Lifeboat Foundation

Danaher’s Instruments of Change — If you feel like your industry that has always been on a slow & stable growth curve is now under greater pressure to change; you’re not alone. Recent indicators are showing with the latest changes in tech and consumers (namely the millennials as the largest consumers today); industries have been shaken up to perform at new levels like never before or companies in those industries will cease to be relevant.

Doing well by doing good is now expected for businesses, and moral leadership is at a premium for CEOs. For today’s companies to maintain their license to operate, they need to take into account a range of elements in their decision making: managing their supply chains, applying new ways of measuring their business performance that include indicators for social as well as commercial returns, and controlling the full life cycle of their products’ usage as well as disposal. This new reality is demonstrated by the launch last September of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), which call on businesses to address sustainability challenges such as poverty, gender equality, and climate change in new and creative ways. The new expectations for business also are at the heart of the Change the World list, launched by Fortune Magazine in August 2015, which is designed to identify and celebrate companies that have made significant progress in addressing major social problems as a part of their core business strategy.

Technology and millennials seem to be driving much of this change. Socially conscious customers and idealistic employees are applauding companies’ ability to do good as part of their profit-making strategy. With social media capable of reaching millions instantly, companies want to be on the right side of capitalism’s power. This is good news for society. Corporate venturing activities are emerging, and companies are increasingly leveraging people, ideas, technology, and business assets to achieve social and environmental priorities together with financial profit. These new venturing strategies are focusing more and more on areas where new partnerships and investments can lead to positive outcomes for all: the shareholders, the workers, the environment, and the local community.

Continue reading “Technology and Millennials Are Driving Business Strategy and Social Change” »

Another discussion on Quantum Entanglement. I am seeing a huge gap for scientists and technologists in explaining Quantum to every day folks especially in business. If order for business, etc. to adopt Quantum we will need to start explaining Quantum in examples that the average person can understand.

When physicist Ronald Hanson revealed shocking evidence for quantum entanglement, the world took note — the universe really is stranger than fiction, as he reveals in this hangout with cryptographer Renato Renner.

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A new thriller starring Ben Kingsley and Ryan Reynolds explores the idea of transferring consciousness from one body to another. Unlike Freaky Friday, or the myriad of other family movies and comedies that have explored the idea, this one actually explores the science of the process.

In the movie Self/less, a rich business man (Kingsley) is dying of cancer. However, he is able to prolong his “self” by transferring his consciousness from one body to another using a medical procedure called “shedding.”

Continue reading “Neuroscientist Discusses the Idea of Consciousness Transfer From the New Movie Self/less” »

Brand’s view and concerns about hacking driverless cars are valid. And, I do believe in time that government will eventually catch up in passing some laws that will make companies ensure that their technology is safe for consumer usage and are safe for the public. I just hope that the pendulum does swing too far to the other side of over regulation.

It is not easy to slot Brad Templeton. What do you make of a person who is not only the networks and computing chair at Singularity University in Silicon Valley but also a software architect, a director of the Foresight Nanotech Institute, board member of the cyberspace watchdog Electronic Frontier Foundation, the first person to have set up an Internet-based business, a futurist lecturer, hobby photographer, artist, as well as a consultant on Google’s driverless car design team?

In a phone interview from the US, Templeton, who will be in India this month as a key speaker during the SingularityU India Summit (to be held in association with INK, which hosts events like INKtalks—a platform for the exchange of cutting-edge ideas and inspiring stories), shared his views on driverless cars, the perceived threat from intelligent machines and censorship of the Internet. Edited excerpts:

Continue reading “Your only choice is to build better artificial intelligence tech than others: Brad Templeton” »

Interesting article, and one thing that I have thoroughly enjoyed over the years is helping companies developed new products and services through innovation, or changing their IT organization into real profit centers like this article highlights. And, as part of these types of transformations it has always been key to change/ reinforce the culture’s mindset that business owns the definition of the strategies and solutions.

However, as AI becomes more and more prevelant across businesses; we could eventually see that IT ends up owning the definition as well as the enablement of the solutions for the company/ business. So, it is almost like we come full circle through AI after all. And, this is just one of many business/ corporate cultural questions that we will need to address with AI in the coming years.

There are many reasons to run IT as a well functioning business instead of the traditional cost center model. Below are the top 5 consequences of continuing to run IT in the traditional manner.

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Ultrahaptics — VR with sense and feeling.

Tom Carter’s ultrasound technology lets you touch and manipulate virtual objects—attracting interest from Jaguar Land Rover, Harman and dozens of others.

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Moley Chef Robots reappearing again today across the web. These do hold a lot of opportunity for restaurant franchises as well as homes. However, AI in a business has a break even point before the investment is no longer a wise or sound investment.

Always step back and look at the bigger picture 1st (e.g. look at all costs & any risks/ liabilities). Look at initial purchase/ lease costs, any write off/ depreciation opportunities, know your customer & your brand (if your restaurant is because of your master chef then a robot is a line chef which you consider how much your spending on a line chef as well as replacing them v. a robotic chef), know your local food & safety regs. Never good to put in a series of robotic chefs and local ordinances and city committees pass restrictions that forces you to de-install your $60K robot after 1 or 2 yrs.

Continue reading “Robot Chef Serves Up the Future of Home Cooking” »

“After decades of piecemeal progress, the science of cryogenically storing human organs is warming up”

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“Mining in space will take a leap from the realms of science fiction towards commercial reality on Wednesday when Luxembourg launches an official initiative to promote the mining of asteroids for minerals.”

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