A recent Kaspersky study found that AI and IoT are already used by 61% and 64% of companies respectively, while 28% and 26% of companies plans to adopt them within two years. Data spaces are used by 27% of businesses, with more than half (54%) intending to adopt them soon.

Other interconnected technologies (digital twins, AR, VR, web 3.0, 6G), are used by 8-20% of companies participating in the survey, but more than 70% are considering integrating them into their business processes soon.

The expanding use of AI and IoT has the potential to expose organisations to new vulnerabilities. According to the research, 13-14% of organisations from the region think AI and IoT are ‘very difficult’ or ‘extremely difficult’ to protect, while only 6% of the AI users and 10% of the IoT owners believe their companies are fully protected.

According to Adrian Hia, managing director for Asia Pacific at Kaspersky, “Undoubtedly, new technological tools play a vital role in improving the efficiencies and productivity of enterprises in the region. However, there are loopholes, particularly in cybersecurity, that need to be addressed. Our recent study showed more than half of the companies are using AI and IoT in their organisations, but 21% of them think AI and IoT are somewhat difficult to protect. It shows that there is a skills and knowledge gap that needs to be patched with urgency.”

Recommendations going forward

Given the scale of change that interconnected technologies is likely to bring, organisations must develop a strategy to implement and protect them. Kaspersky recommends four effective ways to ensure organisations are prepared to protect interconnected technologies:

Adopt secure-by-design principles. By integrating cybersecurity into each stage of the software development lifecycle, secure-by-design software and hardware become resilient against cyberattacks, contributing to the overall security of digital systems. Cyber Immune solutions based on KasperskyOS, for instance, allow companies to minimize the threat surface and significantly decrease the ability of cybercriminals to perform a successful attack.

Train and upskill your workforce. Building a cyber-aware culture requires a comprehensive strategy that empowers employees to gain knowledge and put it into practice. With Kaspersky Expert training, InfoSec professionals can advance their skills and defend their companies against attacks.

Upgrade your cybersecurity solutions and use centralized and automated platforms such as Kaspersky Extended Detection and Response (XDR). As companies adopt interconnected technologies, they need cybersecurity solutions with more advanced features, enabling them to collect and correlate telemetry from multiple sources and provide effective threat detection and rapid automated response. 

As many AI solutions are built on containers, it’s important to secure the infrastructure they are integrated in with cybersecurity products – such as Kaspersky Container Security – that allows companies to detect security issues at every stage of the app lifecycle, from development to operation.

Meet regulations to avoid legal problems or reputational damage, by ensuring your cybersecurity practice meets changing standards and legal requirements.

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The process will mean partnering with government agencies and academic institutions to grow their A.I. research & development team.

Through its partnership with the Singapore government, Praveen Penmetsa, co-founder & CEO of Monarch Tractor, says the company can provide more job opportunities and "propel our mission for a greener future. More than ever, farmers, government bodies and consumers are looking for more viable options to sustain our planet."

Building upon Singapore's early success in developing the MK-V's driverless capabilities, Monarch's expansion and development of new talent will work to create automation capabilities that extend to entire farm operations leading to the enablement of profitable and sustainable agricultural practices within the region and globally.

As almost 25% of global GHG emissions result from agriculture, this strategic expansion will champion and enable large-scale emissions reductions that support Singapore's Green Plan 2030, including the country's aspiration to become net zero by 2050.

Monarch is currently hiring talent throughout Singapore to support and develop cutting-edge A.I. robotics technology - creating a smarter, greener and safer farming industry.

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Minister of State for the Ministry of Trade & Industry, Alvin Tan, noted that Phase 2, which runs from 1 June 2022 to 31 May 2025, continues from where Phase 1 ends and aims to enhance its Artificial Intelligence (AI) capabilities to create an environment where humans and robots can interface and co-exist.

The lab, supported under Singapore’s National Research Foundation’s Research Innovation and Enterprise (RIE) 2025 plan, will develop over three years next-generation technologies aimed at overcoming labour shortage challenges for the manufacturing and intralogistics - the logistical flows of goods and materials that take place on a company's site – industries.

Said Delta Electronics chairman, Yancey Hai, the two organisations' shared core values have been essential for the success of Phase I of the Delta-NTU Corporate Lab, which developed 17 patents, including highly valuable intellectual property that will be leveraged for the new Corporate Lab Phase II.

"This includes 3D mapping for automated guided vehicles, human tracking and re-identification with machine learning, and motion planning for materials handling," continued Hai.

Rise of collaborative robots

Collaborative robotic systems are set to become a staple as businesses transit into Industry 5.0, and as the world grapples with a manpower crunch arising from an ageing workforce and declining birth rates.

Such systems include human-touch inspired robots that can adjust their grip to pick up a range of materials, from fragile glassware to volatile chemicals, and smart sensing, radar, and 3D sensors systems, which allow autonomous mobile robots (AMRs) to operate in a dynamic environment with human traffic like hospitals and warehouses.

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Organisations have set up their digitalisation departments and created positions such as the Chief Digital Transformation Officer. For guidance, many rely on consulting firms, which happily charge high hourly rates to develop “strategic digitalisation frameworks.”

Many companies start their digital transformation by buying software: Laboratory Information Management (LIMs) systems for R&D, for example, or manufacturing execution systems for factories, plus various types of customer service software.

But what does all this software do? Captures data from business practices, sure. Makes it all permanent, accessible, and sharable – yes.

But will it fundamentally change business practices? Will it, as the consultants like to say, add value to the final product or service?

Too often, digital transformation is an easy sell that does little (or nothing) to change the status quo.

What are we trying to transform?

Digital transformation is frequently confused with digitisation, but they’re not the same thing.

Digitisation is simply converting information into a digital format. This has value: it makes information easier to share, trace, and analyse.

But digitalisation shouldn’t just be about going paperless. It’s a trajectory or path.

That path starts with getting different elements of the business interconnected so that data becomes easier to collect. It culminates in the organisation’s acquiring better decision-making capabilities because of analysing the data it has collected.

We believe that less than 5% of “digital solution companies” can deliver actual digital transformation. Most offer plain digitisation.

So, what does the real thing look like?

The strategic use of real-time data and wireless connectivity is key to transforming the way a warehouse is run. For example, Thingple’s electronic warehouse management system (E-WMS system), doesn’t just digitise warehouse stock data. It simplifies and replaces previous operational processes to track goods flowing into and out of a busy warehouse.

Instead of physically searching for space in a large warehouse, operators need only view the 3D digital twin of a constantly updated stockpile in the warehouse to find vacant slots.

With real-time data on hand, an artificial intelligence (AI) system directs forklift operators to pick the right goods every time – and advises on the timely movement of goods to avoid expiry.
Real digital transformation, in short, should lead to increased efficiency and productivity, fewer manpower requirements, less waste, and less human error.

Digitalisation is about changing how business gets done

Ironically, digital transformation isn’t really about technology. Rather, according to the MIT Sloan Management Review, it’s about “how technology changes the conditions under which business is done, in ways that change the expectations of customers, partners, and employees.”

And here’s the cruel truth: most digitalisation efforts fail – 84% of them, according to one estimate.

Weighed down by the need for copious data entry, and hobbled by a lack of interoperability across platforms, most digitalisation projects don’t deliver the hoped-for transformative results.

For that reason, we need to look at digitisation differently.

Start with a clean slate and ask what’s the best digital tool for revolutionising your business operations. Can you leverage advances in sensor technologies, computing, automation, or AI to improve your operations – in ways that change the expectations of your customers?

Since digital transformation’s purpose is to help improve businesses in meaningful ways, DX companies with deep industry insights/experience tend to offer better, more targeted solutions. Cloud infrastructure providers like Amazon Cloud or Huawei Cloud, for example, can partner with industry-specific solution providers to offer insightful value to industrial clients.

The question should not be, “How do I digitise my company’s operations?” but, “How can I improve operations through technology? How to use tech to enhance efficiency, output, and added value?”

So if you want to digitalise, start by figuring out how technology can help you do those things.

Avoid digitisation – the mere conversion of paper into bits and bytes – and the adoption of digital technology for its own sake.

First published on Transform by Huawei Technologies

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Common challenges in insect farming include mortality and disease arising from environmental conditions or insect feed, which typically cause 25-50% losses, as well as human error when managing populations of millions of insects. With an ERP and access to 2 supercomputers, the Entograte system provides powerful AI-driven solutions to address key production challenges in insect farms, increasing efficiency in insect egg production and larvae rearing.

CEO of Entoverse, Rudolf Davidov, said: “Our species-specific ERP system will make day-to-day operations of insect farms more efficient and automated, while our AI-driven solutions will help resolve the challenge of early mortality and optimising product quality.”

Following the introduction of GPT intelligence towards the end of 2022, Entoverse’s latest innovation seeks to apply the technology to overcome the challenge of human management of increasingly large and complex insect farms. Fast communication and reaction to changes in farming conditions are key, and FarmGPT is being integrated into Entograte’s chatbot function to achieve this.

It will deliver data-driven actionable insights that address insect cultivation challenges in real-time. FarmGPT will be trained by a combination of proprietary and white-label open-source training datasets, environmental data from IoT sensors and internet data, and insect behavioural data from live video camera farm footage.

Entoverse CTO and Co-Founder Dr Dmitry Mikhailov says "ChatGPT and now GPT-4 have proven the potential of AI in changing the way we approach the problems of today.

He explains that one of the problems Entoverse is solving is improving the efficiency of insect egg production and larvae rearing for maximum protein mass output. This cannot be done with manual farm management alone.

"This is why we have built Entoverse, which automates the farming process and improves yields. FarmGPT will now take this automatization one step further, and we are excited to witness how it will transform current approaches to insect farming for better output.” Dmitry Mikhailov

FarmGPT is being prepared to be tested at CricketOne, a cricket farming company based in Vietnam. The trials will study the efficacy of GPT-driven insect farming processes and how it will benefit farmers. Future applications of FarmGPT potentially include the breeding of other species in closed, controlled environments, such as bees, mealworms, shrimp and fish.

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As one of the world’s leading technology events, Mobile World Congress gives attendees a good sense of what the main themes are that relate to network infrastructure, cloud infrastructure, and the emerging world of connected solutions.

My main observations were that:

More carriers are migrating network infrastructure elements into the cloud. Public cloud providers play an ever more important role in network service provisioning. Carriers and hyperscalers emphasized in discussions the trend to make network and IT infrastructure more service-oriented and its cost base more flexible by embracing cloud computing.

Forrester survey data shows that network as a service is the top network infrastructure priority. Infosys told me in a discussion, “If you want to empower the enterprise customer, you have to open the network.” Google shared that many carriers are moving part of the operations support system and business support system into the cloud. Network equipment vendors such as Ericsson, Nokia, Huawei, or Juniper are developing their own cloud offerings.

But carriers also work with large hyperscalers like Microsoft Azure, AWS, and Google Cloud to use cloud platforms for radio access network (RAN) and core network elements. Multivendor environments invariably raise interoperability issues, affecting quality of service and service-level agreements. Hence, virtualization providers such as VMware or HPE are helping to minimize the integration complexities.

Not surprisingly, a new generation of carriers is emerging. For instance, Rakuten Symphony is a cloud-native, open RAN mobile network provider. Several carriers hinted that, as prices for public cloud computing are increasing, they are evaluating their decision-making on when and what to move into the cloud more carefully.

The prospect of tougher carrier-hyperscaler competition is growing. The relationship between carriers and hyperscalers will be redefined against the network cloudification trend. To be clear: There is nothing inevitable about hyperscalers eating the carriers’ lunch.

But it would be naive not to contemplate the potential for more competition between these two camps. During the event, I heard several comments about the potential risks for the carriers’ value propositions as a result of deploying public cloud solutions inside their core and radio access networks as well as their business and operating systems.

Hyperscalers need to be careful not to abuse their increasingly powerful position vis-à-vis the carriers if they want to build long-term, trusted relationships with them. Also, regulators might at one point focus more on hyperscalers in the debate from a national security perspective.

Carriers are forming deeper alliances with each other.

Carriers sense that the competitive landscape is changing. To succeed, they need to work together. Of course, carrier alliances are nothing new. They have been around for years and focus on tactical objectives, with, for instance, the FreeMove Alliance on sourcing.

At Mobile World Congress, 21 carriers with a combined customer base of 2.5 billion users and the GSMA formed Open Gateway. GSMA Open Gateway is a framework of common network APIs designed to provide universal access to operator networks for developers.

The goal is to help developers and cloud providers enhance and deploy services more quickly across carrier networks. GSMA Open Gateway addresses the challenge for carriers to deliver reliable end-to-end customer experience and service levels.

Open Gateway’s goal is to deliver services consistently across carrier networks in an API world. The initial APIs focus on issues such as SIM swaps, quality on demand, number and location verification, and edge site routing — and will be defined by the open-source project CAMARA.

Carrier customers will benefit from Open Gateway as communication networks transform into platforms for software-as-a-service providers like Salesforce or Microsoft. Open Gateway underlines the macro trend of IT and network infrastructure moving ever closer.

Carriers are still searching for financially attractive 5G use cases.

The GSMA estimates that carriers will spend $1.1 trillion on 5G between 2020 and 2025. Given the challenge to charge a 5G premium in the consumer segment, the focus for 5G monetization remains on the business segment.

In my discussions with carriers, network equipment vendors, and professional services firms, however, I did not hear about any new 5G use cases that offer carriers realistic and attractive returns on their 5G investments.

Most enterprise decision-makers tell me that they don’t care about 5G as a technology. They are keen to drive better customer experiences or boost their internal efficiency and employee experiences, but it is these non-tech-minded stakeholders who are increasingly involved in deciding which solutions to buy from which vendors.

Hence, carriers must become better at translating the benefits of 5G network functions for supporting business outcomes. In most instances, existing technologies such as Wi-Fi or LTE suffice. The private 5G network pitch is also at times countered by alternatives like Siemens’ Wi-Fi-based connectivity solutions.

Hence, there are still very few 5G stand-alone solutions. The lack of IT and operational technology convergence is further delaying the 5G uptake. An additional challenge relates to the budget-holder complexity: Professional services providers told us that they are often dealing with different budget holders for IT and networking projects.

Carrier consolidation in Europe looks likely.

A study by PwC highlights that 46% of carrier CEOs believe that their carrier will no longer be economically viable a decade from now. Predicting the carrier doomsday is of course nothing new and has prompted consolidation in many markets. The North American carrier market is dominated by three large carriers.

A similar picture exists in other large markets like India and China. In Europe, meanwhile, there are dozens of carriers, with three to four carriers even in small markets. Consolidation might be one way to build greater resiliency for carriers.

At Mobile World Congress, the EU’s industry chief pointed to the ongoing discussions regarding the cross-border consolidation of carriers in the EU and the benefits of an integrated radio spectrum market.

In light of the high inflation levels and the pressure of the cost-of-living crisis on households, this debate is exposed to two underlying dynamics: Carriers could benefit from economies of scale, and price rises would only follow if carriers abuse their oligopolistic positions — something that regulators need to be watching out for.

What was refreshing at Mobile World Congress 2023 was the absence of the doom and gloom that has infiltrated many technology discussions, with their stories of headcount reductions and revenue slowdown.

Clearly, these market adjustments will continue and reflect cyclical patterns of the technology sector. But Mobile World Congress shows that there is still a lot of dynamism in the tech sector.

One startup from Barcelona told us that every tech professional in the city has at least five job offers, despite the headcount reductions by the large tech vendors. A dose of normalcy can help focus minds to get many of the projects and initiatives that were the focus of Mobile World Congress 2023 done

First published on Forrester Blog

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The security hardware market is at an inflexion point, where real-time functional safety requirements from the microcontroller space are converging with trusted computing base and secure execution environments capabilities popular in SoC applications.

“A richness in security IP offerings on the market is enabling plenty of use cases for leveraging a trusted hardware foundation in IoT edge, with chipset manufacturers able to offer features such as advanced high assurance boot, hardware firewall domains, run-time attestation, and secure enclaves,” explains Michela Menting, research director at ABI Research.

She opines that most importantly, these capabilities allow building secure edge devices that can run trusted applications and securely communicate over networks to various front and backend services.

There is a democratization of the building blocks for designing secure edge devices: greater availability, more choice, better pricing, and improved functionality. Many security capabilities used to be offered to distinctive markets almost exclusively (microcontroller vs. CPU).

Still, a convergence in the space, driven by the demand for creating trusted applications in a myriad of IoT use cases, is breaking down those barriers. Demand for secure processors spans automotive, industrial, retail, logistics, healthcare, and consumer.

With heavyweights from the processor computing space like Intel, AMD, and TI to smartphone chipmakers including Qualcomm, MediaTek, and Samsung, and microcontroller leaders such as Microchip, NXP, Renesas, and STM, the market for secure processors for the IoT edge is vibrant and highly competitive, all offering innovative and highly performant technology solutions that can meet the modern demands of the IoT edge.

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As NDT software sales are predominantly tied to testing and inspection requirements across industries, the shift toward electric vehicles (EVs) and renewable energy will augment growth prospects. The NDT testing software market is expected to reach $853.7 million by 2026 from $503.8 million in 2021, registering expansion at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 11.1%.

“Industry 4.0 technologies, such as cloud computing, artificial intelligence (AI), and machine learning (ML), will enhance existing NDT techniques, paving the way for non-destructive evaluation (NDE) 4.0,” said Ram Ravi, industry principal at Frost & Sullivan. “Further, the need for more reliable and accurate inspection data will drive the adoption of Industry 4.0 technologies.”

He added that perpetual licensing has been the predominant business model for software in the NDT sector. “Additionally, the emergence of Industry 4.0 is expected to drive interest in newer business models, encouraging NDT vendors to offer software as a subscription,” he continued.

New opportunities

The growing landscape of the NDT software market encourages its market participants to focus on:

Strengthening their software offering by integrating AI/ML and providing enhanced value to customers.

Offering software that is simple and easy to use for customers and that easily integrates with existing systems.

Developing their robotic inspection solutions in-house or partnering with or acquiring companies offering these products.

Providing a closed-loop architecture that facilitates data collection and processing for manufacturing to assist organizations in making more informed decisions.

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The digitalisation of manufacturing and maintenance services to counter costs will result in an increase of IT workload by 32 % in the industry and 21 % in manufacturing on (mostly) private clouds by 2025, as predicted by McKinsey in their recent “Cloud in China” outlook.

Startup Factory is an incubator for small and mid-sized European enterprises that are looking for assembly or production facilities, a repair workshop or a “job shop” in China to expand their business. At present, Startup Factory operates subsidiaries for 38 European companies on 40,000 sqm with a total of more than 350 employees at its site in Kunshan, near Shanghai.

Smart Factory Kunshan IIoT Hub is an open ecosystem for Industrial IoT technologies, especially for medium-sized manufacturing companies and a lighthouse project of bilateral cooperation on intelligent manufacturing between China and Germany.

The purpose of the demonstration and integration factory is to create an innovative environment for Industrial Internet of Things/ Industry 4.0 from research to demonstration and education in a real-life production environment.

Startup Factory China signed an MOU with Tencent Cloud to empower Chinese and German small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) through Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) solutions and cloud technologies.

By joining Smart Factory Kunshan's partner program, Tencent Cloud becomes an active member of the IIoT Hub community from day one and gains access to a powerful platform for various events and real-life demonstrations of its IIoT solutions on the manufacturing shopfloor towards Chinese and German SMEs.

Both parties also aim to co-host IIoT events in Smart Factory Lab and real-life demonstrations on the manufacturing shopfloor of Tencent Cloud’s IIoT solutions.

The MOU is a step towards the migration of Startup Factory Kunshan’s IT systems to Tencent Cloud. “We are very proud to have yet another global technology company join us as a strategic partner,” stated Bernd Reitmeier, founder of Startup Factory and co-founder of Smart Factory Kunshan.

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Part of the Siemens Xcelerator portfolio of software and services, Capital Electra X offers users sophisticated electrical design capabilities with lower cost-of-ownership and shorter time-to-productivity than traditional on-premises solutions.

“Many products across multiple industries are differentiated via increasingly sophisticated electrical content, driving rapid adoption of commercial electrical design tools,” said Frances Evans, senior vice president for integrated electrical systems at Siemens Digital Industries Software.

She noted that individual electrical engineers or small design teams often struggle with the higher cost-of-ownership and longer time-to-productivity of more complex enterprise-focused solutions.

“Instead, a browser-based SaaS solution designed for ease of use, rapid adoption and with minimal training requirements, will enable them to create electrical schematics easier and faster, using any device, for a low monthly cost.”

France Evans

Roots in acquisition

The new Capital Electra X offering is based on technology from the recently acquired Radica Software, a provider of cloud-native electrical CAD.

“The combination of the Electra Cloud technology from Radica, bolstered by Siemens’ technology, development capacity and global reach, provides the opportunity to better serve the SMB electrical design market with the first fully cloud-native SaaS solution tailored towards individuals and small teams,” said Thomas Yip, CEO, Radica Software.

Chad Jackson, CEO and chief analyst at Lifecycle Insights says research has shown that companies of many sizes are building out electrical design competencies to support the development of smart, connected products.

“With Capital Electra X, Siemens supports small and medium-sized businesses’ efforts to incorporate electrical systems into their offerings with power and ease of access.  More broadly, this acquisition bolsters the entire Capital suite, allowing Siemens to serve the right solution to those working on products of any complexity and in any stage of growth.”

Chad Jackson

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The Lab aims to provide a platform for private, public, academia and the community to explore and be inspired by CHINT’s solutions through showcasing new leading-edge solutions – such as EV charging stations, intelligent water systems, photovoltaics, and more.

