What did he speak about? The future of virtual reality and how Barry plans to launch the first VR cinema in London later this year. He started by asking for a show of hands: How many people in the audience have experienced VR?Lots of hands in the air. How many people own a VR headset?Only a few people, probably gamers. How many people plan on buying a VR headset? I’ll leave you to guess the answer. Needless to say, if VR is going to be the future, then we need to think about context and how people integrate technology into their lives. One of the barriers to adoption is that wearing a headset is not sociable. But what about creating a shared VR experience in a cinema?
What did she speak about? The recruitment industry. After being involved in the launch of Egg in 1998, Juliet found herself in a company culture where ideas were truly valued, suggestions were taken on, and the expectation was to challenge the norm. She shared the high points of her journey from delivering large-scale change for one of the original UK internet banks through to founding AnyGood?, a disruptive startup that aims to increase diversity within organisations and bring trust back to the recruitment process.
Audience Q&A session with Joe Scarboro from Touchpaper, Haydn Jones from Blockchain Hub, Victor Trokoudes from Plum and Lucy Cassidy from Virtual Fracture Clinic.
What did she speak about? The NHS and what happens when you fracture a bone. In times of cutbacks, it’s more difficult than ever to innovate within the NHS or invest in new technology. In 2016-2017, trauma and orthopaedics was the number one treatment with the highest number of attendances at 7,779,904. The NHS needs to reshape care delivery and harness technology. Lucy was an Advanced Practice Physiotherapist and is now a Digital Transformation Consultant leading this change.
What did he speak about? How a chatbot can save you money. Victor co-founded Plum with Alex Michael after realising that they didn’t have substantial savings or a way of putting money aside for the future. Based on Richard Thaler’s prize-winning economics on the power of ‘nudge’, the team created a Facebook Messenger chatbot that securely connects to your bank account and uses AI to automatically begin saving you money.
What did he speak about? The potential of Blockchain, which is the transaction record that supports Bitcoin, and how the cryptocurrency market could exceed $2 trillion by the end of this 2018. Haydn also explained how ICOs (initial coin offerings) are the next big thing and what this means for the future of mainstream infrastructure.
What did he speak about? The differences between start-ups and organisations. Joe set up Touchpaper, a non-profit that offers a toolkit to help start-ups and organisations work together. This is helping to create a standard for interaction that promotes innovation and could one day form the basis of an industry body.
Alistair spoke about how an algorithm can predict the success of start-ups based on the relationships between people in the team. After researching successful online dating matches and looking for patterns in personality and behaviour, he created software that helps companies perform better, understand relationships, and create better teamwork through digital coaching. Want to make better hiring decisions or pull together the perfect team for your next project?
Max started Finimize after realising that he had no idea what to do with his savings – and neither did his friends who worked in finance. In his search for independent advice, he created a community of over 150,000 people and sends them news about finance in a way that enlightens and delights. When talking about Finimize, 80% of subscribers use the word ‘love’.
Douglas explains how instant messaging technology brings people closer together and keep conversations secure in industries like finance. He shared his inspiring story, from humble beginnings selling computer products, to building and selling a £11m company and now taking on the next challenge: Moving conversations out of the mailbox and finding smarter ways to communicate.
RT @1robward: “You can’t feed the World with lettuce alone...” why are Vertical Farming brands receiving so much investment? More… https://t.co/bnJDlK108J
