their bottom line.”

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CLOUD

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Package Deal Dell has unveiled a new cloud-based endpoint management platform.

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Multinational computer technology company, Dell, is currently aiming to take the hassle out of configuring and deploying laptops, with the launch of a brand new endpoint management platform that brings together a number of the company’s technologies and services, combining them into a single package.

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he platform, dubbed the Dell Technologies Unified Workspace, is designed to give IT departments a simple and automated platform for managing devices.

applications are installed on a per-user basis. When clients receive their apparatus, Dell said, end users will have the ability to start working in minutes, as opposed to hours.

The platform also supports Based on VMware’s endpoint management tasks Workspace One product, the over the entire lifecycle of Unified Workspace allows IT corporate devices, including departments to order devices automated patch deployment, that are imaged, configured health and status information, and provisioned with all and cloud-based policy of the customer’s business tools. In line with Dell’s applications before they leave emphasis on the importance the factory, including the of data analysis, the Unified ability to personalise which Workspace will collect and 87

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collate data from customers’ device fleets, which will allow IT departments to analyse usage patterns and identify their most widely-used apps.

To ensure security, the Unified Workspace platform integrates with tools from SecureWorks and CrowdStrike, including off-host BIOS storage and verification, threat intelligence information, behavioural analytics and much more. In addition, the platform consists of integrated support capabilities to allow IT to shorten the time it takes to resolve helpdesk tickets.

Customers can also spread

No setup, no imaging, no provisioning, no installation.

No configuration is, we like to say, no problem Jeff Clarke, Dell Vice Chairman of Products and Operations the cost over monthly instalments via Dell Financial Services’ PC-as-a-Service offering, which provides a cloud-style consumptionbased payment model for physical devices.

Dell Vice Chairman of Products and Operations, Jeff Clarke, said, “No setup, no imaging, no provisioning, no installation. No configuration is, we like to say, no problem.”

These capabilities are not new.

However, the company already offers all of them, in the form of services such as the Dell 89

ProDeploy Client Suite and ProSupport.

Rather, the Dell Technologies Unified Workspace combines all of these functions into a single, unified console.

The value for customers comes from the simplicity and time savings that this centralisation can bring, along with the benefits of rolling all of the various costs into one monthly fee.

Alongside this new service, Dell also unveiled a brand new Data Centre-as-aService offering, VMware Cloud on Dell EMC. Coming as part of the newly-

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The aim is to enable clients to seamlessly move their workloads between public cloud, on-premise infrastructure and edge installations, with VMware acting as a central, consistent infrastructure layer

launched Dell Technologies Cloud portfolio, the offering is a fullymanaged VMware cloud solution, controlled through VMware’s cloud management console, and deployed on Dell EMC hardware within the customer’s own data centre.

The aim is to enable clients to seamlessly move their workloads between public cloud, onpremise infrastructure and edge installations, with VMware acting as a central, consistent infrastructure layer.

For further information on Dell’s technologies and solutions, visit www.dell.com 91

IN THE SP OTLIGHT

START-UP OF THE MONTH Munich-based FashionTech start-up, presize.ai, has just closed a six-figure pre-seed funding round to propel their mobile body scanning technology.

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ounded in 2019, prezise set out to help online shops solve their multi-billion EUR return problem, by recommending users a perfect fit based on a smartphone video of their body. Using the most accurate and robust user body scanning software, AI algorithms automatically create a unique 3D model of your body and match it to the best fitting clothing size, reducing the likelihood of having to return your online order.

So, how does it work? When the user clicks on a product on a shop’s website, they will be able to see the ‘find size’ button. If they select this option, they will be redirected to a web app in a separate browser.

Their size is then determined by a smartphone body scan. You simply place the phone on the floor leaning against a wall, stand in front of it, and rotate once on your own axis whilst recording a video. Afterwards, users enter their gender, fit preference and height in centimetres. They will then always receive size recommendations when shopping on the website, without having to rescan. This patent-pending approach to extracting body measurements and recommending sizes combines the latest breakthroughs in Computer Vision and Deep Learning. The technology has been designed to combat the age-old problem of returns as a result of wrong size or poor fit, causing customers to waste valuable

time, the environment to suffer, and business margins to shrink.

The six-figure pre-seed round was led by Plug and Play, a Silicon Valley-based VC and early investor in Google, Paypal, Dropbox and N26. Business Angels, with C-level experience in the software and fashion space, are co-investing.

The start-up was founded by three CDTM alumni from three different countries, each with previous industry experience and a strong track record in academia.

The fresh capital will be used to grow the product team and build upon the existing MVP. After the first successful pilot projects last month, the next step is to launch the product and integrate with largerscale customers.

Leon Szeli, Growth Guru and one of the co-founders of presize, said, “We are thrilled to have Plug and Play on board, one of the leading VCs in the world. With their expertise in RetailTech here in Munich and their strong global network, it’s the perfect fit.”

For further information on presize.ai, visit www.presize.ai 93