These leading smart energy technologies are relevant for all functions including the built environment, data centres, industrial, and smart cities. It will also address industry challenges such as Remote Factory Acceptance Testing (FAT).

The 400 square metre Lab will also be opened to customers in the region to experience live demonstrations and simulations of proof-of-concept.

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Tiny Machine Learning, or TinyML, is typically used for automated tasks involving sensory data. As TinyML vendors continue to democratise Machine Learning (ML) at a rapid pace, ABI Research forecasts that TinyML Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) revenue will exceed US$220 million in 2022 and become an important component from 2025 onward.

While total revenue will be dominated by chipset sales, as TinyML device shipments continue to grow, the TinyML SaaS and professional service market have the potential to become a billion-dollar market by 2030.

The TinyML market has come a long way since ABI Research first analysed this market back in 2020. The TinyML Foundation, which gathers most of the main vendors in this space, has greatly expanded in recent years. And so have the applications of TinyML, with forest fire detection, shape detection, and seizure detection among some of the most spectacular use cases.

Given how central environmental sensors are to TinyML, the possibilities are extensive. David Lobina, artificial intelligence & machine learning research analyst at ABI Research, explains, “Any sensory data from an environment can probably have an ML model applied to that data.”

He listed out some of the most common applications including Word Spotting (the identification of keywords in text or utterances), Object Recognition (the detection of a person by a sensor), Object Counting (a sensor that counts the number of people inside a building), and Audio or Voice Detection, (as in the models that activate upon hearing ‘Hey, Google’).

Ambient sensing and audio processing remain the most common applications in TinyML, with sound architectures holding an almost 50% market share in 2022. Most of these applications employ either a microcontroller (MCU) or an Application-Specific Integrated Circuit (ASIC). The personal and work devices sector will be the largest increase soon.

With the myriad possibilities, there are also potential pitfalls, but for which, ABI Research believes there are well-identified solutions. “The physical constraints on TinyML devices are genuine. These devices favour small and compact ML models, which call for innovation at the software solutions level for specific use cases. And software providers will be the most active in the TinyML market,” says Lobina.

Software providers include leaders such as Edge Impulse, SensiML, Neuton, Nota, and Deeplite.

ABI Research recommends vendors concentrate on those applications that TinyML has a clear value proposition worked out before production.

Lobina says the role of software is crucial, and vendors must develop software tools to automate TinyML itself, a recursive process that necessitates employing TinyML applications to automate other TinyML applications.

“And finally, new technology will be required to bring about ever more sophisticated TinyML models. Neuromorphic computing and chips, along with the corresponding technique of Spiking Neural Networks, would bode well for the future,” he concludes.

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The annual gala concert dubbed "A Lovers' Reunion" will give the audience a brand-new symphonic experience driven by the integration of cutting-edge AI technologies developed by researchers from the HKBU's Augmented Creativity Lab.

The HKBU Symphony Orchestra will share the stage with an AI virtual choir to perform a newly arranged choral-orchestral version of the song Pearl of the Orient. It will be the world's first AI choir to perform a choral piece with Chinese lyrics.

“The first human-machine collaborative performance of its kind in the world presented by HKBU at the Gala Concert is an important outcome of the 'Building Platform Technologies for Symbiotic Creativity in Hong Kong' research project. It is also a milestone of AI research revealing the unlimited potential of human-machine symbiotic creativity,” said Professor Guo Yike, vice president for research and development at the HKBU Augmented Creativity Lab.

Professor Guo is the project leader of a research project entitled "Building Platform Technologies for Symbiotic Creativity in Hong Kong" – a HK$52.8 million research fund awarded by the Theme-based Research Scheme (11th round) under the Research Grants Council (RGC) for a period of five years.

He added: “HKBU is dedicated to building a world-class AI art-tech platform that will drive a new revolution that transforms the creative and cultural industries. It will enable Hong Kong to assume a leading position in art-tech on the global stage.”

For the gala concert, Professor Guo’s team has also trained an AI artist to create a cross-media visual narrative based on the lyrics and music to accompany the choral piece. The audience is invited to share the AI's imagination of Hong Kong as the Pearl of the Orient.

Another highlight of the concert is a ballet performance featuring AI virtual dancers in Ravel's Daphnis et Chloé, accompanied live by the HKBU Symphony Orchestra. The ideas for the choreography come from the natural world, which provides dance movements inspired by a newly discovered species of box jellyfish in Hong Kong. In collaboration with professional dancers from the Hong Kong Dance Company, the AI-generated dancers have been trained to perform the ballet with movement-data collected by HKBU scientists.

The concert will also spotlight the artistic prowess of our award-winning student musicians in the performances of Saint-Saëns's Introduction and Rondo Capriccioso in A minor, Op. 28; Borne's Fantaisie brillante sur 'Carmen'; and Lauryn Kurniawan's Rasa for string quartet and gamelan.

Professor Johnny  Poon, who is also the music director and conductor of the HKBU Symphony Orchestra and the Collegium Musicum Hong Kong, said: "In addition to celebrating HKBU's young musicians, the innovative concert showcases how the University is using technology to push the envelope of human imagination in the arts and cultural sphere.

"By leveraging our established strengths in both the arts and sciences, HKBU is taking a trans-disciplinary approach that will advance the development of the arts, culture and creative media in Hong Kong. Our art-tech research also enables musicians and artists to go beyond the traditional forms and interact with the audience in brand new ways."

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The new solution  leverages more than 20 years of experience in network security testing to reveal security vulnerabilities across any network technology. The software offers comprehensive, automated testing to rapidly cover a large matrix of known and unknown vulnerabilities.

IoT security assessments include novel cybersecurity attack tools and techniques for wireless interfaces such as Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, and Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) to test known vulnerabilities, as well as to discover new vulnerabilities.

 Development organisations can easily integrate Keysight’s API-driven solution into their development pipeline with a single API for control and reporting. Organisations deploying IoT devices can leverage the software to validate IoT devices before they are delivered to end users and as new vulnerabilities become a concern. Ongoing research from Keysight’s Application and Threat Intelligence Research Center provides updates to the latest protocol fuzzing and attack techniques.

IoT security vulnerabilities – BrakTooth discovery

Recently, researchers at Singapore University of Technology and Design (SUTD) discovered a group of vulnerabilities, they named BrakTooth, in commercial Bluetooth chipsets that impact billions of end-user devices. The SUTD research was funded with a grant from Keysight. The SUTD published results were leveraged into improvements in Keysight’s IoT Security Assessment software.

BrakTooth captures fundamental attack vectors against devices using Bluetooth Classic Basic Rate/Enhanced Data Rate (BR/EDR) and is likely to affect Bluetooth chipsets beyond those tested by the SUTD team.

"It is hard to accurately gauge the scope of BrakTooth affected chipsets,” commented Sudipta Chattopadhyay, assistant professor, SUTD. “We advise all Bluetooth product manufacturers to conduct appropriate risk assessments, especially if their product may include a vulnerable chipset. We are thankful to Keysight for generously supporting our research and the opportunity to collaborate with the experienced Keysight security team.”

The vulnerabilities, which include 20 common vulnerabilities and exposures (CVEs), as well as four awaiting CVE assignments, are found in Bluetooth communication chipsets used in System-on-Chip (SoC) boards.  These pose risks that include remote code execution, crashes and deadlocks. The SUTD team responsibly disclosed the findings to the affected vendors, providing a means to reproduce the findings and time to remediate vulnerabilities.

“Research activities like these at SUTD are critical to improving cybersecurity in the connected world. If the good guys don’t improve it, the cyber criminals will take advantage of vulnerabilities for nefarious purposes,” said Steve McGregory, senior director of Keysight’s security research and development team. “While investment into research is needed and helpful, software and chipset manufacturers are responsible for delivering secure products using rigorous security testing.”

IoT devices are the weakest cybersecurity link

Increasing numbers of connected IoT devices enable hackers to leverage cybersecurity vulnerabilities for a range of attacks including malware, ransomware and exfiltration of data.

According to Statista, the total installed base of IoT connected devices worldwide is projected to grow to 30.9 billion units by 2025 from 13.8 billion units expected in 2021.

“IoT device vulnerabilities are especially dangerous as they can facilitate sensitive data breaches and lead to physical danger, such as industrial equipment malfunction, medical device defects, or a home security system breach,” wrote Merritt Maxim, vice president, research director, and Elsa Pikulik, researcher, Forrester, in the State of IoT Security Report 2021. “In 2020, IoT devices were the second most common vector for an external breach and technology leaders rank security issues as a top concern plaguing or hindering IoT deployments.”

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This was key message from the speech given yesterday by Singapore Deputy Prime Minister and Coordinating Minister for Economic Policies Heng Swee Keat during the opening the ATxSummit, the apex event of Asia Tech x Singapore (ATxSG).

“Even as we leverage on AI, IoT and 5G to power today’s digital revolution, we must continue to invest patient capital for new gamechangers in the next bound of growth,” Heng said, pointing out that the digital revolution that the city is experiencing today is powered by the  technologies that it had  patiently invested in over the decades.

For instance,  Heng noted that AI has been in development since the 1980s, with a major milestone reached in 1997 when Deep Blue became the first chess-playing computer to defeat a reigning world champion. “But it was not until the last five to ten years that we began to truly harness the potential of AI,” he added.

The current pandemic has “turbo charged” the pace of the digital revolution, but also ushered the “worst global recession in a century”. Nevertheless, Heng urged all stakeholders in various industry sectors  not to be fazed into pulling back  from technology investments.

“During a global recession, it is understandable that investments for the long term would come under pressure. But we should resist these pressures, as sustained investment in science and technology is critical to supporting innovation,” he said.

Close US$70 million in R&D investments

During his speech at the ATxSummit, Heng announced that the city will be launching a US$50million Future Communications Research & Development Programme (FCP).

The FCP supports cutting edge communications and connectivity research, and will in turn grow local capability to translate that into innovative products, services, and companies. This will be accomplished through the setup of new communications testbeds in 5G and beyond-5G, and support technology development, translation and training, while building up the talent pool in the areas of communications and connectivity technologies

As a start, the FCP has established a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the 6G Flagship Office of Finland.

“5G networks are being rolled out and are expected to cover one-third of the world’s population by 2025. We will need to look ahead at the next bound,” he said.

The FCP investment is on top of the US$19 billion spending on research, innovation and enterprise, which the city government allocated in the next five years, building deeper capabilities in technologies such as quantum and blockchain.

Singapore Trade Data Exchange unveiled

Furthermore, Heng used the ATxSummit to launch the Singapore Trade Data Exchange (SGTraDex), a  common data infrastructure for the supply chain ecosystem.  It is seen as breakthrough that would allow stakeholders to easily “plug and play” to exchange data in a secure environment.

SGTraDex is developed by Alliance for Action on Supply Chain Digitalisation, which counts as members port operator PSA International and commodities trader Trafigura. The alliance was one of the new series of private-public partnerships convened last year.

With SGTraDex, previously unavailable or difficult to obtain data – such as real-time cargo location – can be easily attained. This will enable logistic players and shippers to optimise cargo handling and operations.

SGTraDex will also enable new value-added services for supply chain participants and speed up the processing of customs clearance, trade financing, insurance and other related activities.

“Our goal is to on-board stakeholders along the supply chain, especially smaller firms, so that they can be part of this digital backbone,” Heng said. “Once on board, firms can exchange information with other parties through SGTraDex. The data will be encrypted and transmitted without being stored.”

From the pilots so far, Heng revealed that  SGTraDex has the potential to unlock more than US$150 million of value annually for the supply chain ecosystem.

SGTraDex is the second common data infrastructure exchange in the last seven months, the first being the Singapore Financial Data Exchange, which claims to be the world’s first public digital infrastructure that allows a person to sign-in  using his national digital identity. The user can provide consent to obtain his financial information from different financial institutions and agencies. Data from each source is encrypted and transmitted through the Exchange without being stored.

Both exchanges are part of a suite of digital infrastructure and utilities being developed to provide a strong foundation for Singapore’s digital economy.

Meanwhile, the inaugural ATxSG event will run until July 16. The four-day mega-tech fest seeks to drive conversations across business, technology and government sectors that will shape the digital future not only in Singapore but across the Asean region.

Organised by the Infocomm Media Development Authority (IMDA) and Informa Tech and supported by the Singapore Tourism Board (STB),  ATxSG four main segments, namely ATxSummit, ATxEnterprise, ATxImpact, and ATxPlus under its wing, with established conferences such as BroadcastAsia, CommunicAsia, SatelliteAsia and InnoFest  among others tucked into the relevant segments.

“At ATxSG, we want to shift the focus from technology in isolation to its intersection with society and the digital economy. There are both opportunities and challenges in these intersections, and that’s where important ideas and innovations are needed. Singapore, as a Global-Asia node and the Tech gateway to the fastest growing digital economies in the ASEAN region, makes it an ideal place to spark these conversations, and co-create potential solutions.  We are delighted to host government and business leaders from over 20 countries at the ATxSummit, to collectively shape our shared digital future,” said IMDA chief executive Lew Chuen Hong.

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During the COVID-19 crisis, body temperature checks are routinely done in confined public places such as malls, restaurants, markets, factories and offices. The most common places to measure body temperature are the mouth, ear, armpit and rectum.

People hoist their palms or put their foreheads to a scanner for quick reading. But just how accurate is this approach remains a bone of contention. And given how the body’s temperature can change within the day during the onset of an infection, is there a better way to monitor one’s body temperature and be apprised of the changes?

While hearable technology has mostly been associated with auditory applications, other applications including connecting to smart assistants and providing health status are moving mainstream. One company, Hong Kong-based Well Being Digital (WBD101) is using multiple light sources, including infrared, to capture biometric data and convert it to usable information.

According to Kow Ping, executive director and co-founder at WBD101, which makes his company’s approach different are its patented application of multiple sensors.

“When applied at the ear, this technology results in the world’s smallest and most accurate bio-sensing earbuds,” he added.

Research firm, MarketWatch, noted that healthcare applications accounted for the largest share in 2017.  The evolution of technology allows people to measure heart rates and other parameters such as body temperature, blood pressure, pulse oximetry, electrocardiogram (ECG), electroencephalogram signals, and others using various smart hearable devices available in the market.

Companies in this market also started offering new capabilities in hearables to the elderly and other patients. These hearable devices also help manage specific health conditions and disease states.

Ping acknowledged that WBD101 is itself undergoing clinical trials of some of its products in the region, including non-invasive diabetic sensing. It is also continuing R&D efforts to finetune its technology around blood pressure and cholesterol sensing.

Click on the PodChat player above to listen to Ping as he shares his views and understanding of the wearable and hearable technologies and marketplace.

1. Let’s start off with a 30-second elevator pitch of who is Well Being Digital?
2. In your view, how has COVID-19 impacted the wearable industry?
3. Specific to hearable technology, what are the current innovations around it?
4. Are there any industrial or commercial (not to be confused with the consumer) use cases for hearables today?
5. Beyond these (#2/#3) applications/use cases, what can we look forward to in terms of ideas being considered in R&D labs?
6. As a business, what remains a major challenge for hearable tech companies to get traction across a broader marketplace?
7. What are your expectations for the hearable marketplace in 2021 and beyond?

ResearchAndMarkets forecasts the global hearable market to grow at a CAGR of 11.7% from 2020-2025. The report noted that a hearable is “a remote in-ear computational earpiece. Basically, you have a smaller scale PC that fits in your ear trench and uses remote innovation to supplement and improve your listening knowledge. Numerous hearables will likewise include extra components, for example, heart rate observing.”

Ping commented that consumer awareness remains a key challenge for the industry. WBD101 itself partners with other brands like JBL, Philips, TCL and Hera Leto One, to incorporate its technologies into consumer products.

Sensors in wristbands and earbuds just collect biodata. What you do with this data is where the value is.

“The wristband doesn’t tell you what to do next. Do you speed up or slow down? Should you rest because your blood pressure is going up? We are going beyond just recording those biometric data, we are working on AI to analyse this data and advise you on what to do next,” he elaborated.

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Their partnership will continue to focus on research and development projects with practical application benefits for the Dachser network. These include digital technologies such as data science and artificial intelligence (AI), real-time locating systems (RTLS), 5G and the Internet of Things (IoT), autonomous vehicles, and adaptive warehouse systems.

"The first step in our joint research work in the Dachser Enterprise Lab is to gain a detailed understanding of new technologies and their potential for logistics. Then we build on that to develop prototypes and concepts that add tangible value for Dachser and our customers, turning them into innovations," said Stefan Hohm, corporate director for corporate solutions, research & development at Dachser, who will head the new IT & Development executive unit as of January 1, 2021.

"So far, the work we've done together has proven that we can transform research results from the Dachser Enterprise Lab into new processes and services throughout the entire logistics network," he added.

In the DACHSER Enterprise Lab, Dachser logistics experts and scientists from Fraunhofer IML work in mixed lab teams on various research and development assignments. The partnership between the logistics service provider and the research institute was launched in October 2017 and will now run until October 2023.

“Our research results up to now and our new research contracts show just how important applied research is for logistics and supply chain management," says Prof. Michael ten Hompel, managing director of Fraunhofer IML. "We're particularly proud that the lab teams have continued to work effectively despite the restrictions imposed by the coronavirus pandemic. Of course, technical aids such as video conferences and collaboration tools have been a great help. But above all, it's the extraordinary commitment and motivation of everyone working at the Dachser Enterprise Lab that is key to successful research in challenging times.”

Fraunhofer IML is a logistics-focused research firm, composed of 315 scientists as well as 250 doctoral candidates and students and supported by colleagues in workshops, laboratories and service departments. Teams assembled according to project and customer requirements create cross-industry and customer-specific solutions, among other things in the field of materials handling, business process modelling, transportation systems and resource logistics. AI, smart finance and IoT are also among the current research focal points.

German-based Dachser is an integrated logistics company that incorporates transport, warehousing, and value-added services to provide comprehensive supply chain solutions. In Asia, Dachser employs more than 1,696 people in 48 locations in 12 Business Areas. Its Asia Pacific Regional Head Office is located in Hong Kong. The company uses its own in-house developed IT-systems.

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At the show, the spokesperson commented that in the future Bridgestone does not want to be a tyre company but a solutions company. He acknowledged that Bridgestone is proactive and more digital solutions, focusing on extending the mobility of vehicles, increasing the efficiency of a fleet, as well as vehicle safety by making tyres smarter.

Asia is home to 60% of the world’s population. With or without the effects of COVID-19, there is a need for effective mobility.

COVID-19 may have stalled Asia’s economies, but as China has shown, governments and industries will find a way to kickstart economies – the world moves on.

Bridgestone Corporation is a Japanese multinational auto and truck parts manufacturer founded in 1931 by Shojiro Ishibashi in the city of Kurume, Fukuoka, Japan.

FutureIoT spoke to Yoshikazu Shida, chief executive officer & chief operations officer, Bridgestone Asia Pacific, on the direction the automotive industry is taking as it positions itself to come of the current pandemic-crisis and return to normalcy.

Briefly describe the current scenario of the APAC automotive tyre market.

Yoshikazu Shida: The region’s automotive tyre industry is currently defined by three overarching trends - changing consumer preferences and habits, incorporation of technology solutions such as Internet of Things (IoT) and AI, as well as the unprecedented impact of COVID-19.

Asia-Pacific has experienced rapid economic growth and urbanization leading to shifting consumer needs and preferences. With the burgeoning middle class, we are seeing higher rates of vehicle ownership across the region.

Consumers are also largely demanding more environmentally friendly products as climate change becomes a key focus, and this has translated into the automotive industry as well. Governments in Southeast Asia are pushing for EV initiatives now more than ever as a more energy-efficient and cost-effective transportation mode.

Increased usage of IoT and AI technologies has also brought about the evolution of Connected, Autonomous, Shared, and Electric (CASE) vehicles to Asia-Pacific. Autonomous cars are expected to grow to 24 million units in the region by 2024.

This movement towards autonomous operations has a significant impact on the tyre industry, as the tyres manufactured for these vehicles will need to be equipped with enhanced performance, technologies such as sensors, smart diagnostics and advanced safety systems.

At a global level, CASE has been a key priority for the Bridgestone Group, and we have continuously been developing new innovations and offerings to meet consumer’s evolving needs in this area.

Finally, the COVID-19 pandemic has also taken its toll on the Asia Pacific economy, impacting local businesses and households. There are also the implications on the supply chain, manufacturing and business operations, should a second or third wave of infections take control.

As such, we expect the decreased output and shrinking spending power to have some impact on the automotive sector as well. However, despite these impending concerns, we’re hopeful that countries such as Singapore, Taiwan and China have had some success in containing the virus. China's auto market also recently took the lead in the global recovery, with positive month-on-month growth for four consecutive months since bottoming in March.

Can you describe what digital transformation is to Bridgestone?

Yoshikazu Shida: As the automotive industry is evolving towards CASE and Mobility as a Service (MaaS), Bridgestone is accelerating its digital transformation journey through the use of innovative technologies and a Group-wide value chain.

Our recent Mid-Long Term Business strategy signalled the start of a new chapter, positioning 2020 as “Third Foundation” or “Bridgestone 3.0”, which marks the ongoing transformation and evolution of our offering beyond tyres and diversified products to include advanced mobility and solutions.

Bridgestone 3.0 has been guided by the principle that there can be “no value creation without digital transformation (DX)”. We are transforming our business operations to focus on solutions and integrating innovative technologies to meet the needs and expectations of the next generation of drivers.

