What's Emerging mid August 2020
A newsletter on interesting stuff that is emerging around the world so you can think about strategy
Introduction
Welcome to our end of July newsletter.
In the next few weeks, Paul will be continuing to work on a strategic view for a national cleaning company. He is also working on a community vision project for a Melbourne Council, and creating a consortium in the Not for Profit sector to assist in the “Build it Back Better” movement. He is also participating in a working group with the Leading Edge Foundation in the UK looking at the industrialisation of robots.
In his role as a committee member of the Churchill Club he is also helping organise the Top Tech Trends Event on September 1st in Melbourne as part of the Digital Innovation Festival. This is the third year that the event has been running in Melbourne and due to COVID restrictions it will be completely online this year. The debate will feature five panelists including Simon Wardley (Creator of Wardley Maps) , Anushka Wijendra (COO of Messaging Media) and Sara Nolet (CEO and Founder of AgThentic). The speakers are being asked to tell us what they think the next big technology trend is that is not currently obvious to everybody. Paul was a panelist in the inaugural event where he says he was cruelly robbed of victory by just a few votes. It promises to be an entertaining and informative evening.
As a special offer to newsletter readers we are offering free tickets to the first five people to respond to our contact link below.
If you are not lucky enough to score a free ticket then you can book a ticket by going to Eventbrite
If any of this interests you then please Contact Us
The Emergent Futures Team
In case you missed it. The most popular link from the last edition:
Last newsletter it was:
Statement by Jeff Bezos to the U.S. House Committee on the Judiciary
Love them or hate them, Amazon is still an example of a company that executives strategy really well. Jeff Bezos was one of the big tech bosses recently grilled by the US congress. This statement is a masterclass in strategic thinking and communication.
What are we Writing About?
Paul has been very busy with private client work and the presentations and scenarios are commercial in confidence so we have nothing for this section in this edition of the newsletter.
You can go to our HOME PAGE to read previous articles and see publicly available presentations
What’s Emerging?
Apple removed Fortnite from its App Store and now they're being sued. Here's why
Tech giant Apple has kicked video game Fortnite off the App Store, removing users' ability to install and update the game on iOS devices. And the games developer, Epic Games, has hit back in a big way…. Read More
They have also done a great ad copying Apple’s ad from 1984 about freeing people
Shopify Overtakes eBay
Shopify’s Gross Merchandise Volume (GMV) for the second quarter was $30.1 billion compared to eBay’s $27.1 billion …. Read more
New Era Farming with TensorFlow on Lowest Power Consumption
This project demonstrates how to build a device using TensorFlow and Artemis module to solve most of the problems faced by the rural or agricultural communities anywhere. The device uses Machine Learning algorithms to check overall plant health, extreme climate prediction and protection, auto-greenhouse adaptation and detecting deadly disease spreading vectors or illegal logging of forests using audio analysis. .…. Read more
The Air Force May Ditch GPS for Earth's Magnetic Field
The U.S. Air Force, concerned that adversaries might target its fleet of GPS satellites in wartime, is looking into Earth’s magnetic field as an alternative, …. Read more
Fisker reveals game plan for four EVs including electric ute
Fisker Inc, the second eponymous automotive company headed by Danish car designer Henrik Fisker, will build the vehicles using drivetrain platforms, batteries and other parts from leading car makers and suppliers, but with a distinct Fisker flavour, the CEO said on Thursday. …. Read more
Small Protein, Big Breakthrough for CRISPR Gene Editing
Jennifer Doudna, one of the original discoverers of CRISPR, and her team at the University of California Berkeley have found a new Cas protein in a bacteriophage, a type of virus that infects bacteria. The new protein, CasΦ, which they described in the journal Science, uses CRISPR to do the opposite of what it normally does, attacking bacteria by inserting genetic material into their genomes. It is about half the size of Cas9, but don't be fooled by its small size. Its trim proportions enable it to reach areas of the human genome that most CRISPR gene editing proteins cannot. …. Read more
Altitude Angel partners to create drone delivery corridor
Altitude Angel has announced a new partnership with Skyfarer, FlyPulse, and Coventry University to develop a drone delivery corridor in the Midlands, UK. The four have joined together to create an international consortium to enable medical & other deliveries via drones beyond visual line of sight …. Read more
Clorox won't have enough disinfecting wipes until 2021, its CEO says
Many companies in the industry make wipes with polyester spunlace, a material currently in short supply as it is also used to make personal protective equipment like masks, medical gowns and medical wipes. Another example of stressed supply chains .…. Read more
Amazon robotics engineers build cutting-edge technologies from their garages
You don’t have to be an office worker to work from home.…. Read more
From sniffer dogs to sewage testing, scientists are finding new ways to detect COVID-19
Anne-Lise Chaber, a veterinarian and expert in disease detection at the University of Adelaide, said some dogs have shown 100 per cent accuracy.
"Say someone is sitting and the dog is put next to them, the dog will sit if they are positive," she said.
"Importantly, you don't even need to have any symptoms for them to smell you and this is critical as we know many people with COVID-19 have no symptoms." …. Read more
Five-year runway to hydrogen power in airports
A new report from Australia’s national science agency, CSIRO shows that clean hydrogen can significantly reduce aviation emissions with potential benefits seen within five years.…. Read more
Skai revises targets for its liquid-hydrogen, long-range eVTOL
The original Skai airframe made it to the tethered flight stage, and now the company has iterated to a second generation design, which is approaching completion with mainly systems work remaining. The testing, up to this point, has been unmanned, and Hanvey has been flying the full-sized airframe with a drone-style controller …. Read more
World’s largest nuclear fusion project begins assembly in France
The €20bn (£18.2bn) Iter project will replicate the reactions that power the sun and is intended to demonstrate fusion power can be generated on a commercial scale. Nuclear fusion promises clean, unlimited power but, despite 60 years of research, it has yet to overcome the technical challenges of harnessing such extreme amounts of energy. …. Read more
A Japanese robotics startup has invented a smart mask that translates into eight languages
The cutouts on the front are vital for breathability, so the smart mask doesn't offer protection against the coronavirus. Instead, it is designed to be worn over a standard face mask, explains Donut Robotics CEO Taisuke Ono. Made of white plastic and silicone, it has an embedded microphone that connects to the wearer's smartphone via Bluetooth. The system can translate between Japanese and Chinese, Korean, Vietnamese, Indonesian, English, Spanish and French …… Read more
Business Tips
Decoding decisions to grow online sales
Some good information on advertising from Google …. Read more
La Télévision, œil de demain (1947)
Not strictly a business tip but an amazingly prescient French Film from 1947, which raises the question - what are you thinking about that could affect your future in the next 10 years?
Ability to work from home: evidence from two surveys and implications for the labor market in the COVID-19 pandemic
Some interesting information that can guide your decision making on work from home options …. Read more