As part of this, we continue to develop our solutions business through our unique platform of Bridgestone Tire and Diversified Products as a Solution (Bridgestone T&DPaaS). The strategy is a combination of products and services such as Bridgestone’s Global Service Network and digital technologies. Most recently, we have also launched a new tagline “Solutions for your journey” to signal the company’s evolution towards being a global leader in Sustainable Mobility and Advanced Solutions.

An example of Bridgestone’s foray into digital solutions is our first-of-its-kind type of tyre sensor, called the Smart Strain Sensor. The Smart Strain Sensor technology incorporates the Internet of Things (IoT) technologies to help measure the strain that occurs when a tyre makes contact with the road while in motion.

The Smart Strain Sensor can record data even at low speeds, which makes it an important differentiator for autonomous vehicles which are expected to operate at lower speeds for enhanced passenger and pedestrian safety.

We’re leveraging our solutions business to improve resource productivity by combining the real and digital worlds to deliver integrated products, services and service networks that utilize tyre and mobility data.

To weather the storm and navigate the road to recovery, the industry needs to adopt a long-term strategic view and adapt to the new normal. That can mean assessing the role of digital tools in maintaining customer engagement in the wake of social distancing or investing in innovative mobility solutions to drive resilience and maintain business continuity in a disrupted industry.

What existing technologies have been crucial to executing this digital transformation?

Yoshikazu Shida: Bridgestone’s passion for innovation drives us to continually push the boundaries of what is possible and develop real and digital solutions to co-create new value and solve the problems of today, and tomorrow.

We have focused on leveraging data-based solutions that make fleet operations more effective and efficient. For example, driven by our acquisition of TomTom Telematics last year, IoT has created a tremendous business opportunity for Bridgestone’s fleet sector customers.

Renamed Webfleet Solutions, the acquisition will support Bridgestone in gaining valuable vehicle and tyre operating insights from an 860,000-vehicle strong user base communicating with 200 million data points.

These insights will support our fleet sector customers by helping them maximise fleet performance and minimize costs, all while ensuring sustainable and efficient mobility through digital intelligence drawn from tyre and mobility data. This can help contribute to increased vehicle uptime and extended tyre lifespan.

As a Bridgestone CEO for China and Asia-Pacific, what remains your biggest challenge in the region you oversee?

Yoshikazu Shida: The China and Asia-Pacific region has always been an important and key growth-market for the Bridgestone Group.

In this region, we supply our products across more than 20 countries. Bridgestone’s globalization begun in the Asia Pacific region, specifically in Singapore when the first overseas plant was established in 1965.

The Bridgestone brand has since grown from strength to strength, and today we are a leader in terms of market share and brand awareness in most of the countries in Asia-Pacific. The region is home to two of our leading R&D centres, which produce ground-breaking tyre solutions for our customers.

We currently employ over 20,000 employees across 35 offices to facilitate this large and growing market. While we continue to invest in the region, the biggest challenge we face is effectively managing its diversity.

China and the Asia Pacific is a heterogeneous region, with each market presenting different levels of economic and infrastructural development, regulatory frameworks and customers with varying needs.

It is critical that our teams on the ground demonstrate a deep and nuanced understanding of our customers across different cultures and business operations. Beginning with our first overseas plant in Singapore in 1965, we have cultivated strong relationships and have intimate knowledge of our customers’ business.

This enables us to support their growth ambitions, anticipate their needs and understand their challenges.

How has COVID-19 impacted your supply chain and distribution business in 2020?

Yoshikazu Shida: The impact of COVID-19 on our supply chain has been significant across all aspects of the value chain. First and foremost, because safety is our top-most priority, we took necessary precautionary measures to ensure the health and safety of all our employees.

Through rigorous management procedures and the collective efforts of our teammates - from manufacturing through to logistics and retail – we were able to adapt to the circumstances and manage the situation effectively.

One of the challenges that we faced was ensuring the continuity of supply and making sure we had sufficient inventory (or alternative sources) in case certain suppliers would be forced to stop their operations as a result of COVID-19.

Considering the drop in demand was rather sudden, we had to adjust supplies and lock in orders for raw materials a few months in advance than we typically would. Besides rescheduling deliveries, we also employed creative practices to store the increase in direct material inventory across our existing warehouse, minimizing and optimizing cost expenditure in the process.

Another obstacle that we had to face was a few instances of temporary port closures, where we incurred additional demurrage and detention charges as we could not always turn round our containers fast enough.

However, due to our strong existing relationships with the ocean freight carriers and visibility of our supply chain, we were able to make necessary decisions to balance supply and demand and minimize the financial impact.

We quickly learnt that agility in times of crisis is key to our success. Thus, we increased the frequency of our Integrated Business Planning (IBP) process and incorporated flexibility in plans. For instance, we took advantage of the reduced demand and brought-forward plant maintenances by a few months, ensuring that we would be ready when volume returned to normal.

That said, we were already primed to manage such crises as a result of our regional manufacturing and supply strategy, which was implemented many years ago. With this know-how, we were able to continue to operate efficiently and did not lose a single order due to COVID-19 related supply issues.

What do you see are evolving opportunities for Bridgestone? What are the emerging technologies Bridgestone is looking to deploy to capture these opportunities?

Yoshikazu Shida: As a global leader in the tyre industry, Bridgestone is ahead of the curve in developing products and solutions that cater to the ongoing transformation of the automotive industry.

Electric Vehicles (EV) adoption is expected to contribute 58% – over half – of new passenger car sales post-pandemic and amount to 31% of the global car fleet by 2040 according to research from Bloomberg’s NEF.

That will translate into a shift in tyres, which will need to be structurally reinforced to cope with this additional load caused by battery packs in EVweb

while maintaining low rolling resistance to maximize fuel efficiency.

With the rise of EV-driven tyre demand and the increasing requirement for companies to integrate sustainability across all aspects of their operation, there are many evolving opportunities for Bridgestone as a sustainable solutions company.

For example, we collaborated with our long-term partner Volkswagen to bring ground-breaking lightweight tyre technology to their new all-electric ID.3 vehicle.

The environmentally friendly ENLITEN Technology enables tyres to have a super low rolling resistance to help conserve battery power. Battery power is also conserved by the fact that tyres with ENLITEN Technology are lighter, requiring up to 2kg less raw materials to be created.

These factors deliver significant environmental benefits – perfect for a vehicle created with sustainability in front of mind.

We also see significant opportunity to develop advanced solutions in the mining sector to meet our customer needs and deliver social value.

Our revolutionary MasterCore off-the-road (OTR) tyres are engineered for ultra-high durability with a performance that can be customized to various mine sites and operations.

In June 2020, we also acquired iTrack – a provider of tyre management solutions for the off-the-road vehicle market. iTrack's tyre pressure monitoring system captures accurate, real-time tyre data and live vehicle location-tracking information. The acquisition strengthens our complete solutions portfolio for mining customers around the world. As a global solutions provider, we are focused on creating new value for our customers by delivering tyre and mobility-related data that enhance their operations.

As the tyre market continues to evolve, the industry must adapt to disruption and changing consumer behaviour – or run the risk of being left behind. We are always looking for ways to implement cutting-edge technologies to promote innovation through business model development and across the value chain.

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Leveraging its existing ecosystem of investors, pharma and service companies, SmartLabs will accelerate fundraising and clinical development for promising Taiwanese startups, including two companies focused on the detection of novel coronavirus.

“Taiwan has abundant research and development resources and maintains one of the world's most comprehensive healthcare systems, which makes it a natural location for our first investment in the Asian life science and biotech industry. Since our inception, SmartLabs has helped companies minimise administrative and logistical hurdles by providing turnkey laboratory space that allows them to focus on the work that matters, scientific discovery. This expertise uniquely positions us to advise and help connect Taiwan’s startups to businesses worldwide. By investing in promising Taiwanese startups, we can foster partnerships that help to commercialise products in the United States and around the globe,” said Seth Taylor, CBO and CFO of SmartLabs.

Taiwanese biomedical startups tap IoT

The Department of Academia-Industry Collaboration and Science Park Affairs will carefully select biomedical innovation teams to participate in the Global Launch Program. The program is open to any promising life sciences startup. SmartLabs has already identified two participants with technologies potentially suited for the detection of novel coronaviruses.

• Hawk Scientific’s qPCR nucleic acid detection technologies, such as the portable diagnostic suitcase and the handheld IoT reader with lateral flow strip tests, are designed for emerging pathogen outbreaks and animal diseases for on-site detection. At present, each machine can complete 300 nucleic acid tests in one hour. Both detection systems could apply in rapid COVID-19 virus screening and identification.
• Instant NanoBiosensors uses nano-fiber particles to develop nano-biosensors. Its state-of-the-art fiber optic particle plasmon resonance (FOPPR) technology offers instant and accurate results for a wide range of detection applications, including medical diagnostics and possible early detection of the virus SARS-CoV-2. Using Instant NanoBiosensors technology, diagnostic time has been drastically reduced from 3 hours to minutes.

Through its new Taiwan office, SmartLabs will assist both Hawk Scientific and Instant NanoBiosensors in navigating accelerated commercialisation processes and FDA testing in an attempt to mitigate current and future global epidemics.

Through the Global Launch Program, the startups will have access to training, mentorship and residency in SmartLabs’ leading, adaptable lab spaces. The three-month curriculum will include guidance on creating a business plan, engaging in fundraising and partnerships, developing intellectual property, and conducting product launches while navigating regulatory environments. Following the initial stages of learning and development, the teams will have access to SmartLabs' facilities and operations across Massachusetts, enabling companies to quickly scale and enter the international market.

In addition to the curriculum provided by SmartLabs, the company will also serve as a strategic partner for the startups. SmartLabs will help to drive global opportunities for the selected biotechs, providing:

• Guidance on business development and partnering with venture investors
• Access to SmartLabs' facilities and operations across Massachusetts, enabling companies to quickly scale and build a U.S. presence
• Counsel on recruiting and managing board of directors and management teams that drive strategic growth

“SmartLabs’ whole model is rooted in accelerating businesses and creating time savings. They are more than a typical incubator with lab space, their program allowed us to meaningfully accelerate our efforts and achieve key objectives in less time,” said Andrew Allen, the CEO of Gritstone Oncology.

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“We hope that our breakthrough will be a trailblazer for the future of minimally invasive health monitoring solutions where patients are immediately alerted whenever their physiological conditions such as heart rate and blood glucose cross a critical threshold,” said Professor John Ho. who led the team of NUS researchers from the university’s the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering at the NUS Faculty of Engineering and the NUS Institute for Health Innovation and Technology

Tiny subcutaneous implants that can continuously measure a person’s blood glucose, heart rate and other physiological conditions are a Holy Grail of modern medicine.

Current efforts to make these microsensors small have been largely hampered by technology limitations. These sensors are too small to be powered by a battery, so they require a sensor reader to be placed near them to constantly detect signals such as chemical or pressure changes using magnetic fields. For a reader to make sense of the signals, the sensor must be large enough to create a strong signal in the reader. So far, researchers have not been able to create viable microsensors below 1 millimetre.

Dream to reality

The NUS team made the quantum leap in this area by devising a new way of measuring the signal, by calibrating the wireless reader to work at an exceptional point.

This is a special state where the reader becomes extremely sensitive to nearby objects. The result is that the new reader is so sensitive – three times more sensitive than existing readers – that it can even read the tiny signals emitted by the sub-millimetre microsensors.

The team developed a working prototype of the reader that can read a microsensor that is 0.9 millimetres in diameter while implanted underneath the skin using a syringe. In lab experiments, the reader was able to monitor the rate of breathing and heart rate by detecting subtle movements of the battery-free microsensor.

It took two years of research by the team, from February 2017 to January 2019, to develop this innovative microsensor. The team’s achievement was published in August 2019 in the scientific journal Nature Electronics.

“Now that we have proven the viability of our reader, the next step is to develop a suite of passive (battery-free) microsensors that can monitor various physiological parameters such as glucose, bioelectrical activity and blood chemistry,” Ho said.

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“People here depend on the Citarum for their everyday needs,” he says. “But the water quality is changing. It causes health issues, especially for the skin, like itching.”

The river runs down West Java’s cloud-shrouded highlands near Mount Wayang and winds north to the sea, just east of Jakarta – Indonesia’s desperately overcrowded capital.

For years, unchecked toxic run-off from textile plants and other factories along its banks have poisoned the river.

Nearly 60% of its fish species appear to have died out, and lead levels have been measured at 1,000 times above U.S. safety standards.

In December last year, a massive rehabilitation program begun to save Citarum River. And people behind the program hope that new technologies such as artificial intelligence (AI) and Internet of Things (IoT) can help bring it to life again.

Race against time

The Citarum river system is one of the worst-hit victims of Indonesian’s urbanisation and industrialisation. It has been choked with garbage and industrial waste for years, making it one of the world’s most polluted rivers. Swaths of lush jungle, essential to the health of the river basin’s tropical ecosystem, have been cut down and replaced by poorly managed plantation farming.

But even its degraded state, the river remains crucial to today’s Indonesia. Its three dams supply water to almost 20 million people in the West Java province and more than 10 million in Jakarta.

Around 104,000 acres of farmland, 3,000 factories and several hydroelectric plants rely on its water.

With so much at stake, recently re-elected President Joko Widodo has ordered a massive clean-up, with the aim of making water from the Citarum safe to drink by 2025.

Tree management system support reforestation efforts

Besides ordering thousands of troops to clear garbage in and around the river system, the rehabilitation program includes replanting of trees.

More trees will help filter runoff that makes its way into the river and reduce carbon in the air. Today, residents and environmentalists are using digital solutions to measure, monitor and support its progress.

One of these solutions is a tree management system developed by local technology startup Jejak.in. The system uses IoT and AI to collect and analyse ecological data. The solution supports and maintains a database consisting of more than 15,000 tree species.

According to Arfan Arlanda, CEO and founder of Jejak.in, the tree management solution developed for the Citarum River rehabilitation program has a variety of features and functions.

“It has image mapping and identification abilities which include data sampling with QR, IoT sensors and the mobile application. In addition, it has a remote sensing feature that obtains data using satellite imagery and an aerial map function that extracts data using drones,” he said.

Arlanda pointed out that IoT technology is deployed specifically to fulfil several requirements.

“IoT is useful for the calculation of height and trunk diameter of the trees. IoT is also used in the soil sensors to collect data from the area of restoration. The data collected by the sensors mentioned above is used to monitor the progress of the restoration program and identify if further actions are required to ensure the success of the project,” he said.

He added: “Restoring forests around the catchment area is a natural way to boost the river’s water quality.”

Jejak.in specialises in developing systems that support reforestation and conservation programs. For the Citarum River rehabilitation, the startup is one of the key collaborators in the project spearheaded by packaged drinking water company Danone-AQUA.

Danone-AQUA also worked together with Nawatech, a Microsoft partner to develop Jejak.in, while the World Agroforestry (ICRAF) also shared its experience, industry knowledge and provided its scientific methodologies to support the project.

“It took an estimated 3 months to prepare for the Citarum River restoration initiative and it was implemented in December 2018,” said Karyanto Wibowo, director for sustainable development at Danone Indonesia.

Jejak.in solution for the Citarum River project runs in the cloud on Microsoft Azure. It sends information on carbon absorption to forest managers and government regulators.

“With machine learning, it is able to predict and calculate the environmental impact of tree planting such as carbon absorption within an area and share information on carbon absorption with forest managers and government regulators,” said Arlanda. “Its machine learning capabilities allow it to process imagery data and identify both land cover area and Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI).

The solution also features an intuitive reporting dashboard that presents real-time information and analysis of reforestation efforts.

“Jejak.in’s solution allows Danone-AQUA to plan, conduct and monitor their restoration and conversation programs successfully,” said Wibowo. “It also enables us to make informed decisions driven by data. Moving forward, the solution is being improved, considering feedback gathered by the Danone-AQUA team, ICRAF as well as the local NGO partners.”

Smartphone chatbot

Meanwhile, the data from the tree management system can be accessed by the local communities via a user-friendly AI-powered smartphone chatbot named Jaki.

“The data and analysis are always up-to-date. It makes the data collection process measurable, well-reported, and verified,” Arlanda said. “The technology is still under development and is not limited to anyone who wants to contribute and monitor.”

Danone-AQUA has been delivering healthy hydration to millions of Indonesians since it was founded in 1973.

With an estimated two-thirds of the nation’s 269 million citizens still lacking easy access to safe drinking water, supporting the clean-up of the Citarum and the reforestation of its catchment has become a signature sustainability project for the company.

Its partnership with Jejak.in is also helping its production facilities produce zero net carbon emissions.

Under Danone-AQUA’s corporate social responsibility initiative, every new tree planted in the Mount Wayang area is marked with a QR code medallion made from used water bottles. The codes can be read with a smartphone, making it easy to monitor the amount of carbon being reduced as each tree grows.

Local authorities and Danone-AQUA expect the reforestation around Mount Wayang will mitigate the dangers of floods and landslides.

“The Citarum case is unique because many people, even those who live miles away in Jakarta, depend on the river,” Wibowo said.

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In an announcement made yesterday during the Siemens Greater Bay Area (GBA) Forum, the company called for an open innovation ecosystem where governments, businesses and academia work together to massively apply digital technologies such as digital power plant, industrial IoT, smart campus and connected mobility.

“For GBA to elevate to a vibrant world-class bay area and a global innovation and technology hub, partnership, digitalisation and talents define the way forward,” said Lothar Herrmann, president and CEO Siemens Greater China. “Siemens is a long-standing technology partner that has created proven values for the people and society of GBA. We will continue to focus our technological support to this area on five priorities - enabling clean energy, developing digital manufacturing, building smart city cluster, driving innovations and nurturing talents.”

Themed with “Connect, Create and Collaborate”, the Siemens Greater Bay Area Forum gathered policy makers, think-tank scholars, technology experts and entrepreneurs to jointly explore cooperation opportunities to boost development of GBA through innovation and technology.

Supporting GBA with comprehensive digital technologies

Siemens set up its first sales office in Hong Kong in 1910, and since then has built up strong footprint in GBA and formed strategic cooperation with Guangdong and five cities in the region.

In Hong Kong, Siemens’ first Smart City Digital Hub is enabling researchers to develop solutions based on data analytics which aim to help build an interconnected smart city cluster in the Industry 4.0 era.

In Guangzhou, Siemens is helping local automotive equipment maker MINO to successfully transform from a line builder to an intelligent solution provider by adopting digital twin technology, setting a best reference for industrial enterprises in the region to enhance competitiveness through digitalisation

In both cities, Siemens is installing its most efficient H-class gas turbines. One such unit can meet the demand of over 1 million households and save carbon emissions comparable to those of 380,000 cars, substantially contributing to the vision of GBA to build a green, intelligent, energy-saving way of production and lifestyle.

Expanded cooperation with local partners

At the forum, Siemens also announced expanded cooperation with local industrial enterprises, research and industrial organisations in multiple areas in support of the development of the GBA.

Indeed, in another effort of preparing the region with a digital talent pool, Siemens is currently working with around 20 universities and vocational colleges in Guangdong. Among all, one recent cooperation in Guangzhou and Zhuhai aims to build Sino-German Siemens Technology International College to explore the model for dual-system vocational education in the GBA.

The post Siemens will apply Industry 4.0 standard in new Guangzhou factory appeared first on FutureIoT.

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Digital Park Thailand is a flagship project under Thailand’s Easter Economic Corridor, which is aimed at creating an ecosystem conducive the development of technology-oriented innovations. It is envisioned to become the digital and innovation hub of the ASEAN sub-region.

“We are seeking to attract more than 100,000 digital ecosystem developers into Thailand to help us with the movement,” Dr. Nuttapon Nimmanphatcharin, president and CEO of DEPA, was quoted in news reports earlier this year.

He added: “Digital ecosystem developers don’t only mean programmers and developers, but also cover non-tech business and enablers that will help drive the digital ecosystem.”

Nimmanphatcharin pointed out that “Thailand 4.0 is our goal and target of how to move forward and progress for our future economy … from our traditional OEM (Original Equipment Manufacturer) to a nation that produces higher value services and products”.

With an earmarked invested of US$160 million, Digital Park Thailand is now on the second phase of the four-year construction that ends in 2021. The park with a total area of 100 rais or approximately 160,000 square metres will be a complete community that will include a planned transportation network (airport, seaport, high-speed rail etc), a technology-oriented university and new cities.

Thailand Digital Valley

The planned IoT Institute will be located inside the park’s Thailand Digital Valley, a 30-rai (48,000 square meter) area managed by DEPA which will serve as the centre of innovation for the whole Thailand Digital Park.

“It will be a place where Thai youth will be able create new innovations,” said Nimmanphatcharin.

IoT as well as artificial intelligence will be the key technologies for development at the digital valley. The IoT Institute hopes to nurture a community of startups and tech investors that will take the product of Thai R&D into the global stage.

Besides The IoT Institute, the Thailand Digital Valley is comprised of five buildings:

• Building 1: office building
• Building 2: 1st IoT building (Digital Startups and Co-Working Centre)
• Building 3: 2nd IoT building (Digital Innovation and Co-Creation Centre)
• Building 4: 3rd IoT building (Digital Edutainment Complex)
• Building 5: 4th IoT building (Digital Global Connect)

“If we are successful in what we set out to do here, we will generate at least 30,000 jobs for the community,” Nimmanphatcharin said.

The post The IoT Institute to anchor Thailand Digital Valley appeared first on FutureIoT.

Launched in 2004, the scheme provides funding to applied research and development projects in Guangdong and Hong Kong to enhance collaboration between the universities, research institutes and technology enterprises of the two places.

It was also establish to upgrade the technological level of the industry in the Greater Pearl River Delta region. The Shenzhen Municipal Government joined the Scheme in the following year.

Deadline for applications is September 13, 2019.

There are three categories of projects under the Guangdong-Hong Kong TCFS. The first category is funded by the Innovation and Technology Fund (ITF) of Hong Kong and is open to Hong Kong institutions.

The second category is funded by Mainland authorities and is open to Mainland institutions.

The third category is jointly funded by Guangdong and Hong Kong authorities or Shenzhen and Hong Kong authorities. Hong Kong and Mainland institutions can submit applications to the ITC and Mainland authorities respectively.

"There are 33 and 32 technology areas under the first and third categories respectively this year. The areas are relevant to the needs of the industry and will enhance economic development in the Greater Pearl River Delta region," a spokesman for the ITC said.

IoT projects welcome to seek funding

According to the Hong Kong-Guangdong TCFS guide, companies and research institutes that want to secure funding under the scheme must present projects that fall under key themes/topics identified by the ITC.

And Internet of Things (IoT)-related projects are among those that are listed under specific categories. Some of these key themes related to IoT are:

• Vehicle intelligent management, Internet of Vehicles (IOV) application and smart devices for automotive application; Advanced Vehicle to X technology; and, Autonomous driving technology development and smart control technology in controlled setting
• Internet of Things (IoT) technologies and applications for Guangdong-Hong Kong logistics and supply chain industries
• Sensor solution (lidar, radar, camera, etc.) for smart mobility; and High accuracy positioning solution
• Robotic solution for public area (shopping mall or park)
• Electronics: Innovative electronics technologies and products for medical and health-care, manufacturing automation and green energy, including but not restricted to biosensors, telemedicine systems, helpful devices and facilities for the aged and the disabled, man-machine interface, energy management, solid-state lighting, etc.

According to ITC, projects will be solicited, vetted and monitored by the following centres:

• Hong Kong Applied Science and Technology Research Institute, designated as the R&D Centre for Information and Communications Technologies (ASTRI);
• Logistics and Supply Chain MultiTech R&D Centre (LSCM);
• Hong Kong Research Institute of Textiles and Apparel (HKRITA); and
• Nano and Advanced Materials Institute (NAMI).
• For projects falling under the Automotive Parts and Accessory Systems R&D Centre (APAS), they will be solicited by APAS, processed by the ITC, vetted by the ITF Research Projects Assessment Panel, and monitored by APAS.

For more information about the funding scheme, visit the ITF website (www.itf.gov.hk).

The post 2019 Guangdong-HK Technology Cooperation Funding Scheme opens for applications appeared first on FutureIoT.

"The project will be built to the highest industrial standards and we will spare no effort in making the new R&D center a masterpiece initiative in the Guangzhou-Shenzhen Science and Technology Innovation Corridor, helping to bolster the development of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area," said Andy Shi, president, OPPO MEA.

OPPO has been actively participating in the development of high-tech industrial clusters in the GBA region. In February, OPPO announced the construction of an intelligent manufacturing hub in Dongguan Chang'an New District. Upon completion, the hub is slated to be used for the production and quality control of smart devices and peripheral products.

Meanwhile, the new Chang'an R&D center is expected to house 5,000 R&D personnel upon completion. The new facility, along with the company's existing R&D centers, will form a robust research engine that powers OPPO's continued innovation for the emerging era of intelligent connectivity.

“It will play a strategic role in OPPO's R&D endeavors, further enhancing the core technological capabilities of the company,” Shi said, who also announced that plans to spend RMB 10 billion (approx. US$1.46 billion) on R&D this year.

The new Chang'an R&D center is designed by top global architecture firm Kohn Pedersen Fox Associates in partnership with dozens of professional consultants.

It will cover an area of approximately 82,000 square meters and will consist of 10 all-glass towers, including offices, a talent development center, an R&D center, a mobile internet research center and a testing center. The landmark office tower, once complete, will be nearly 250 meters tall and will represent a spectacular fixture of Dongguan's skyline.

The post OPPO to build new R&D center in Dongguan, China appeared first on FutureIoT.

According to the latest IDC Worldwide Semiannual Internet of Things Spending Guide, Asia-Pacific (excluding Japan) is projected to be the global leader IoT spending in 2019, accounting for approximately 36.9% of worldwide spending.

The reason for Asia-Pacific to be leading the IoT charge lies in the unique combination of government advocacy, manufacturing roots and research and development (R&D) know-how. Asia-Pacific is also ahead when it comes to Smart City rollout, with a staggering US$63.4 billion earmarked for investment in Smart City technology in the region. As the backbone of smart cities, IoT is a key focus area for development in the region.

As the region turns its focus to IoT, many of its markets have already begun heavy R&D investment to support its rollout. Various governments in the region such as Hong Kong and Australia are earmarking substantial amounts to build out accelerators and innovation hubs.

Meanwhile, Asia-Pacific’s longstanding roots as a manufacturing hotbed have caused the region to witness the rollout of IoT firsthand in its production lines and factories, showcasing efficiencies and vertical integrations.

Moving to the edge for IoT for success

As the IoT market matures and companies seek to derive value from it, new considerations and best-practices are emerging. IoT relies on a highly distributed network capturing data, and this data must be analysed in real-time before it rapidly loses value. This leaves enterprises facing the tough problem: How can they process data while its intrinsic value remains high?

In order to do this, analysis needs to happen at the ingestion point, on the network edge. With physics and latency considerations and given the complex processing and quick responses required by IoT, analysis is best done in close proximity to devices.

By building out an IoT environment with edge architecture, enterprises can factor in filtering, processing and analytics closer to both the input devices and end-users. Not only will this help with faster analysis and better predictive models, but it also enables the optimisation of network costs and can streamline application performance.

The limitations of early generation IoT were clear – the use of a device gateway to offer limited control and communication between sensors and IoT networks, and the consequent latency and bandwidth restrictions resulted in a response time far longer than the five milliseconds required to be considered “real-time”. Instead, edge processing will allow enterprises to fill these gaps, filtering data to reduce the quantity to transfer while gaining greater control of devices and services.

The edge is already delivering IoT success

Enterprises in the region have already begun reaping the benefits of the edge. Asia-Pacific-based ride hailing service, PickMe is working with data management services provider, Iguazio, for efficient and intelligent data management, in order for them to develop and act upon insights to streamline efficiency and grow revenue.

With the freedom to work with multiple service providers, on-premises, in the cloud or as a hybrid architecture out at the edge, anywhere in the world, PickMe is now able to build a powerful matching engine that combines application, passenger and driver data at the edge to support with real-time rate adjustments.

In the manufacturing sector, the external edge processes external input such as from the government, the weather and holiday dates can help to optimise pricing and inventory decisions once combined with value chain data. This combined data analysis allows products to get to market faster, especially when short turnaround time is necessary, such as during seasonal peaks.

Meanwhile, internal analytics from industrial IoT sensors that distributed across manufacturing components will enable predictive maintenance, conferring the ability to address issues before they can affect the manufacturing process and end-user experience.

As a result, manufacturers can optimise their architecture across multiple edges and focus distribution to support both internal analyses for improvements and external analysis for their end-users and customers.

Ultimately, successful IoT initiatives will be dependent on interconnection, with digital infrastructures that can physically link dispersed sensors, devices and machines that make up public systems, services and experiences, essential for the real-time exchange of information.

In the future, full IoT deployments can require interactions between multiple parties across a single or even multiple ecosystems. Making these complex IoT ecosystems work together intelligently requires a foundation of direct and secure interconnection that can deliver the performance, scalability and security required to build a smarter world.

The post Why Asia-Pacific leads the IoT charge to the edge appeared first on FutureIoT.

Granted, in areas like IT (internet technology) and OT (operational technology), where standard groups have long operated, standards are well developed and adopted, but at the same time, the standards and frameworks for machine-to-machine (M2M) communication and IoT are still being worked on.

Ongoing challenges

Huei Sin Ee, Vice President And General Manager of General Electronics Measurement Solutions at Keysight Technologies noted that one of the biggest challenges of developing IIoT standards is ensuring the interoperability of different IoT devices across a diverse set of applications and different kinds of communication networks.

She added that another for implementation is integrating legacy devices and applications with new devices and technologies since older systems weren’t originally designed to communicate with other applications or systems.

Despite these challenges, many industrial customers are still keen to implement the IIoT since the potential benefits of this technology—such as automation and actionable business intelligence for the factory floor—is evident.

Standard bodies like Industrial Internet Consortium (IIC), Object Management Group (OMG), and OneM2M are working together to set the standards and frameworks for machine-to-machine (M2M) communication and IoT.

There have even been discussions about making the IoT standard an open standard, to expand the innovation, leverage from existing skillsets and integrate with new technology on the manufacturing floor.

“Whether or not that happens in the future, the real challenge for modern manufacturers will remain on how to connect existing systems to the IoT while also preparing for future expansions,” Ee commented.

Impact of 5G on IoT

These days there’s a great deal of hype around 5G. While it certainly can’t be everything to everyone, there are a few distinct capabilities it offers, not the least of which is massive IoT for billions of devices and ultra-low latency and increased reliability for mission-critical IoT applications.

“These capabilities make it ideal for everything from industrial automation and smart grids to Healthcare IoT. But the impact of 5G on IoT goes beyond just connecting devices to the IoT. Thanks to 5G’s high density, low cost and long-range, it will also expand the scope of IoT devices, improve their ability to operate efficiently, and accelerate their adoption,” added Keysight’s Ee.

Additionally, 5G represents a fundamental shift in communication network architectures. And as such, it will expand the already pivotal role of cellular connectivity in the deployment of IoT applications.

According to Ee: “There are various ways in which a 5G mobile network can support the deployment of advanced IoT applications. With a high network speed of about 10-20 Gbps, for example, 5G enables fast transmission of massive amounts of data between connected IoT devices and allows for new capabilities and features that make use of that data."

Business applications of Industrial IoT in Asia-Pacific

While many around the world are still assessing how best to implement the IIoT in the most effective, reliable and secure manner possible, several countries in Asia-Pacific are leading the way, having already developed and built out their IIoT capability.

She cited the example of China with the rapid development of its manufacturing sector. “With so much competition, some players have pursued the IIoT as a means to gain much-needed efficiency and a leg up on competitors. The increasing sophistication of China’s manufacturing sector has led to the need for more technologically astute logistics providers and will eventually lead to the rise in its e-commerce industry. Several key players have already implemented a fully automated warehouse that ensures products are shipped from warehouse to recipient with a high level of efficiency,” said Keysight’s Ee.

Singapore is another country in Asia-Pacific that is embracing digital and IIoT technologies as a means of improving the lives of its citizens. Named the “Smart City of 2018” at last year’s Smart City Expo World Congress, Singapore is widely recognized for its projects in urban innovation and transformation industry. The government has played a vital role in developing solutions, from dynamic public bus routing algorithms to predictive analytics for water pipe leaks.

The IoT and IIoT promise incredible improvements in everything from enterprise productivity to increased wellbeing of populations in smart cities. Yet, despite its potential, the adoption rate is still slow for many countries in Asia-Pacific and around the world.

Ee concluded that while plenty of organizations acknowledge and appreciate the potential benefits of the IIoT, many are still in the midst of assessing how best to implement it in the most effective and secure manner.

“Others are waiting for full 5G deployment and standards to ensure they can leverage the IIoT to its fullest potential and with the least amount of risk.”

The post The long road to unified IoT standards appeared first on FutureIoT.

Market research firm IoT Analytics’ inaugural market report on drones highlights ongoing investment and consolidation of the commercial and private market, which is forecast to grow at 20.5% per year from 2019 to 2024.

Annual spending on drone-related hardware, software, and services is expected to surpass the $43.1 billion by the end of the forecast period.

“As more and more advanced IoT technology is being integrated into drones it is possible to have drones constantly connected and streaming data in real-time for instant analysis and decision making,” IoT Analytics said in a news release.

Moreover, 5G technology, with its high data rate and low latency, is expected to be a key driver for the drone market as it is expected to enable instant insights from the drones’ measurements in real-time due to the technology’s high data rate and low latency.

The report noted that today’s drones have added onboard intelligence for real-time remote control, video streaming, environment sensing capabilities, and automatic self-landing, according to IoT Analytics.

“While in the 1990s, drones had no specific intelligence and uplink connectivity only, drones have nowadays become intelligent “IoT devices” that are constantly connected (via RF or 4G),” it said.

Today’s drones also cover a large number of IoT applications such as mapping, surveying, inspection, monitoring, photography & filming, and delivery of goods.multi-rotor drones equipped with sensors are being deployed in mines and quarries for underground gas detection. 

The drones are also used to sense gas composition and density for improved workplace safety and shortening waiting times after blasts.

According to IoT Analytics, the numbers cited in the report are based on the drone-related revenue of the leading companies in the field, across 15 industry segments.

“Drones are a really hot technology area right now, which is often underestimated and not widely covered. Many people only take notice of drones as a hobbyist toy, or they hear about Amazon planning to use drones for order fulfillment. What they don’t realize is that commercial drones have become a billion dollar market in recent years in industries like energy, construction, and agriculture,” said  IoT Analytics Managing Director Knud Lasse Lueth. 

“Operators of wind farms, for example, are seeing a step-change improvement in costs and service level when using drones for remote inspection. We expect to see a myriad of drone success stories in the coming years, driven by new drone intelligence and more favorable regulation,” he added.

The post From toys to complex IoT devices, commercial drones now a $43B opportunity appeared first on FutureIoT.

The service provides GiGA Stealth to the closed-circuit television (CCTV) of ships that use a Maritime Very Small Aperture Terminal (MVSAT) service. 

GiGA Stealth is a blockchain-based security solution that exposes the Internet Protocol (IP) addresses of Internet of Things (IoT) terminals only to verified users.

Hence, the  blockchain-based service permits only private blockchain key holders, such as ground terminals and ship owners, to remote-monitor the footage of the CCTV cameras installed on ships, according to KT SAT.

The launch of a pilot service is scheduled for the second half of this year.

“We are endeavoring to develop new growth engines for our satellite business,” KT SAT CEO Hahn Won-Sic, said in a media statement. “We are determined to go beyond our transponder business and take a great step forward to serve as a global platform provider.”

Blockchain is among the three growth engines demonstrated by KT SAT at the Singapore conference; the other two being 5G and quantum cryptography.

In a news release, KT SAT explained that “satellite-5G connection is a new telecommunication technology interworking between a 5G core network and 5G Radio Access Network (RAN) by satellite instead of fiber optic cables.”

Meanwhile, satellite-based quantum communication is a technology that KT SAT is developing for heightened security in data communications.

“When the technology is commercialized, KT SAT will be positioned to supply satellite-based data communication service to the military and government, which require higher levels of reliability for their networks,” it explained.

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This was announced at Innovfest Unbound, the anchor event of the Smart Nation Innovations Week held recently in Singapore.

According to IMDA, the fund will support 5G technology trials for enterprise use-cases and in creating new open testbeds as well as R&D in 5G, including cybersecurity.

“As a start, IMDA will explore clusters such as maritime operations; urban mobility; smart estates; Industry 4.0, consumer applications and government applications,” IMDA said in a news release.

This early, it said industry partnerships are already underway. For example, a technology call by IMDA and PSA have been awarded to two mobile network operators, Singtel and M1, to explore the use of 5G technology for the Maritime industry. 

“This technology call aims to explore 5G capabilities, and how it could potentially address PSA’s connectivity needs to enhance port productivity,” IMDA said. 

A*STAR, JTC and Singtel have also signed a memorandum of understanding to deploy 5G at A*STAR’s Advanced Remanufacturing and Technology Centre (ARTC) in Jurong Innovation District.

IMDA said the goal is to integrate 5G with technologies such as internet of things (IoT) and artificial intelligence (AI).

“We meet at a time when digitalization is transforming industries, cities and economies. Digital technology, we all know, is a force multiplier that allows us to transcend the limitation of scale and the barrier of distance,” said S Iswaran, Minister for Communications and Information, in his speech at the opening of the Smart Nation Summit on Wednesday, June 26.

In Singapore, he said the vision is “for a digital economy where every business is digitally empowered, every worker is digitally skilled, and every citizen is digitally connected.”

During the summit, IMDA launched launched other initiatives to support this vision.

Smart estates, progressive legislation

IMDA said it is working closely with government agencies and industry partners to develop the Smart Estates ecosystem and enable Singapore developers, Singapore-based technology companies and Built Environment service providers to innovate in Singapore.

It awarded S$1.5 million (US$1.1 million) for eight projects for the Smart Estates Call for Innovation Solutions (CFIS) with Ascendas-Singbridge and JTC. 

“Such projects include innovative use of 3D Digital Twin technology, and a cloud-based platform to enable quick searches for assets through a visual tour,” IMDA said. 

Alongside these initiatives is progressive legislation to facilitate electronic transactions.

“The Electronic Transactions Act (ETA) provides legal certainty to electronic transactions in Singapore, which facilitates the digitalization of transactions,” it said. 

A public consultation to seek views on the review of the ETA is in progress to explore the possibility of including more electronics transactions under the ambit of the ETA, including property transactions, Bills of Lading, Electronic Transferable Records and Lasting Powers of Attorney, as well as provide certainty on the use of new technologies such as DLT, Smart Contracts and Biometrics.

“As we enter a digital-as-usual age, it is even more imperative for all segments of society to continue their urgent efforts to digitalize to be relevant and competitive,” said Tan Kiat How, Chief Executive of IMDA, in a news release.

The post Singapore announces S$40M fund to support 5G innovation appeared first on FutureIoT.

This was the comment of Malcolm Chan, Managing Director for Asia-Pacific at BICS, after the company released a report showing that data roaming traffic across Asia surged by 245% in the past 12 months.

Brussels-based communications enabler BICS said the data was sourced from its global network which connects over 700 operators and 500 digital service providers (DSPs), and carries over 50% of global data roaming traffic.

“This huge uplift is being driven by increased adoption of roaming, new tariffs plans, travel SIMs and IoT devices across the continent,” Chan said in a news release.

“Subscribers now expect high quality, affordable roaming services, whether they’re travelling inside or outside of Asia, while enterprises managing ‘fleets’ of connected devices need uninterrupted, cross-border connectivity,” he added.

The BICS executive noted that while APAC has yet to follow in the EU’s footsteps with tariff-free roaming, roaming costs have fallen, encouraging more subscribers to use their phones abroad, and helping to drive the commoditization of mobile services. 

“This presents a major opportunity for mobile operators, who can boost revenues and enhance the customer experience through offering roaming packages,” he said.

BICS anticipates that global data roaming traffic will continue to surge as operators progress 5G roadmaps. 

Citing a report from Ericsson, it said 5G coverage is forecast to reach 45% of the world’s population, by the end of 2024, with 5G networks projected to carry 35% of global mobile traffic. 

“Higher speeds mean higher volumes of traffic, and consequently the trajectory of roaming growth is expected to continue indefinitely. 5G technology enables new – and more – IoT use cases, across multiple verticals from automotive to healthcare, which will require global connectivity and further add to roaming traffic on operators’ networks,” it said.

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IMDA’s Chief Executive Tan Kiat reiterated Singapore’s vision for 5G – as an enabler that supports the development of innovative applications and services that will power the country’s digital economy. 

With 38,000 attendees and 1,700 exhibitors over two venues this year, ConnectTechAsia also highlighted the technological convergence that is taking place across Asia is giving rise to the emergence of smart cities in the region. 

A growing priority for governments, smart cities are seen as a sustainable way forward for Asia as it grapples burgeoning populations, rapid urbanization and increasing pollution, according to the organizer of the conference.

During the conference, ConnecTechAsia, Smart Cities Network, and Smart Cities Council India have also signed an agreement on ‘The Digitally Twinned Smart Cities Initiative.’  

The memorandum of understanding (MoU) covers the planning, design, construction, operation and maintenance of “Digitally Twinned Smart Cities,” and several cities in the Asean and India.

“Asia presents a diverse yet perfect setting for the growth of smart cities, given its populous and digitally savvy demographics,” says Kok-Chin Tay, Chairman, Smart Cities Network (SCN) Singapore.  

“The journey through Indian Smart Cities is propelling innovation and start-up culture as challenging sustainable options are competing for attaining priority in execution,” added Pratap Padode, Executive Director, Smart Cities Council India.

Technologies such as Virtual Reality (VR) likewise generated buzz on the show floor, with Korea’s Salin Co. inking a deal with Singapore’s Green Lab to bring its EpicLive VR education platforms to international schools in Singapore and regional Asian countries. 

EpicLive allows students to interact in a VR class and can be used in scenarios such as debates or lessons programmed by schools, boosting knowledge retention and adding a fun, engaging teaching aid for the classroom.

Kenny Tay, Director of Green La, said besides adding a dimension of fun to learning, VR allows teachers to use a more visual approach to help students understand concepts and engage with each other, leading to more memorable and better learning outcomes. 

Meanwhile, Malaysia’s MEASAT Satellite Systems announced an agreement at ConnecTechAsia to carry India’s first 4K/UHD channel and the world’s first 4K/UHD HDR travel channel, Travelxp.  

Acknowledging how emerging technologies will play a pivotal role in shaping future societies, Dr. David Soldani, Expert, CTO Office, Huawei Southern Pacific Region, said the ultimate goal is providing people and homes with a full immersive experience.  

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The service will launch on July 4 and run for around three months, according to a company news release.

Its partner, Japanese e-commerce giant Rakuten, said it is going to be the first commercial drone delivery service to a remote island designed for general users in Japan.

Sarushima is the only uninhabited island in Tokyo Bay and is a popular sightseeing destination that receives 200,000 visitors yearly, according to Rakuten.

To avail of the drone service, visitors to Sarushima need to download the Rakuten Drone app so they can start placing orders for about 400 products on offer at the Seiyu LIVIN Yokosuka Store located on the shore of opposite the island. 

The product list includes food such as fresh produce for barbecues, beverages and first-aid products.  

“Deliveries will be made by Rakuten Drone delivery drones at designated times to a drone landing port built on Sarushima,” Rakuten said.

 "With this service, we aim to offer customers an innovative, advanced shopping experience in which products they order will be delivered by drone. Based on this initiative, we will accelerate innovation so that more people can experience the convenience of drone delivery," said Koji Ando, ​​Managing Executive Officer of Rakuten, in a media statement.

Rakuten’s Drone service was launched in 2016 when demonstration experiments and trial services conducted were first conducted in cooperation with companies and local governments. 

According to Rakuten,  the service delivered products using drones for about half a year in Minamisoma City, Fukushima Prefecture in 2017. 

“In 2018 we conducted the first delivery experiment combining drones and UGVs (unmanned ground vehicles) in line with our near-future goal of creating unmanned delivery solutions in Japan and successful practical services,” it said.

Tamae Takeda, Executive Senior Vice President of Seiyu's EC Division, said Seiyu has also been looking into drone deliveries for its online supermarket.

“In the future, through Rakuten Seiyu Netsuper, which we jointly operate with Rakuten, we want to contribute to enriching the lives of more customers by delivering high-quality products at low prices to everyone, including those who have difficulty shopping at stores," he said.

In March this year, Rakuten has also partnered with Chinese retailer JD.com to develop unmanned delivery solutions in Japan.

Under the agreement, JD.com said the two companies will combine its expertise in developing drones and autonomous delivery robots with Rakuten’s drone delivery service operations.

The announcement barely a month after successfully piloting Indonesia’s first government-approved drone flight.

The post Japan’s Rakuten, Seiyu start domestic drone delivery to Sarushima appeared first on FutureIoT.

Sentryo, which develops and provides cybersecurity and situation awareness solutions to industrial networks and the internet of things, was founded in 2014 and headquartered in Lyon, France.

It has raised a total of €12 million in funding over three rounds, according to data from Crunchbase. Their latest funding was raised on December 3, 2018 from a Series A round amounting to €10 million.

Its leaders said at the time of the funding that new financing will allow Sentryo to accelerate its expansion in Europe and North America

In a corporate blog post, Rob Salvagno, Vice President, Corporate Development and Cisco Investments, said that the acquisition is expected to close before the end of Cisco’s Q1 Fiscal Year 2020 (October 26, 2019).

“By combining Cisco’s intent-based network architecture with Sentryo’s capabilities, its customers can capture IoT benefits, manage networks and devices at scale, enable collaboration across IT and OT departments, and better protect their assets and data,” he said.

Prior to the acquisition, Salvagno said the two companies already had the opportunity to work together.

“We have incorporated Sentryo’s Edge Sensor and our industrial networking hardware with Cisco’s IOx application framework,” he said.

Earlier this year, he said Cisco also launched the industry’s first integrated network architecture that extends intent-based networking capabilities to the IoT edge.

“We believe that connectivity is foundational to IoT projects and by unleashing the power of the network we can dramatically improve operational efficiencies and uncover new business opportunities,” he added.  

The post Cisco acquires French IoT startup Sentryo appeared first on FutureIoT.

The telecommunications and technology industries, businesses and even governments are investing significantly in new technology, be it 5G, the Internet of Things (IoT) or digital transformation. As emerging technology enters the market with pilot-tests and commercial launches, 5G, artificial intelligence (AI), IoT, augmented/virtual reality (AR/VR) will come together to realise the near future, where all products will be “born connected.” This implies that connectivity is not an afterthought.

Designing with the customer in mind

Some hotspots in these developments largely circle around 5G and IoT. What makes them the talk of the town? Coupling 5G with IoT will help unlock possibilities in fields like smart factories and autonomous vehicles.

However, it is always important to take a step back and have the customer or user in mind. How do we help the factory workers do their jobs better? How can enterprises track progress and lapses with more visibility? How can we operate more sustainably on both business and environmental fronts?

Part of the digital transformation process involves a problem-solving mindset, rather than a technology-first one. Technology is advancing fast. Sometimes, even faster than processes and infrastructure can adapt. This brings us to what makes regional IoT deployment an arduous task, where the slightest of gaps gets magnified with the scale of deployment.

Common challenges in regional IoT deployment

Highly fragmented markets within a region. It is important to recognise that when it comes to IoT, there are varying levels of development in each market. The state of development is highly fragmented even in markets within a region. Different governments mean different regulations, which alters the playing field dramatically.

Another key factor is in market readiness and characteristics, where some markets could lack in terms of infrastructure and use cases vary according to needs. For example, markets like Indonesia, Thailand and Malaysia could benefit from IoT in the farming industry but face adoption barriers. Having an understanding or sensitivity to such nuances within the market could go a long way.

There is no one-size fits all solution. IoT development is still in progress. Expertise in this field is also very niche. You will need to figure out how to customise the various elements of the solution to realise your final product. The present climate is such that the individual components of an IoT solution originate from different parties. The hardware might come from one vendor, the software from another, the connectivity from an operator and the security layers by another third party.

Having this many parties involved in a single product will require lots of coordination, possibly dragging the product development timeline and testing periods. That is a significant investment in terms of time and resources, which could affect your return of investment (ROI).

Connecting disparate systems. Working with multiple parties with different systems will entail spending time to integrate them, allow communication and distilling key information for users. The need to redesign operation processes might also emerge during the integration.   

Simplifying workflows for the business and user

When it comes to strategizing your regional IoT deployment, choosing the right mix of partners that have future-proofed their solution is really important in ensuring a smooth delivery process. Considerations in partner selection include whether they have a good understanding and proven experience in working together on multiple projects, providing end-to-end solutions to customers as one seamless team. It is also a good idea to reduce the number of partners required, so that it lightens the load when it comes to management.

The value of harmonization can be seen on multiple fronts, be it integration or service levels and support, or even pricing and commercial models. It is important to avoid having pricing as the sole consideration when seeking IoT solutions. There are lots of potential hidden costs and liabilities over and above headline costs if the solution is not a good fit for your product, or if the eventual operating model is not efficient.

Simplifying workflows will allow you to focus on designing your solution to in turn, simplify the lives of others. With 5G complementing the opportunities that IoT can unlock, we can expect to see an amplification of how the process of regional IoT deployment can be further simplified. That is the magic of the future revolution with 5G and IoT.

Bridge Alliance will be at ConnecTechAsia 2019 in Singapore. Visit David and his team at the Bridge Alliance booth in BY3-05, MBS Basement 2. Speak with them to learn more about how enterprises can simplify their regional IoT deployment with a network of top tier operators and technology providers.

Ms. Ong Geok Chwee, CEO of Bridge Alliance, will also be speaking at the summit on “Maximising the Power of IoT” as well as participating at a CXO Roundtable on “5G: The Future Game Changer of Data, Networks and Consumption”. View the full summit programme here.

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Feeding and taking care of livestock such as cows, sheep, and poultry, for example, is an essential task for farmers. Attaching internet of things (IoT) sensors to livestock using collar tags will allow location tracking and help monitor livestock by keeping track of physical activities.

Seeing this trend, NEWRACOM, a California-based IoT-enabled wireless connectivity chipsets manufacturer, has partnered with Tokyo-headquartered Beatcraft, which provides wireless communication solutions for embedded devices.

The goal is to deploy various intelligent agriculture applications by using an IoT solution based on IEEE 802.11ah standard.

NEWRACOM said in a media release that it provides Beatcraft with the world's first 802.11ah Wi-Fi system on chip (SoC) – the NRC7292 – and the Wi-Fi SOC module NRM7292M.

Beatcraft will then deploy an 802.11ah embedded module on the latest Raspberry Pi 3 compatible I/O connector for rapid prototyping and testing of wireless devices. The module is a complete hardware and software platform for creating or evaluating wireless sensors, controllers, and actuators.

It also provides software development tool for users to develop and operate the customized software which can be best fitted with each use case in smart agriculture.

A wireless networking protocol published in 2017, the IEEE 802.11ah is also called Wi-Fi HaLow.

Dr. Sok Kyu Lee, CEO at NEWRACOM, said that smart farming using HaLow will promote farming practices that would improve profitability for farmers, private entities, and even human life.

“Our HaLow solution will be momentum to accelerate the emergence of various use cases such as field management, equipment tracking, greenhouse farming, energy and water conservation,” Dr. Masashi Takemoto, CEO at BeatCraft.

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Supported by the Infocomm Media Development Authority (IMDA) and Enterprise Singapore, the lab is said to be the first developer-led lab in Southeast Asia.

The goal is to support industry players and technology providers to innovate in four key areas: intelligent estates, smart mobility, digital wellness, and agritech.

ASB said the lab will provide a platform for industry players to share problem statements and collaborate with technology players to co-develop and trial new and innovative solutions for commercialization.

Hence, the lab is expected to roll out various programs such as call-for-proposals, pilot tests, workshops and boot camps as well as produce proof-of-concepts and prototypes for users of smart urban technologies.

“The Smart Urban Co-Innovation Lab allows our SMEs to work on real life problem statements of developers, service providers and customers. In the process of developing and testing their solutions, they also build up their track records, which is a prerequisite when they export their solutions abroad,” added Eunice Koh, Assistant Chief Executive Officer, Enterprise Singapore.

Enterprise Singapore has been encouraging strategic partnerships between large and small firms and vowed to connect both local and overseas end-users and relevant technology solution providers, including SMEs and startups, to the lab.

It said it will  also support the solutions providers in the deployment of their solutions overseas through its global network in over 35 locations and other assistance tools including financial assistance.

Jane Lim, Assistant Chief Executive, IMDA, said in a media statement that when the agency launched a grant call for collaboration for smart estates six months ago, they received positive input and feedback from developers and technology providers.

“The Smart Urban Co-Innovation Lab is another firm step we are taking to accelerate the growth of a vibrant and innovation-driven smart estates sector. We hope that our companies participate in the lab, co-innovate and take advantage of the growth opportunities in a digital economy in Singapore and beyond,” she said.

Lim was referring IMDA’s technology call in November 2018 to help technology companies build their capabilities in the digital economy and accelerate Singapore’s journey in developing smart estates.

IMDA has partnered ASB and JTC to trial innovative urban solutions for smart estates and has set aside $14 million to help fund the trials at ASB’s Science Park 1 and 2 and JTC’s LaunchPad one-north, Fusionopolis One and LaunchPad Jurong Innovation District.  

Manohar Khiatani, Deputy Group Chief Executive Officer of ASB, said the co-innovation lab will be strategically located within the Singapore Science Park so technology providers will also have easy access to relevant infrastructure and resource.

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Professor Wei Xiang is the Founding Professor and Head of Discipline of Internet of Things (IoT) Engineering at James Cook University and an elected Fellow of the IET and Engineers Australia. He is a well-recognised international leader in IoT and has been awarded several prestigious awards and fellowship titles.

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The Swedish research firm said that while the first 5G cellular IoT modules will become available to developers this year,  5G will account for just under 3% of the total installed base of cellular IoT devices at the start.

“5G still has some way to go before it can become a mainstream technology for cellular IoT,” said Tobias Ryberg, Principal Analyst and author of the report.

“Just like 4G when it was first introduced, the initial version of 5G is mostly about improving network performance and data capacity,” he added. “This is only relevant for a smaller subset of high-bandwidth cellular IoT applications like connected cars, security cameras and industrial routers.”

Berg Insight predicts that the real commercial breakthrough will not happen until the massive machine type communication (mMTC) use case has been implemented in the standard.

“Since NB-IoT has only just started to appear in commercial products, there is no immediate demand for a successor. Over time, fifth generation mobile networks will however become necessary to cope with the expected exponential growth of IoT connections and data traffic,” it said.

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Developed in collaboration with Samsung Foundry, Cadence, and Sondrel, the test chip is a 28nm fully-depleted silicon-on-insulator (FD-SOI) embedded MagnetoResistive Random Access Memory (eMRAM).

“The promise of a world transformed by a trillion connected devices is not far in the future, but for IoT devices to scale we must continue to put a range of technology options in front of designers to test and evaluate,” said Gus Yeung, VP, GM and Fellow, Physical Design Group, Arm, in a news release.

He said the Musca-S1 test chip board would enable IoT designers to prototype their product designs from device-to-data security.

It includes, among others, testing and evaluation of new eMRAM technology for reliable, low-power, and secure device development through secure memory implementation.

Arm explained that eMRAM technology offers advantages over traditional embedded flash (eFlash) memory technology, as it can quickly scale below 40nm process technology.

The  Musca-S1 test chip demonstrates a combination of on-chip power control, Samsung Foundry’s Reverse Body Biasing (RBB) and eMRAM non-volatile memory power shutdown, allowing for testing and evaluation of new classes of highly energy-efficient, controlled IoT devices.

And for the first time on Samsung Foundry silicon, designers will have the opportunity to run Arm Mbed OS as well as test device and data management capabilities using the Arm Pelion IoT platform, the company said.

“The combination of Musca-S1 and working 28FD-SOI silicon reassures IoT designers they can achieve faster development, deploy body biasing and integrate eMRAM technology in their next-generation IoT devices for enhanced energy efficiency and IoT security,” said Jaehong Park, executive vice president of Design Platform Development, Samsung Electronics.

The Musca-S1 test chip and development board is on display at Samsung Foundry Forum North America in San Jose, California as part of an air sensor IoT application demo, featuring the device and data management capabilities of the Arm Pelion IoT platform.

Arm said it will be available in limited quantities in the third quarter of 2019, and is targeted for loan to customers in the fourth quarter of the year.   

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The announcement came on the heels of its recent selection as a program partner of NASA’s TCL4 trials in the US states of Texas and Nevada, along with the Federal Aviation Administration’s (FAA) UAS Traffic Management Pilot Program (UPP) at Virginia Tech University.

The TCL4 trials are testing the interaction between drones within the AirMap Unmanned Traffic Management Systems (UTM) in a variety of urban scenarios, including newsgathering, package delivery, and managing large scale contingencies.

Meanwhile, as a member of the Virginia UPP project, AirMap provides a core set of UTM capabilities for flight planning and telemetry, manned aircraft alerts, deconfliction, and network sharing with other USS provider partners.

AirMap is also said to be continuing its participation in the national UAS Integration Pilot Program (UAS IPP) set by the White House to accelerate the integration of commercial drone operations into the national airspace.

“For example, in North Carolina, AirMap and drone operator Matternet is using drones to deliver much needed medical supplies between Raleigh hospitals,” the company said.

Hon Chu, Head of APAC Business Operations, AirMap, said that with these developments, it is boosting its presence in the Asia-Pacific region.

“We had previously established a joint venture with Rakuten, namely Rakuten AirMap, in Japan, and we are planning to further develop our business in the Asia Pacific region, especially in Hong Kong and Singapore,” Chu said in a statement.

“We look forward to working with civil aviation authorities in multiple markets in APAC,” he said.

Its foray in Asia is a joint venture project launched in March 2017 called Rakuten Airmap, in collaboration with Japanese electronic commerce and Internet company Rakuten to provide an Unmanned Traffic Management (UTM) system for drones.

Rakuten entered the commercial drone field in April 2016 with the launch of the Sora Raku drone delivery service, which was then forecast to deliver up to $127.3 billion in global economic impact in the coming years.

The joint venture company set up with AirMap will also provide UTM solutions to drone operators and airspace managers in Japan.

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Set up in collaboration with Swedish telecommunications company Ericsson, the hub is expected to provide a platform for startups and to speed up research and development in IoT, especially within the context of Industry 4.0, according to a report in the Vietnamese government website.

“Minister of Science and Technology Chu Ngoc Anh said the centre will help connect and provide platforms to support innovation in startup firms, as well as create a learning environment for tech-savvy youngsters,” the report said.

Mobile operators, businesses, students, researchers will also benefit from the support they will receive in the commercialization of products.

The government report noted that the launch of the center coincides with the celebration of the 50th founding anniversary of Vietnam-Sweden diplomatic ties.

Denis Brunetti, President of Ericsson Vietnam, Myanmar, Cambodia, and Laos, was quoted in the report as saying that the “operation of the centre will help promote cooperation between the two nations.”

Ericsson affirmed in a news release that the establishment of the Hub follows the Strategic Innovation Partnership Agreement signed by  Brunett  and Chu Ngoc Anh, Minister of Science & Technology in Vietnam in November 2018.

The Minister graced the inauguration ceremony of the IoT Innovation Hub and said that the Hoa Lac Hi-Tech Park where the hub is based can become a miniature economic model of Vietnam, based on innovation and Industry 4.0.

"Therefore, with the launch today, the IoT Innovation Hub will be one of the important channels bringing alive and strengthening the development objectives of Hoa Lac Hi-Tech Park," he said.

Things are looking up for Vietnam. Data from the World Bank shows that GDP reached an all-time high in 2017 at $223.78 billion.

Bloomberg reported recently that "foreign direct investment in Vietnam has climbed for six consecutive years; the economy is humming, with a growth rate of about 7 percent.” It said the country is also emerging as a "winner" in the trade war between the US and China.

On May 10, 2019, Vietnamese telecommunications operators Viettel Military Industry and Telecoms Group piloted the first call using 5G technology, the government website reported. During the piolot, the mobile internet speed reportedly reached 1.5-1.7 Gigabits per second.

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This was among the findings of a study conducted by Vertiv and technology analyst firm 451 Research, which polled more than 100 global telecom decision makers with visibility into 5G and edge strategies and plans.

Twelve percent of operators expect to roll out 5G services in 2019, and an additional 86% expect to be delivering 5G services by 2021.

According to the survey, initial services will be focused on supporting existing data services (96%) and new consumer services (36%). About one-third of respondents (32%) expect to support existing enterprise services with 18% saying they expect to deliver new enterprise services.

Vertiv said 5G itself is expected to become a key enabler of emerging edge use cases that require high-bandwidth, low latency data transmission, such as virtual and augmented reality, digital healthcare, and smart homes, buildings, factories, and cities.

However, illustrating the scale of the challenge, the majority of respondents (68%) do not expect to achieve total 5G coverage until 2028 or later; 28% expect to have total coverage by 2027 while only 4 % expect to have total coverage by 2025.

"In Asia, operators are optimistic that they are ready to deploy 5G in the next few years. But with the growing reality comes a new set of challenges including increased energy consumption,  existing infrastructure readiness, and visibility as well as manageability of sites" said Danny Wong, senior director for telecoms at Vertiv Asia.

"There is all the more a pressing need for telecom operators to identify and utilize energy-efficient and innovative power and thermal – solutions to make 5G a reality," he added.

Vertiv released the report in conjunction with its participation in Dell Technologies World, a global exposition focused on digital transformation.

"5G represents the most impactful and difficult network upgrade ever faced by the telecom industry," said Brian Partridge, research vice president for 451 Research.

"In general, the industry recognizes the scale of this challenge and the need for enabling technologies and services to help it maintain profitability by more efficiently managing increasingly distributed networks and mitigating the impact of higher energy costs," he added. 

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The strategic partnership between HAPSMobile and Loon will cover the advance use of high altitude vehicles such as balloons and unmanned aircraft systems (UAS) to bring connectivity to more people, places, and things worldwide.

The companies said they are actively exploring commercial collaborations that focus on expanding mobile internet penetration, enabling internet of things (IoT) applications, and assisting in the deployment of 5G.

These collaborations, according to HAPSMobile, include a wholesale business that would allow HAPSMobile to utilize Loon's full-functioning vehicle and technology, and Loon to utilize HAPSMobile's aircraft, which is currently under development.

The partners said they are also creating an alliance to promote the use of high altitude communications solution with regulators and officials worldwide as well as initiatives to enabling flight vehicles from each party to connect and share the same network connectivity in the air.

"With the deployment of such technology, people will be reachable in areas where connectivity is lacking; such as mountainous terrain, remote islands, and developing countries," HAPSMobile said.

High altitude network connectivity

Simultaneous with the announcement of its investment in Loon, HAPSMobile also announced "HAWK30,” an unmanned aircraft for stratospheric telecommunications platform system that flies at altitudes of approximately 20 kilometers.

HAPSmobile explained that high altitude network connectivity platforms operate in the stratosphere, which is above ground infrastructure, but below satellites. So it allows near ubiquitous coverage that avoids ground clutter and significant latency issues.

These advantages make such vehicles a promising solution for expanding mobile coverage to those who need it as well as IoT and 5G use-cases, according to HAPSMobile.

It said HAWK30 measures approximately 78 meters long and powered by solar panels on its wings that house 10 propellers. It can fly at speeds of approximately 110 kilometers per hour on average and can also be flown for long periods.

"The telecommunications network to be delivered to the ground by "HAWK30" is expected to use a system that does not interfere with the networks of terrestrial base stations," HAPSMobile said.

Junichi Miyakawa, Representative Director & CTO of SoftBank Corp., also President & CEO of HAPSMobile Inc. said that building a telecommunications network in the stratosphere, which has not been utilized by humankind so far, is uncharted territory and a major challenge for SoftBank.

"Even in this current era of coming 5G services, we cannot ignore the reality that roughly half of the world's population is without Internet access," he said.

Founded in December 2017 and headquartered in Tokyo, HAPSMobile has been working on building the next generation telecom system in the stratosphere, where its telecommunication platform HAPS or High Altitude Platform Station is located.

"HAPS can provide low-latency communication since it is much closer to the earth compared to GEO and LEO satellite," it said on its website.

Extending internet access

Loon, on the other hand, is a subsidiary of Google's parent company Alphabet Inc. Launched in 2013, it is committed to extending Internet access to unconnected communities worldwide through high altitude balloons placed in the stratosphere.

"Loon began as a simple idea to bring the internet to those who don't have it. Of course, that's not a simple problem, which is how we ended up with stratospheric internet balloons," wrote Loon CEO Alastair Westgarth in a blog post when it introduced a new advisory board for the firm in January 2019.

In July 2018, Loon announced that it will provide balloon-powered internet to regions of central Kenya, starting in 2019, in collaboration with Telkom Kenya.

On the investment of HAPSMobile in Loon, Westgarth said, "We see joining forces as an opportunity to develop an entire industry, one which holds the promise to bring connectivity to parts of the world no one thought possible. This is the beginning of a long-term relationship based on a shared vision for expanding connectivity to those who need it. We look forward to what the future holds."

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But a new desktop tool is reversing this.

Researchers from Princeton University have built an open-source tool that lets consumers inspect IoT traffic in the home network right from the browser. Not just consumers but academic researchers as well.

“Let’s say you have a smart Geeni light bulb. Are you aware that it could be communicating with a Chinese company every 30 seconds even while you are not using the bulb?” the Princeton researchers wrote in a blog post.

“Many IoT devices are proprietary and close-source. This lack of transparency makes it difficult for consumers to decide whether to trust their devices’ security and privacy practices (or the lack thereof),” they added.

The Princeton IoT Inspector monitors network activities of all IoT devices connected to the home network.

This information includes who the IoT device contacts on the Internet, and whether the contacted party is malicious or is known to track users; how much data is exchanged (in terms of bytes per second) between the device and the contacted parties; how often the data is exchanged.

But it does not collect sensitive information, including “network activities of phones, computers, or tablets; actual contents of communication; and any personally identifiable information, such as your home network’s IP address, the MAC addresses of your devices, your name and email,” according to Princeton.

Beyond its uses for the consumer, the IoT Inspector also collects  data that helps Princeton with IoT research, “specifically, measuring and mitigating the security, privacy, and performance problems of IoT devices.”

Currently, Princeton is inviting researchers and academics to take part in the study, “IoT Inspector: Identifying Privacy, Security, and Performance Risks of Consumer IoT Devices.”

“Our goal is to measure and visualize these risks, both for research and for the user,” it said.

Market research firm IDC expects the global market for smart home devices to grow 26.9% year over year to 832.7 million shipments this year.

To a large extent,  these devices enrich the lives of many users, according to Princeton.

As tech giants Amazon, Google, Apple and many other tech companies race to bring more devices to consumers' homes, there is also an increasing advocacy toward making people aware of the security implications as well as studying the effects of the intersection of people and IoT.

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The National Association of Software and Services Companies (NASSCOM), the premier trade body and the chamber of commerce of the IT-BPM industries in India, revealed this in a report released on April 26, 2019.

The report, “Emerging Technologies: Leading the next wave of IP Creation for India,” noted that in the four years from 2015 to 2018, Indian companies filed over 4,600 patents in the United States, the majority of which (64.8%) are technology patents.

Of the technology patents, the share of emerging technologies has increased consistently to 56.3% in the 2017-2018 period from 38.3% in 2015.

The report also revealed that AI leads the emerging technologies patent race both in terms of a total number of patents. From 2015 to 2018, some 330 AI patents were filed in the US by Indian firms. It was followed by patents filed in cybersecurity (193), IoT (107) and cloud computing (88).

Indian startups are also catching up. During the same period, they have filed nearly 200 patents in the US, the majority of which focused on emerging technology areas including image processing, AI, cybersecurity, vehicle technology, and IoT.

Of the technology patents, the share of emerging technologies has increased consistently to 56.3% in the 2017-2018 period from 38.3% in 2015.

Assessing the IP industry

NASSCOM, which has over 2,100 member companies including both Indian and multinational organizations that have a presence in India, believes that India is on course to become one of the leading hubs for innovation, research, and development. Hence, the need to assess the intellectual property industry.

NASSCOM President Debjani Ghosh said the report is the first in a series to understand how Indian technology companies are creating IP assets in its largest market.

“As a country, India can further strengthen its potential as an innovation hub through more investments in research and strategic collaborations. We are confident that we will usher in a new wave of innovation and intelligence in the country,” she said in a media statement.

In compiling the report, the organization said the study focused on patents filed by companies domiciled in India. It noted that the average patent granting time in the US is 22 months, and nearly 40% of the tech patents filed during 2015- 2018 period had been granted as of February 2019.

The top filers were also top Indian companies, namely Reliance Industries Limited, Welspun Steel, Mahindra, Bharat Petroleum, Wipro, Tata Consultancy Services, HCL, and Infosys.

IoT in India

In the field of IoT, samples of patent applications cited in the report include research related to the concept of configuring IoT devices; a secure, vault-grade electronic key based locking device; a host of wearable electronic communication devices; and data analysis solutions for intelligent businesses.

This bodes well for an industry that is on the path to achieving 5 billion connected IoT ecosystem where “everything that can connect, will be connected.”

In November 2018, NASSCOM itself opened a center of excellence for IoT in Gurugram, a city located southwest of New Delhi.

It said during the launch that it will “work with industries and the government towards accelerating innovation, enabling industry-oriented research, promoting the adoption of data-driven decision-making by enterprises, and enabling appropriate skills and talent development.”

A growing world of patents

NASSCOM said the majority of the patents are first filed in India because a resident in India is not allowed to apply for a grant of patent outside India.

However, the Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT) allows an inventor to seek patent protection for an invention simultaneously in each of a large number of countries by filing an "international" patent application. And India is one of the contracting countries of PCT, according to the report.

In March 2019, the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) published a report saying that Asia-based innovators filed more than half of all international patent applications via WIPO for the first time in 2018 on significant growth from China, India, and the Republic of Korea.

In WIPO’s report, companies from India filed an estimated 2,013 patent applications compared to 1,583 in 2017. 

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“These technologies are those that supply chain leaders simply cannot ignore,” said Christian Titze, research vice president at Gartner. “Within the next five years, if half of large global companies are using some of these technologies in their supply chain operations, it’s safe to say that the technologies will disrupt people, business objectives and IT systems.”

The top 8 supply chain technology trends in 2019 are:

Artificial Intelligence (AI)

AI technology in supply chain seeks to augment human performance. Through self-learning and natural language, AI capabilities can help automate various supply chain processes such as demand forecasting, production planning or predictive maintenance.

“AI supports the shift to broader supply chain automation that many organizations are seeking,” said Titze. “For example, AI can enhance risk mitigation by analyzing large sets of data, continuously identifying evolving patterns, and predicting disruptive events along with potential resolutions.”

Advanced Analytics

Advanced analytics span predictive analytics — those that identify data patterns and anticipate future scenarios — as well as prescriptive analytics — a set of capabilities that finds a course of action to meet a predefined objective. The increased availability of Internet of Things (IoT) data and extended external data sources such as weather or traffic conditions allow organizations to anticipate future scenarios and make better recommendations in areas such as supply chain planning, sourcing and transportation.

“Advanced analytics are not new, but their impact on today’s supply chains are significant,” said Titze. “They will help organizations become more proactive and actionable in managing their supply chains, both in taking advantage of future opportunities and avoiding potential future disruptions.”

IoT

The IoT is the network of physical objects that contain embedded technology to interact with their internal states or the external environment. “We are seeing more supply chain practitioners exploring the potential of IoT,” said Titze. “Areas that IoT might have a profound impact on are enhanced logistics management, improved customer service and improved supply availability.”

Robotic Process Automation (RPA)

RPA tools operate by mapping a process in the tool language for the software “robot” to follow. They cut costs and eliminate keying errors. “We are seeing a significant reduction in process lead times RPA technology is used to automate the creation of purchase and sales orders or shipments, for instance,” said Titze. “RPA technology reduces human intervention and improves consistency across manual data sources within manufacturing.”

Autonomous Things

Autonomous things use AI to automate functions previously performed by humans, such as autonomous vehicles and drones. They exploit AI to deliver advanced behaviors that interact more naturally with their surroundings and with people.

“The rapid explosion in the number of connected, intelligent things has given this trend a huge push,” said Titze. “The once distant thought of reducing time for inventory checks by using drones’ cameras to take inventory images, for instance, is here.”

Digital Supply Chain Twin

A digital supply chain twin is a digital representation of the relationships between all physical entities of end-to-end supply chain processes — products, customers, markets, distribution centers/warehouses, plants, finance, attributes and weather. They are linked to their real-world counterparts and are used to understand the state of the thing or system in order to optimize operations and respond efficiently to changes.

“Digital supply chain twins are inevitable as the digital world and physical world continue to merge,” said Titze.

Immersive Experience

Immersive experiences such as augmented reality (AR), virtual reality (VR) and conversational systems are changing the way people interact with the digital world. “In supply chain, organizations might use AR along with quick response (QR) codes and mobile technology to speed up equipment changeovers in factories,” said Titze. “Immersive user experiences will enable digital business opportunities that have not yet been fully realized within global supply chains.”

Blockchain in Supply Chain

Although supply-chain-related blockchain initiatives are nascent, blockchain has potential to fulfill long-standing challenges presented across complex global supply chains. Current capabilities offered by blockchain solutions for supply chain include traceability, automation, and security.

“Organizations might use blockchain to track global shipments with tamper-evident labels, allowing a reduction in the time needed to send paperwork back and forth with port authorities and improved counterfeit identification,” said Titze.

Gartner clients can learn more in “The 2019 Top Supply Chain Technology Trends You Can’t Ignore,” which provides an outlook into other emerging trends that might disrupt supply chain operations in the upcoming years, such as 5G and edge computing.

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The new IDC China Robotics Market Forecast, 2018−2022 report reveals that the robotics market in China is expected to grow at a high compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 26.9% from 2017 to 2022, or 38.3% of the world's total spend in robotics, by 2022.

"With experience and knowledge accumulated over the past few years, end users of robotics in China are becoming more sophisticated and demanding," says Dr. Jing Bing Zhang, Research Director for Worldwide Robotics and Asia/Pacific Manufacturing Insights at IDC.

"This presents both opportunities and challenges to robot vendors as well as solution providers. Taking a customer-centric approach, investing to understand end users' true needs and pain points, and delivering maximum business values will prove to be key to success in the China market," adds Zhang.

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Swedish Prime Minister Stefan Lofven had also reportedly promised to collaborate with India on its flagship projects on smart cities, digitization, building startups.

The two governments signed a joint declaration on Sweden-India innovation partnership to explore ways to increase cooperation in fields such as smart cities and transportation, advanced manufacturing, space and aeronautics, and health and life sciences, among others.

A year later on April 11, 2019, the two countries announced a joint Industrial R&D program that would see the two countries address shared challenges in the area of smart cities, clean technologies, digitalization, and the internet of things (IoT).

The program is co-funded by India’s Department of Science & Technology (DST) and Sweden’s innovation agency, Vinnova, according to a news release from the Embassy of Sweden in New Delhi.

“A year ago, we signed the Sweden-India Innovation Partnership. Today we are announcing jointly funded programs. We are looking at deepening cooperation in the areas of smart cities, energy, digitalization, life sciences as well as developing our startup communities and allowing startups to grow and prosper,” said Klas Molin, Ambassador of Sweden to India, in a media statement.

“Moving from idea to innovation requires learning and collaboration,” he added.

Funding  

Under the agreement, Vinnova will provide funding to Swedish side participants up to SEK 2.5 million (approximately US$265,000) as a grant. On the Indian side, a conditional grant of up to 50% with a limit of INR 1.5 crores (US$214,320) per project to Indian project partners will be provided.

Joakim Appelquist, Deputy Director General, Vinnova said that the program can play an effective role in taking the best out of Swedish and Indian innovators.

The Swedish government has also earmarked an additional SEK 50 million (approximately US$ 5.3 million) to Vinnova to commence and inaugurate the innovation partnership with India.

A request for proposal published in the DST website stated that to qualify for the grant, the Indian Project Lead (IPL) must be a commercial (for profit) company under the Indian Companies Act 1956/2013, and must operate in and headquartered in India. At least 51% stake of the company must be owned by Indian citizens. It should also be able to bring in industry partners from academic, R&D and consortium.

On the Swedish side, the company must be registered in Sweden. Research institutions such as universities, colleges and research institutes, as well as other companies with operations in Sweden, are encouraged to apply.

Focused sectors

The program, which is managed by the Global Innovation & Technology Alliance (GITA) on behalf of DST in India and Vinnova in Sweden, is eyeing to develop technologies that can be commercialized after two years.

The focused sectors include Transport & mobility (electrical vehicles, autonomous vehicles, traffic safety, Mobility as a service, reduction in traffic congestion, digital solutions, etc.); Environmental technologies (ecosystem services, clean water and air, waste management, renewable energy, etc.); Circular and bio-based economy (bio-based materials, biofuels, (resource efficiency in consumption and production, waste-to-wealth); Energy; (reduced energy consumption and carbon dioxide emissions, alternative fuels and mobile energy sources, renewable energy, energy storage, resource-efficient infrastructure planning, etc.); and City planning (ICT for urban technical supply, geodata, tools for dialogue with citizens, etc.)

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The Wireless Broadband Alliance, an organization that supports the adoption of next generation Wi-Fi services across the Wi-Fi ecosystem, said that it will be testing several use cases on a Wi-Fi 6 network at Mettis Aerospace’s 27-acre facility in West Midlands starting in the second half of 2019.

Use cases under consideration include multi-stream live video monitoring, real time energy monitoring, ultra-reliable low latency communications with sensors on critical systems, and augmented reality.

UK-based Mettis Aerospace designs and manufactures precision-forged, machine and sub-assembled components, primarily for the aerospace and defense industry. Its clients include Airbus, Boeing, and Rolls-Royce.

WBA said the West Midlands region was selected as the UK’s 5G Testbed for manufacturing and security by the UK Government’s Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport.

The trials, managed by the WBA and Mettis Aerospace, and supported by WBA members including British Telecom, Boingo, Broadcom, BSG Wireless, CableLabs, Cisco, HPE Aruba and Intel, will demonstrate the role of Wi-Fi 6 in the broader 5G ecosystem and will serve as an example to industrial manufacturers moving to industry 4.0. 

“Wi-Fi 6 is a critical component for the future of connectivity for enterprises, operators, and consumers," said Tiago Rodrigues, General Manager, WBA.

Mark Stansfield, Chair of the Worcestershire Local Enterprise Partnership, affirmed that 5G and Wi-Fi 6 are complementary technologies and the first live 5G factory trials is an important step in the evolution of smart factories.

Next-generation wireless

The UK trial is part of WBA's Wi-Fi 6 program, which seeks to fasttrack the new Wi-Fi 6 standard — 802.11ax —  for operators. Among its long-term targets is to establish Wi-Fi 6 deployment guidelines as the new industry standard, and enable equipment providers to bring their Wi-Fi 6-ready equipment.

Hence, the organization is seeking to provide a platform for Wi-Fi 6 trials and testing of pre-certified devices for interoperability.

The 802.11ax is expected to deliver up to 40% higher peak data rates for a single client device and improve average throughput per user by at least four times in dense or congested environments, according to WBA.

A white paper released by WBA on 8012.11ax reveals that there are currently 8 billion Wi-Fi devices in use, with 3 billion new devices added over the last 12 months.

“The appetite for increased connectivity is showing no signs of abating,” the paper noted.

It added that IoT is a core use case as it “benefits significantly from the features that are made available by the standards,” including higher traffic capacity and throughput, low latency, spectrum efficiency, and indoor coverage.

From a vertical use case perspective, it said the improved capabilities make it highly beneficial in high-density deployments, transportation, retail, entertainment, smart cities, residential and industrial.

However, delivering this next generation wireless services must take into consideration the “size of ecosystem support, compatibility of existing networks and devices, spectrum avaiability as well as regulations, and cost of equipment.” 

Broad support

In October 2018, The Verge reported a new branding scheme for Wi-Fi. It said the stewards of the wireless standard will be introducing version numbers this year. Hence, the latest standard — the 802.11ax — will be known as Wi-Fi 6.

The Wi-Fi Alliance, the worldwide network of companies that regulates the standard, announced in February 2019 that Wi-Fi 6 "will begin making its way into more access points and consumer products to increase their speeds and performance."

It will also offer improved capabilities in congested environments including stadiums and even home environments with many devices. Wi-Fi CERTIFIED 6 will also be available later in 2019 and will pave the way for the wide-scale adoption of Wi-Fi 6.

"Last year, Wi-Fi contributed nearly $2 trillion in global economic value, and that number is expected to surpass $3.47 trillion by 2023. Wi-Fi plays an understated role in society but is critical to many businesses and services that users rely on every day," the alliance said.

One of the technologies it is likely to enable in 2019 is Augmented Reality (AR) and Virtual Reality (VR), which are expected to move beyond marketing trials to broader adoption.

"Wi-Fi will deliver more robust AR and VR experiences, leveraging technologies like Wi-Fi 6 for higher performance and Wi-Fi CERTIFIED WiGig for multigigabit speeds and low latency," it added.

Matt MacPherson, CTO Wireless at Cisco, affirmed that Wi-Fi 6 has inherent capabilities that enables wireless to be more deterministic, which is important for mission-critical IoT assets being used in manufacturing automation.

“The ability to enforce policy through Wi-Fi 6 scheduling and segmentation means much better control over these environments,” he said.

Gabriel Desjardins, director of marketing for the Wireless Communications and Connectivity Division at Broadcom, meanwhile, expressed confidence that Wi-Fi 6 technology will demonstrate exceptional performance and reliability metrics during the trials.

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On April 9, the World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS) recognized the technology for its potential to protect the information security of citizens. The project was among the 18 development projects honored at the 10th WSIS Forum in Geneva, Switzerland.

Zhu Changbo, vice president of China Unicom Network Technology Research Institute and dean of China Unicom Smart City Research Institute, received the trophy and certificate from International Telecommunications Union (ITU) Secretary-General Zhao Houlin.

“Information security protection is an ongoing task. This project has the capacity of continuous operation, providing long-term quantum encryption information security services for government affairs, finance, electric power, and big data, etc. in the areas where the trunk line passes,” the WSIS said in the award citation.

China Unicom explained on its website that it has been cooperating with Hengtong Optoelectronics in studying the use of quantum encryption technology to solve information security problems.

The two companies have signed a strategic cooperation agreement on quantum encryption communication research in 2017 and have since launched a number of innovative quantum security service experiments.

According to information the company provided in Chinese, the project covers the main line area from Beijing to Xiong'an and uses the FM phase-encoding quantum key distribution device (QKD) with independent intellectual property rights to construct a data encryption anti-leakage and anti-tamper system based on the quantum-encrypted communication trunk.

The total length of the encrypted communication trunk project is about 700 kilometers, the company said.

Regional information exchange

The partners hope to build a regional information exchange for the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region and the Yangtze River Delta region and provide information security services for government and private enterprises, and the public.

WSIS said in the award citation that the project can be replicated and applied to more quantum secure communication trunks.

“For example, it is planned that Beijing-Xiong'an Quantum Communication Trunk Line will be extended to Tianjin and form the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei Quantum Communication Ring Network,” WSIS said.

The Nanjing-Shanghai Quantum Communication Trunk Line will also be extended to Shanghai, Anhui, and Zhejiang and form the Yangtze River Delta Quantum Communication Ring Network.

Moreover, WSIS noted that the two ring networks are planned to be connected by a quantum communication trunk line. This can provide an experimental platform for promoting the quantum secure communication technology in more regions.

Tech for social good

The WSIS Prizes, now on its eighth edition, recognize individuals, governments, civil society, local, regional and international agencies, research institutions and private-sector​ companies for leveraging the power of tech towards the achievement of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals.

The ITU said a total of 1,062 projects were nominated this year, compared to 492 last year, and almost one-third of the projects (29%) originated from Asia-Pacific.

“This decade has seen a period of extraordinary growth and progress for ICTs," said Houlin Zhao, ITU Secretary-General. “But with progress come challenges. It is up to all of us to ensure that ICTs and these emerging technologies continue to prove a force for good."

One-fifth (20%) of the projects benefit women and almost another fifth benefit youth, followed by remote and rural communities, people with disabilities, the elderly, unemployed and poor, indigenous and nomadic people, refugees and internally displaced people, and migrants (4%).

One-third of projects were submitted by the private sector (33%), followed by government (27%), civil society (23%), academia (11%) and international organizations (6%).​​

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The Schneider Electric Exchange, introduced at Hannover Messe, the trade show for industrial technology held recently in Hannover, Germany, targets a diverse community of solvers to create and scale business solutions.

Hervé Coureil, Chief Digital Officer, Schneider Electric, said it brings together people across industries and practice areas that share a passion for sustainability and efficiency, enabling collaboration and interaction across ecosystems.

With this extended ecosystem approach to digital innovation, Schneider envisions collaborating with partners through a cloud-based platform to share insights and designs, and effectively manage and complete projects.

The company said its Minimum Viable Product (MVP) platform, first released in private beta mode in April 2018, will be opened to a broader customer base in November. The platform has already a strong footprint in Europe (35%), APAC (35%), and the Americas (20%), according to Schneider.

Schneider Electric Exchange draws on the company's ecosystem of digital partners for this initiative.

Management consulting and professional services firm Accenture, for one, brings the ability to create customized solutions and develop digital business models.  Another partner, Claroty, a security specialist for operational technology infrastructure, offers industrial cybersecurity expertise, especially in integrating industrial IoT (IIoT) solutions.

Schneider is using published datasets and SaaS from the Schneider Electric Exchange partner Senseye, a technology company in predictive maintenance (UK), in one of its Smart Factory manufacturing plants, Le Vaudreuil.

Moreover, it is co-innovating a digital service offer for the retail chain market in Italy with the company Predictive Layer, which specializes in energy forecasting.

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Data from IDC Worldwide Semiannual Smart Cities Spending Guide show that the combined spending from smart cities programs from Singapore, Beijing, Shanghai, and Seoul are expected to hit over $4 billion this year.

Of these four countries, China will account for the majority of the smart cities−related technologies investment spending in the region. In 2019, IDC said spending is projected to come from fixed visual surveillance

Meanwhile, Singapore is creating its own “digital twin” while South Korea has become one of the most internet of things (IoT)-connected country. Other countries such as India, Australia, and Indonesia governments are also taking steps to follow IoT adoption.

“As city governments shift from digitalizing siloed cloud-first endeavors to integrated and cross-agency hubs, interconnected ecosystems such as transport and public safety become increasingly demanded," said Gerald Wang, Head of Public Sector Research at IDC Asia-Pacific, in the news release.

Hardware represents the highest spending, accounting for nearly 40% of the overall smart cities-related spending in 2019, IDC said. Services is the second-largest technology group in terms of spending, followed by software and connectivity.

However, IDC predicts that the services spending is expected to overtake hardware spending by the end of the forecast with a five-year compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 17.9% (2017-22).

The research firm also predicts that strategic priorities related to data-driven public safety, resilient energy and infrastructure, and intelligent transportation will bring in the largest part of spending in 2019. The combined spending of these use cases accounts for 40.7% of the overall investments in 2019.

“The top five use cases among leading strategic priorities that are driving smart cities investments are fixed visual surveillance, advanced public transit, intelligent traffic management, non-revenue water (NRW) management and smart outdoor lighting,” it said.

“The Asia Pacific is an epicenter of innovation, and governments are finally realizing and focusing their energy and investments on smarter technological choices so that cities across the region can manage growth and ever-increasing market opportunities,” said Swati Chaturvedi, Senior Market Analyst, IT Spending team at IDC Asia-Pacific.

“IDC expects APEJ’s regional spending to accelerate during the forecast period, as more cities and communities start adopting the better equipped, connected and sustainable model of living,” said Swati Chaturvedi, Senior Market Analyst, IT Spending team at IDC Asia-Pacific,” he added.

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Signed in Singapore in February 2019, the agreements are expected to boost the agency’s Digital Park Thailand and IoT Institute Initiative under the Thailand 4.0 policy, the government's ambitious 20-year strategy to move Thailand toward a tech-centric and value-based economy.

Depa signed the memorandum of agreements with Willowmore, UnaBiz, Gobi Partners, Ascent Solutions, Unity, and Spotwerkz.

“These partnerships will strengthen and enhance Thailand's resources and help us gain a competitive position in the IoT industry within the Asean market. Ultimately, these agreements will improve the lives of the Thai people,” said Dr. Passakon Prathombutr, Senior Executive Vice President of depa.

Gaming platform Unity provides professional 3D automotive design, industrial and architectural services as well as film and animation services.

According to depa, its partnership with Unity is essential in supporting digital transformation efforts for SMEs and manufacturing as well as Thailand's creative industries in film and animation.

Spotwerkz, on the other hand, is a big data analytics company and the licensee of Unity in Thailand.

Depa has also explored investment and development opportunities with UnaBiz, Asia's first IoT dedicated network operator in Singapore and Taiwan selling solutions in 28 countries.

"Thailand is a key market in Asean to develop digital capabilities in the area of industrial automation, agriculture, tourism, education and healthcare," said Henri Bong, CEO and founder of UnaBiz.

The MoU covers opportunities such as opening a training center within the Thailand EEC digital park to explore the development turnkey IoT solutions for Thailand's small-medium enterprises and large companies.

Meanwhile, Willowmore Singapore Pte. Ltd., an enterprise-grade smart padlock, smart cabinet locks, and a pioneer in portable Sigfox-Bluetooth gateway SigWAV, is developing innovations such as state-of-the-art access control, security systems technology, and IoT gateways.

Gobi Partners, which has a long history of working with government agencies, will be providing depa and the Thai government with expertise on funding startups.

Singapore-based IoT company Ascent Solutions provides services in various industries such as warehouses, logistics, freight forwarding, intelligent transportation, and e-passport tools with state-of-the-art technologies such as NB-IoT, Satcom, GPRS, and Active and Passive RFID.

In partnership with depa, the company is eyeing to develop and expand innovative technologies and provide its solutions to the Digital Park Thailand and IoT Institute in the Eastern Economic Corridor (EEC).

"This official depa MoU signing with the six major companies in Singapore is considerably a continuing progress of integrated development, reinforcing the growth of Thailand's digital economy to international standards as part of 'Thailand 4.0' policy,” reiterated Dr. Passakon Prathombutr.

“Given Thailand's goals to enhance digital technology, developing personnel capabilities through partnerships with leading Singapore companies, and its pursuit to exchanging knowledge with partners from many countries, 'Thailand 4.0' policy will be a kick starter to the future generation of Thai digital business operators," he added.

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The trials will be conducted using a live over-the-air 5G NR network utilizing mobile test devices powered by the Qualcomm Snapdragon X50 5G modem and antenna modules with integrated RF transceiver, RF front-end, and antenna elements, the company said.

The conference’s 5G Arena in Hall 16 is also showcasing a variety of over-the-air 5G industrial IoT demonstrations – from safety panels to smart sensor systems to AGVs and cutting-edge 5G technology from Qualcomm combined with 5G infrastructure provided by Nokia.

Jeffery Torrance, vice president, business development, Qualcomm Technologies Inc., said in a news release that IIoT is reflected in its product showcase — from go-to connectivity solutions like Qualcomm 9205 LTE IoT modem to new platforms like the recently announced Qualcomm Robotics RB3 Platform to joint studies with industry leaders like Bosch on key IIoT topics.

Mike Calabrese, vice president of Global Enterprise and Webscale, Nokia, affirmed that 5G networks will transform factories and manufacturing centers into highly adaptive, efficient and intelligent production sites in the future. And 5G solutions would enable real-world industrial cases.

Enrico Salvatori, senior vice president & president Qualcomm EMEA, Qualcomm Europe Inc.,  said data from IHS OEM Semiconductor Spend Analysis show that 30 percent of the top 40 industrial IoT companies are European companies, with many industry leaders based in Europe.

“We are very proud to offer these demos with these companies to highlight the beginning of what’s possible for industrial IoT using 5G,” he said.

Companies demonstrating 5G technologies at the show include:

Bosch: Solutions such as 5G-connected mobile control panel that supports safety features, make new operating concepts possible: one 5G control unit can address several machines as reliably as only wired individual units could in the past.  Bosch Rexroth demonstrates this with the driverless transport system ActiveShuttle and a 3D printing system – both connected via 5G.

Festo: The company will demonstrate the new way of quick cloud access for  IoT data. Bernd Kärcher, Head of Advanced Development Automation and Control at Festo, said the company has been involved with 5G technology since an early stage.

Goetting: “Goetting’s AGV will be wandering around outside the 5G Arena at Hannover Messe, transmitting a HD video stream over a live 5G network. Alternatively, it can be teleoperated from Goetting's booth over the live 5G network to demonstrate the high reliability and low latency of 5G. This demo showcases the future of autonomous ground vehicles in factory settings.

IFAK: The FTT is developed by IFAK and includes devices (MULTIFACE) that generate traffic and measure parameters with high resolution. The FTT-Manager provides a user interface to plan and control the test procedure.  

Siemens: The company will be using a 5G connection with a mobile test device provided by Qualcomm Technologies to upload live process data to MindSphere, showcasing todays possibilities of 5G for Industry.

Weidmueller: Through 5G, real time data can be reliably transferred to the cloud with wireless technology, as demonstrated by the crucial laser welding application in a prototype VW commercial vehicle production facility.

Zeiss: The company is bringing a measuring cell with in-line sensors for car assembly inspection into Industry 4.0. 

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Dr. Vivian Balakrishnan, Minister for Foreign Affairs and Minister-in-Charge of the Smart Nation Initiative, delivered the keynote address.

With over 6,000 international attendees, the conference agenda is focused on disruptive technologies and their applications in the retail fulfillment and logistics space.

Jointly organized by SingEx Exhibitions and the Singapore Industrial Automation Association (SIAA), the event will witness important collaborations in the IoT community, including the signing of MOUs between the Singapore-German Chamber of Industry and Commerce (SGC) and the Indonesia IoT Association on March 28 to form strategic alliances that impact innovation adoption.

“IoT trends and emerging technologies are set to reinvent the landscape by driving digital business innovation for a decade. We recognize that the adoption of IoT presents an unparalleled opportunity for us to identify the technologies that will impact businesses in multiple industries,” said James Boey, Executive Director, Industrial & Urban Solutions, SingEx Exhibitions.

“In this context, IoT 2019 plays a key role as an enabler of technology adoption; a matchmaker of quality business leads; and a cultivator of skills development and education,” he said.

Terence Teo, President SIAA, said that emerging technologies have always helped to grow businesses through greater data-driven insights.

“As the industry grows at an unprecedented rate, advanced technologies will be required to make sense of the complex bulk of digital data collected,” Teo said.

This year’s conference focuses on building value chains with key segments on Artificial Intelligence and Blockchain and will delve into specific industry sectors such as e-commerce and construction.

The conference program will feature international luminaries such as Saadia MUZAFFAR, Founder, TechGirls and former member of Waterfront Toronto's Digital Strategy Advisory Panel, Canada; and Martin YATES, Chief Technology Officer, South Asia & Emerging Markets, Dell EMC.

Other speakers who will discuss IoT security include Prof. YU Chien Siang, Chief Innovation & Trust Officer, Amaris AI; and Oliver Meili, Head of IoT Development & Operations, Bosch Software Innovations.

Meanwhile, Anthony Burke, Professor of Architecture & Associate Dean of International & Engagement, Faculty of Design Architecture & Building, University of Technology Sydney, Australia; Joelle Chen, Director, Global Partnerships & Marketing, Intelligent Air Solutions, MANN+HUMMEL Group; and Salim Aslam, IoT Solution Architect, Social Innovation Business, Hitachi Consulting, Singapore will share insights on reimagining and redefining a truly intelligent city. 

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Under the agreement, JD.com said the two companies will combine its expertise in developing drones and autonomous delivery robots with Rakuten’s drone delivery service operations.

Rakuten launched the Rakuten Drone delivery service in 2016, in collaboration with corporate partners and local governments. In 2018, it conducted the first delivery trial using a combination of drones and autonomous delivery robots, which it said was a step toward solving the last mile challenge for the logistics sector in Japan.

JD.com, on the other hand, began developing its drone program in 2015, and launched the world’s first commercial drone deliveries in 2016 in rural China. It currently operates drones in Jiangsu, Shaanxi and other provinces and claims that its drones have logged more than 400,000 minutes of flight time.

“By utilizing JD.com’s drones and UGVs (unmanned ground vehicles) with the unmanned delivery solutions created by Rakuten, we hope to accelerate innovation in the Japanese logistics secto,” said Koji Ando, Group Managing Executive Officer of Rakuten Inc., in a media release.

JD.com’s autonomous delivery robots are currently used in China’s urban areas in several cities and are becoming frequent sights on a number of university campuses and in office parks. It has also launched two smart delivery stations in the cities of Changsha and Hohhot, the company said.

“In Japan there are many opportunities for drones to make deliveries in mountainous areas, remote islands and in emergency situations,” said Jun Xiao, president of JD-X, JD’s logistics innovation lab.    

In fiscal year 2018, Rakuten reported a 16.6 percent year-on-year revenue growth, with revenues climbing to JPY1.1 trillion and operating income to JPY170.4 billion.

In its earnings report, it cited challenges including increased shipping costs from shipping companies, as it continues to reinforce its logistics hubs and further open up the Rakuten Ecosystem.

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UNCTAD said in a news release that international imports of ICT goods in 2017 reached $2.1 trillion.

“Trade in ICT goods grew slightly faster than merchandise trade and represented 13.4 percent of the total in 2017, down from the 16.1 percent high during the dot-com boom in 2000 but the highest in two years,” the UN agency said.

Shamika N. Sirimanne, Director of the Technology and Logistics Division at UNCTAD, commented in the same news release that this is the first time that global ICT goods imports have rebounded since 2014, which he said shows “a good 6 percent annual growth and bringing a reprieve to the past two years of decline.”

“The expansion of electronic components, which are the basic building blocks of electronic circuits and semiconductors, reflects the fact that more and more products and activities are going digital worldwide,” he said.

“Much of this trend can be associated with the advent of the IoT, which has witnessed unprecedented growth since 2015. This trend may be further accentuated in the coming years,” he added.  

UNCTAD figures show that trade in electronic components continued to expand with an annual growth rate of 8 percent – just below that of computers and consumer electronics (9 percent).

As expected, China is by far the largest exporter of ICT goods, but the United States is the top importer.

Another key finding is that at 54 percent market share, developing economies import more than developed economies because they have a more significant role in assembling ICT goods and so import significantly more electronic components.

“Developing countries also show a stronger preference for communication equipment over computers and peripherals, in line with the implementation of mobile-first strategies. On the other hand, the shopping basket is more balanced between the different ICT product categories in developed economies,” UNCTAD explained.

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“This digital backbone of manufacturing has really is we're really now starting to lean into these technologies that have evolved and matured over periods of time on the consumer space,” said Jennifer Bennett, Technical Director, Office of the CTO, Google Cloud.

Watch and listen to Bennett talk about the technological innovations that will drive the next wave of digital manufacturing.

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Vingroup’s research center targets to develop products and solutions for vehicles and transportation.

The Vietnamese conglomerate said VinTech Korea (VKR) is part of VinTech Technology Development, a joint stock company with an investment of US$11 million.

"Vingroup chose Korea to open our first overseas office in the global VinTech Research Network because of Korea's "Creative index" is among the leading countries on the list, with experience in research and development,” said Vo Quang Hue, Deputy CEO of Vingroup, during the inauguration ceremony on March 4, 2019.

“We expect that investment and cooperation in Korea will help build and develop resources for high-quality technology research and development activities,” he added.

Vingroup said the main research areas of VinTech Korea include industrial robots, monitoring and control, LCD and battery technology.

“In the first phase, VKR will research, develop and design the electronic controller units for cars (VCU) and battery control systems (BMS). In the future, VKR aims to excel in manufacturing electrical-electronic car components, industrial robots, LCDs for automotive products, phones, and other household electronics,” the company said in a statement.

VinTech in Korea signed a cooperation agreement with AJINEXTEK (AXT), a Korean company with more than 100 chipset patents in the field of robots and automation.  

During the opening ceremony, a memorandum of understanding was also signed between VinTech Technology Development JSC, VinFast Production and Trading Co.,Ltd., Deagu Municipal Government, Daegu-Gyeongbuk Free Economic Zone Authority, and AJINEXTEK.

Under the agreement, VinFast will cooperate with Daegu city and Daegu-Gyeongbuk Free Economic Zone Authority to provide information and support in the logistical and administrative work. It will also contribute to the establishment of the Asian Regional Research and Development Center with local partners in Daegu.

Meanwhile, AXT will launch a line of robots to promote the local economy and create jobs.

Another memorandum of understanding was signed between VinTech Technology Development JSC and the Province of Gyeongsangbuk (where Deagu city is situated)  to work towards regional economic development and business promotion.

Vingroup said that after Korea, it will continue to expand VinTech Research Network in countries with technology and innovation culture, such as the US, Japan, Israel, China, Russia.  

In July 2018, VinFast Production and Trading Co. Ltd, a member of Vingroup, also opened an office in Frankfurt, Germany meanwhile taking the final steps to open new offices in Shanghai, China, and Seoul, Korea.

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Arpit Joshipura, general manager, The Linux Foundation, said in a media statement that more than 60 global organizations were backing the initiative at launch.

"This massive endorsement, combined with existing code and project contributions like Akraino from AT&T and EdgeX Foundry from Dell EMC, means LF Edge is well-positioned to transform edge and IoT (internet of things) application development," he said in a media statement.

The market opportunity for LF Edge spans industrial, enterprise and consumer use cases in complex environments that cut across multiple edges and domains, Joshipura said.

LF Edge includes Akraino Edge Stack, EdgeX Foundry, and Open Glossary of Edge Computing, formerly stand-alone projects at The Linux Foundation.

It also includes a new project contributed by Samsung Electronics, which will create a hub for real-time data collected through smart home devices, and another project from ZEDEDA, which is contributing a new agnostic standard edge architecture.

The foundation expects the rapidly growing number of edge devices to exceed 20 billion by 2020.

It said the currently fragmented edge market needs to be able to work together to identify and protect against problematic security vulnerabilities and advance a common, constructive vision for the future of the industry.

"LF Edge will create a comprehensive and coordinated set of foundational open source tools to enable developers to accelerate time to value in creating IoT and Edge computing solutions," said Jason Shepherd, former Governing Board chair of EdgeX Foundry, and IoT and Edge Computing chief technology officer at Dell Technologies."

"We look forward to continuing to foster IoT interoperability within the EdgeX community in addition to collaborating across LF Edge projects to develop de facto-standard APIs for intelligent interactions between the application and infrastructure planes within the broader edge ecosystem," he added.  

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Both located at Cisco's office in Mapletree Business City, the centers are expected to strengthen its innovation push and boost Asia-Pacific threat intelligence research and security incidence response capabilities.

Chng Kai Fong, managing director of the Economic Development Board, welcomed the move and was quoted in the news release as saying the centers will also “provide opportunities for Singaporeans to work with the best minds in Cisco.”

Cisco confirmed in an email interview with FutureIoT that at the Singapore Co-Innovation Center, Singaporeans will get to work on state-of-the art innovation and the company looks forward to building a high-energy, motivated team.

“This includes the exploration of new technologies, which includes blockchain, drones, cognitive computing, AR / VR and other areas of interest,” said Alex Goryachev, Managing Director, Cisco Innovation Centres.

Transformative ideas

According to Cisco, its Co-Innovation Centres co-create digital solutions to solve business and social problems, bring transformative ideas to market, engage with key customers, partners, startups, governments, universities and other innovators.

They also serve as the local hub for Cisco ’s internal innovation programs and contribute to national and regional technology and innovation priorities, including training, funding, and investing in promising startups and public ventures.

Cisco’s other innovation centers are located in Tokyo, Sydney, Perth, Rio de Janeiro, Toronto, London, Manchester, Berlin, Paris, Rome, Barcelona, Dubai, and Istanbul.

“As the first in Southeast Asia, the Singapore Co-Innovation Centre is envisioned to bring together customers, industry partners, startups, application developers, accelerators, government organizations and universities to work on problems unique to the region, with a particular focus on Cybersecurity and IoT,” said Goryachev.

Co-sponsored by the Singapore Economic Development Board, the center will catalyze and develop digital innovations in line with the focus areas of Singapore’s Digital Economy Framework for Action, including smart nation, smart transportation, and cybersecurity.

“Given rapid digitalization across the globe, particularly in Asia-Pacific, businesses and organizations are looking to innovate at a tremendous pace,” Goryachev explained. “Our commitment remains to nurture a space for co-creation and prototyping of new solutions addressing future needs to fuel Singapore’s economic growth.”

Beyond Singapore

Collectively, Goryachev said Cisco’s Co-Innovation Centres had contributed a wide range of digital breakthroughs for customers across multiple industries.

These include innovations on reducing energy consumption, pollution, and operational costs while also improving traffic flows, management of crops, and sustainable resources, among many others.

“As just one example, The Cisco Tokyo Co-Innovation Centre partnered with FANUC, one of the largest makers of industrial robots in the world, to deploy connected Internet of Things technologies in a manufacturing facility that prevented downtime and increased uptime of robotic operations,” Goryachev said.

Cybersecurity and IoT

Simultaneous with the launch of the innovation center, Cisco also unveiled the Cybersecurity Centre of Excellence (CCX) in Singapore to boost its Asia-Pacific threat intelligence research and security incidence response capabilities.  

According to the Cisco 2018 Asia Pacific Security Capabilities Benchmark Study, in the Asia Pacific region, companies receive six threats every minute, but only 50 percent of alerts are being investigated.

“The CCX comprises a new Talos threat intelligence headquarters and Cisco Security Operations Centre (SOC) that will partner with government, industry, and universities to improve national cybersecurity posture and grow regional talent,” said Goryachev.

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Vodafone’s latest IoT Barometer report shows that 84 percent of adopters report growing confidence in IoT, with 83 percent enlarging the scale of deployments to take advantage of full benefits.

More than a third (34 percent) of 1,758 businesses surveyed worldwide also now use IoT, and 70 percent of these adopters have moved beyond the pilot stage, with 95 percent seeing the benefits of investment in this technology as it moves into the mainstream.

Stefano Gastaut, CEO IoT, Vodafone Business, said that IoT is central to business success in an increasingly digitized world.

The report noted that since Vodafone’s last IoT Barometer report, the number of companies using IoT has risen to over a third (34 percent) and the scale and importance of IoT projects have grown.

Confidence is growing, too. Forty-five percent of adopters say their IoT projects cross international borders while 76 percent say their IoT projects are mission-critical. Meanwhile, eight percent of adopters are entirely reliant on IoT, according to the report.

Vodafone attributes this surge to many factors, but primarily to the lowering of barriers to entry, mainly the growing availability of IoT enablement platforms and new, cost-effective connectivity options.          

“The good news is that IoT platforms make the technology easier to deploy for businesses of all sizes and NB-IoT and 5G will improve services and potential,” Gastaut said in a news release.

The report confirms what other surveys have concluded: Asia-Pacific leads in adoption, with 43 percent of companies in the region already using IoT. However, the report found that the region has a significantly lower percentage of organizations in the top two bands of adopters.

Vodafone’s Business IoT Sophistication Model classifies four types of adopters: Band A (most sophisticated), Band B (very sophisticated), Band C (intermediate), and Band D (Beginners). According to the report, Asia-Pacific has a significantly lower percentage of organizations in the top two bands.

Band A are companies that typically have multiple full-scale projects that are deeply embedded in the business and mostly mission-critical. Meanwhile, Band B are companies that are likely using IoT in conjunction with analytics to support decision-making.

“This implies that despite their enthusiasm, companies in this region have further to go in developing their programs and achieving all the possible benefits,” the report noted.

Globally, Vodafone said 53 percent of IoT adopters fall into the top two bands.

Looking to the future, Vodafone says new technology will continue to power the performance of IoT. Over half (52%) of adopters plan to use 5G, which promises to support higher volumes of data, increase reliability and offer near-zero latency. Combined with mobile edge computing, which will process application traffic closer to the network edge, users can expect better performance, less risk, and faster data speeds.

Commenting on the results, Michele Mackenzie, Principal Analyst at Analysys Mason, said the Barometer makes it clear that businesses are increasing their investment into IoT as they gain confidence and begin to develop more advanced solutions.

“In the short term, users of IoT will continue to access reduced costs and improved efficiency, but increasingly ambitious projects will offer the opportunity to change business models. For example in cities heavy users of roads could pay more, encouraging the use of different modes of transport with knock-on benefits to public health and the environment,” she said.

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"The smart cities market is extremely dynamic, and while only a small number of cities have the budget for large scale integrated projects, our database of 100 cities, which includes most of the largest capitals and innovative cities around the world, only represents around one quarter of global smart city spending," said Serena Da Rold, program manager in IDC's Customer Insights & Analysis group.

RELATED: 70 smart city initiatives at full speed in Hong Kong this year

"There is a long tail of cities focusing on specific issues or looking for cross-departmental transformation on a smaller scale. These cities represent a big opportunity for providers of smart city solutions that can be replicated and adapted to address specific use cases in different cities, leveraging the experience gained in a similar context," she commented.

Initiatives related to data-driven public safety, intelligent transportation, and resilient energy and infrastructure will attract the largest share of funding in 2019, but key use cases in the areas of economic development and civic engagement, and sustainable planning and administration will also see considerable investments.

The smart cities use cases that will receive the most funding in 2019 include fixed visual surveillance, advanced public transit, smart outdoor lighting, intelligent traffic management, and connected back office.

ANALYST: Ovum: Transforming the smart city with IoT

Together, these five use cases will represent 34% of worldwide spending this year. Strong investment growth in intelligent traffic management solutions will make it the third largest use case in 2020, overtaking smart outdoor lighting.

The use case that will see the fastest spending growth over the 2017-2022 forecast period is officer wearables, which includes smart apparel, smart headsets and glasses, and smart holsters. Other use cases that will experience significant spending growth include digital twin and vehicle-to-everything (V2X) connectivity.

IDC says Asia/Pacific represents over 40% of total spending on smart cities initiatives, while the Americas represent around one third, and Europe, Middle East and Africa around one quarter of the global opportunity.

At the city level, 11 cities in China will exceed the $300 million forecast spending in 2019 compared to four in the US.

"In the Asia/Pacific region, the exponential growth and diversity of smart city initiatives in second- and third-tier cities are continually challenging many first-tier cities to transform. With competition for talent and foreign direct investment being even more intense today, these socioeconomic hubs provide huge openings for solution providers to aid in seamless connectivity and collaborations, enhanced productivity and automation, as well as address security and privacy concerns," said Gerald Wang, head of IDC Asia Pacific Public Sector research.

"By identifying and forecasting the key projects and initiatives being funded worldwide by Smart Cities and Communities, IDC has a depth and breadth of data that allows us to offer unique intelligence to suppliers and buyers of technologies in this high-growth market," added Ruthbea Yesner, vice president of IDC Government Insights and Smart Cities programs. "As the market keeps evolving via new offerings, new entrants, and new partnerships, this information will become increasingly valuable."

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The YITU Singapore Research & Development (R&D) Center, the company’s first center in Southeast Asia, will play an important role in supporting YITU’s innovation-led growth in Singapore and the region, the company said.

Located at Mapletree Business City, the center currently houses 30 staff, a diverse talent pool comprising AI algorithm researchers, system researchers, hardware experts, and experienced engineers.

YITU said it plans to triple its R&D staff count over the next three years, bringing the team size to around 100 employees, specifically to drive R&D efforts.

Ang Chin Tah, Director, Infocomms and Media, Singapore Economic Development Board, welcomed the move, reiterating Singapore’s vision to be a world-class leader in AI where global AI companies build and deploy solutions.

“With YITU’s ambition to be at the forefront of AI innovation, its newly-launched Singapore R&D Center is a welcomed addition to our ecosystem. It will create new and exciting job opportunities in AI for Singaporeans and accelerate the export of made-in-Singapore solutions to the world,” he said.

YITU Technology is engaged in fundamental advanced AI research in computer vision, natural language understanding, knowledge reasoning, intelligent hardware, and robotics. Today, it has an extensive presence in sectors such as security, finance, transportation, and healthcare.

The company founded by Lin Chenxi, Zhu Long in 2012 has raised a total of $355.1M in funding over six rounds, according to Crunchbase.

The company said the YITU Singapore R&D Center intends to work closely with industry partners, local universities and research institutes to carry out pioneering R&D. It has started to explore collaboration opportunities with local partners.

Initiatives include conducting trials with industry partners such as Keppel Land and working with Nanyang Polytechnic to boost industry-relevant AI education and research. Attracting top talent will also be a priority for the YITU Singapore R&D Center as it seeks to build YITU’s talent capital. Plans include rolling out an AI hackathon open to local tertiary students to bring in the next generation of AI talent.

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A news release from Microsoft China said the company has signed a strategic cooperation agreement with the district government of Shanghai Pudong Area to promote the deep integration of IoT in manufacturing, retail, healthcare other industries.

It said the two sides have continuously developed technologies in the fields of transformation, industrial intelligent manufacturing, business model innovation, and created an innovative ecosystem of industry, enterprises and talent pooling.

In setting up the lab, Microsoft is banking on government policies, industrial support, and Zhangjiang's scientific research community to create new opportunities for enterprises.

Located at Zhangjiang Science City Artificial Intelligence Island, the laboratory is going to be Microsoft's largest global artificial intelligence and IoT laboratory with a total area of ​​2,800 square meters. It is scheduled to start operation in April 2019.

Kang Rong, vice president and general manager of marketing and operations at Microsoft Greater China, was quoted in the statement as saying that the digital transformation led by innovative technologies such as artificial intelligence and Internet of Things is setting off a new round of industrial revolution around the world. 

Moreover, the Shanghai Pudong New Area has created an ideal development environment and policy support for technological innovation.

Pudong, which means literally "the east bank of the Huangpu River," is a district in Shanghai that is now administered as a new state-level area extending to the East China Sea. Many of Shanghai’s landmarks such as the Oriental Pearl Tower, the Jin Mao Tower, the Shanghai World Financial Center, and the Shanghai Tower are in Pudong.  

But the area also now includes the Zhangjiang Hi-Tech Park, which specializes in specializes in research in life sciences, software, semiconductors, and information technology.

Microsoft (China)’s AI and IoT Lab is also partnering with the Zhang Jiang Group in providing end-to-end localized innovation services for IoT solution development companies such as creative incubation, optimized product architecture, build solutions, technical support, and industry collaboration. 

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GE argues that this is perhaps more of an advantage than a handicap, as emphasized by the on-screen line at the end.

The video weaves today's languages, human and machine, into a charming scenario to which many in our industrial society can relate, despite the bizarre premise.

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Research firm  International Data Corporation (IDC) also expects double-digit annual growth rates through 2022 and to surpass the $1-billion mark by then.

Big industry spenders year include: manufacturing operations ($100 billion), production asset management ($44.2 billion), smart home ($44.1 billion), and freight monitoring ($41.7 billion).

In the manufacturing sector, IoT spending  will be largely focused on solutions that support manufacturing operations and production asset management, IDC said.

Meanwhile, in transportation, it is expected that more than half of IoT spending will go toward freight monitoring and fleet management. In the utilities industry, spending will be dominated by smart grids for electricity, gas, and water and industries.

However, the sectors that will see the fastest compound annual growth rates (CAGR) over the five-year forecast period are insurance (17.1 percent), federal/central government (16.1 percent), and healthcare (15.4 percent).

The research firm also see IoT use cases delivering  the fastest spending growth in airport facility automation (transportation), electric vehicle charging (utilities), agriculture field monitoring (resource), bedside telemetry (healthcare), and in-store contextualized marketing (retail).

"Adoption of IoT is happening across industries, in governments, and in consumers' daily lives. We are increasingly observing how data generated by connected devices is helping businesses run more efficiently, gain insight into business processes, and make real-time decisions,” said Carrie MacGillivray, vice president, Internet of Things and Mobility at IDC.

On the consumer side, IDC forecasts IoT spending to reach $108 billion this year, making it the second largest industry segment, according to Marcus Torchia, research director, Customer Insights & Analysis.

“The leading consumer use cases will be related to the smart home, personal wellness, and connected vehicle infotainment," said  Torchia. "Within smart home, home automation and smart appliances will both experience strong spending growth over the forecast period and will help to make consumer the fastest growing industry segment overall with a five-year CAGR of 17.8 percent."

Among countries, IDC predicts the United States and China to be the global leaders for IoT spending in 2019 at $194 billion and $182 billion respectively.

They will be followed by Japan ($65.4 billion), Germany ($35.5 billion), Korea ($25.7 billion), France ($25.6 billion), and the United Kingdom ($25.5 billion).

The countries that will see the fastest IoT spending growth over the forecast period are all located in Latin America: Mexico (28.3 percent CAGR), Colombia (24.9 percent CAGR), and Chile (23.3 percet CAGR).

IDC’s Worldwide Semiannual Internet of Things Spending Guide forecasts IoT spending for 14 technology categories and 82 named use cases across 20 industries in nine regions and 53 countries.

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This International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) White Paper provides an outlook on what the next big step in IoT – the development of smart and secure IoT platforms – could involve. These platforms offer significant improvements in capabilities in the field of security and bridge the gaps between different existing IoT platforms, which usually consist of “legacy” systems that have not been designed for IoT purposes.

IEC concludes by formulating recommendations both of a general nature as well as specifically addressed to the IEC and its committees. The principal recommendations proposed for the IEC include:

• Taking the lead in establishing an IoT standardization ecosystem environment with IEC exercising a key role.
• Assigning tasks to the ISO/IEC JTC 1 leadership concerning key IoT standardization activities.
• Working more closely with government entities to increase their level of participation and to identify the related requirements and concerns to be addressed by IEC deliverables.

Download the whitepaper here.

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The consultancy says a key to unlocking pent-up demand lies in IoT vendors addressing barriers to adoption, providing more targeted solutions, and easing integration concerns.

“Our survey found that vendors are aligned with customers’ concerns about some barriers, such as security, returns on investment, but less so on others – notably integration, interoperability and data portability,” Ann Bosche, a partner in Bain & Company’s Global Technology Practice and an IoT expert.

“Based on our experience with previous technology cycles, the key to addressing these concerns lies in focusing on fewer industries in order to learn what customers really want and need to ease adoption,” she added.

Bain highlights three areas holding back Industrial IoT adoption: security, integration with existing technology, and uncertain returns on investment.

On a positive note, Bain also lists out three universal themes for IoT vendors: Focus on getting a few industries and use cases right; offer end-to-end solutions to ease adoption; prepare to scale by removing barriers to adoption.

Michael Schallehn, a partner in Bain's Technology practice, shares the three things executives should consider when deciding how to expand into the industrial IoT sector.

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Zebra Technologies polled 918 IT decision makers from nine countries including the US, UK, France, Germany, Mexico, Brazil, China, India, and Japan. A third of the respondents were from the Asia-Pacific.

Survey results showed that 91 percent of the respondents in the region expect that number increase in the next 1 to 2 years and 48 percent expect their IoT investment to increase by 11 to 20 percent.

The poll likewise noted that 69 percent of companies have an IoT vision and are currently executing their IoT plans, 44 percent currently have company-wide deployments and 25 percent plan to deploy IoT company-wide in the future.

In comparison, the average annual spend on IoT was up 4 percent globally from 2017 to $4.6 million. Around 86 percent of respondents expect that number to increase in the next one to two years, and 49 percent expect their IoT investment to increase by 11 to 20 percent.

Globally, 5 percent of companies have an IoT vision and are currently executing their IoT plans, 38 percent currently have company-wide deployments, and 30 percent of remaining companies plan to deploy IoT company-wide in the future.

“Based on our second annual Index, it’s clear that more companies acknowledge the value of leveraging IoT strategies, and they will continue to propel adoption and investment in the future,” said Tom Bianculli, Chief Technology Officer, Zebra Technologies, in a news release.

Zebra Technologies defines the “intelligent enterprise” as one that connects the physical and digital worlds to drive innovation through real-time guidance, data-powered environments, and collaborative mobile workflows.

To be considered an “intelligent enterprise, a company has to score more than 75 on the overall Index, which has 11 metrics. One of these metrics is IoT vision, which tracks factors such as IoT spending, investment, deployment.

Among the key findings of the Index globally is that  IoT investment is up, and resistance to adoption is down.

“As employees become more receptive to new technologies, the number of companies that expect resistance to their IoT plans moving forward has dropped from 75 percent in 2017 to 64 percent this year,” the study noted.

Another key finding is that security is a top priority across the enterprise. The Index shows that companies are taking a more proactive, thorough approach when it comes to employing security standards within their IoT solutions.

“The Index revealed an 18 percent increase in the number of companies that are constantly – versus routinely – monitoring their IoT security to ensure privacy and integrity. In Asia-Pacific, the increase was 20 percentage points from a year ago,” the study concluded.

Check out the infographic here: how-intelligent-enterprise-infographic-en-APAC-final

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KT’s driverless bus reportedly covered 2.2 kilometers at a speed of 30 kilometers per hour outside the airport’s Terminal 1. It slowed down at traffic signals and changed lanes to avoid obstacles.

Officials from the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, and Transport watched the demonstration, according to KT Corp.

In a deal signed last month, KT Corp. and the Incheon International Airport Corporation have agreed to develop a new intelligent airport based on information and communications technology (ICT).

KT said it is currently developing a commercial self-driving platform — 5G as a Vehicle Platform (5GaVP), which was piloted during the Pyeongchang Winter Olympic Games last February. The company has also developed a smart, voice-recognizing platform for connected cars called the GiGA Drive IVI.

It looks like airport shuttle buses would be among the first applications of the technologies.

Incheon is Korea’s largest airport, the world's third largest in the international cargo transportation and the seventh in international passenger transportation. 

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Click above to watch Mark Hung, Research VP, Gartner talks about the implementation process that follow an IoT journey.

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At the GITEX Technology Week 2018 exhibit in Dubai, Hong Kong-based M800 showcased its soon-to-be launched heart monitoring device that will generate heartbeat data for users and provide real-time notifications services between patients and their doctors, extending the benefits brought by IoT technology to thousands of patients with heart issues and their families in the region.

Powered by the M800 Communication SDK Suite, the device transmits the wearer’s data instantly and securely to dedicated medical consultants, and also provides a communication platform for users to instantly connect with medical consultants via text message anytime, anywhere.

“We see enormous potential for IoT in healthcare as the technology is entering a more practical and mature stage. With our long track record in developing industry-leading solutions in the telecom, mobile and software industry, the M800 Communication SDK Suite is well positioned to support businesses who are attempting to harness IoT technology to enhance patient monitoring and healthcare support,” says Steven Yap, Co-founder, Chairman, and CEO of M800 Limited.

M800’s heart monitoring device solution utilises the company’s liveConnect, a cloud-based customer support platform which is instantly deployable for any existing website and app. Once embedded, it can deliver instant message and facilitate phone calls, both on-net and off-net, allowing businesses to collaborate with customers anywhere, anytime and on any device.

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The KPMG report noted that tech industry leaders from the UK (21 percent) and Japan (20 percent) give stronger marks to IOT, followed by the US (16 percent) and China (13 percent).

"Over the last few years, IoT has moved from experimentation to driving value as it digitizes the physical world," KPMG said in its report.

It added that IoT providers are maturing and moving from basic connectivity to full-blown platforms that are now getting bundled with cloud offerings.

However, the report identified complexity, risk management, and security as the top challenges brought about by the rise of IoT platforms.

"IOT brings great opportunity through omniscience across the entire business, but this super-power comes with a liability around security and privacy," affirmed Key Sampanthar, Executive Director, Innovation Labs at KPMG in the US.

The second and third technology disruptors identified by the respondents were artificial intelligence (AI) and robotics. But even these are seen to be converging with IoT in enabling the creation of new business models.

"The data captured by sensors can be processed by AI algorithms to enable deeper analysis of real-time IoT data streams to drive more powerful decision making," the report noted.

KPMG also emphasized that now more than ever, there is a need for greater interoperability.

The study polled more than 750 global technology industry leaders, 85 percent C-level. The KPMG publication series, “The Changing Landscape of Disruptive Technologies,” now on its sixth year, has been providing perspective on technology trends.

Title image: Photo by www.pexels.com

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Members of the newly launched GSMA APAC IoT Partnership Program include Celcom and Maxis (Malaysia),  Dialog (Sri Lanka), DTAC (Thailand), M1 and Singtel (Singapore), Ncell (Nepal), Optus (Australia), Robi (Bangladesh),  Smart (Cambodia), True Corporation (Thailand), XL and Smartgren (Indonesia), and Xpand (Thailand).

The group currently has around 500 partners including mobile operators, consultants, developers, manufacturers, system integrators and vertical solution providers.

This is expected to grow to over 2,000 partners by 2020.

Asia-Pacific is the largest IoT market in the world, with 11 billion connections expected by 2025, representing a  revenue opportunity of $386 billion, according to GSMA, the trade body that represents the interests of mobile network operators worldwide.

“The IoT is growing rapidly across the Asia Pacific region, with mobile operators working with their partners and the wider ecosystem to drive this expansion,” affirmed Julian Gorman, Head of Asia Pacific, GSMA, in a news release.

He said the program will support the development of the IoT by creating a cross-regional IoT community to facilitate collaboration and knowledge sharing, as well as creating opportunities that benefit both the supply chain and their customers.

A key focus of the program is to set up the IoT Labs across the region and to create a platform for media awareness of IoT innovation and leadership by the operators.

“The Labs are a key requirement for collaboration and encourage the joint development of new use cases, services, and applications, and enable IoT innovations to be effectively deployed,” the GSMA said.

All operators in the program have signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to ensure that the coordination and output among the IoT Labs is consistent with IoT standards regionally and globally.

Participating operators have also committed to develop new initiatives and share best practices to accelerate the deployment of innovative IoT use cases that will improve the lives of over 3 billion people across the Asia-Pacific region.

“Through this partnership, we hope to tap into the GSMA’s best practices and expertise in exploring and accelerating the many possibilities the IoT presents our customers in the Malaysian marketplace,” said Paul McManus, Head of Enterprise, Maxis.

Indonesia’s Smartfren believes that it could introduce IoT soon and be able to contribute towards Indonesia’s economic growth, according to Shurish Subbramaniam, Chief Technology Officer, PT Smartfren Telecom Tbk.

“This is in-line with what Smartfren always inspires to do; to enable and educate society in utilizing 4G LTE Advanced technology, for the advancement of society in particular, and Indonesia in general,” he said.

Title image courtesy of www.pexels.com

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Established in partnership with the state government of Haryana, the Centre of Excellence for Internet of Things (CoE-IoT) is expected to provide one of the largest innovation platforms for enabling IOT applications.

Nasscom said it will work with industries and the government towards accelerating innovation, enabling industry-oriented research, promoting the adoption of data-driven decision-making by enterprises, and enabling appropriate skills and talent development.

“The aim of  Nasscom’s Centre of Excellence is to act as a perfect collaboration for innovation and high-end technologies. By bringing in the best minds from industry, academia, start-ups and the government we aim to drive a culture of collaboration and co-creation to find solutions to accelerate India’s economic development,” said Nasscom President Debjani Ghosh.

The facility is also expected to serve as a platform for intelligence-sharing and technology collaboration between stakeholders to build collective IoT capabilities.

“Nasscom and its industry members are currently engaged in defining the future of job in the digital transformation era and such an initiative from the government of Haryana is a welcome step in the right direction,” she added.

The association has more than 2,100 members, which include both Indian and multinational companies that have a presence in India.

IoT in India

A recent IDC report reveals the growing influence of the Internet of Things (IoT) across India’s digital transformation.

In the report, Ranganath Sadasiva, Director Enterprise Research, IDC India, was quoted as saying that 60 percent of Indian enterprise organizations will be leveraging IoT for competitive technology and pricing advantage.

Meanwhile, on the consumer front, the IDC Quarterly Wearables Tracker estimates that one million units of wearables were shipped to India in the second quarter of 2018.

Nasscom said in its own IoT report that increased penetration of affordable devices, combined with cloud computing, analytics, and rising consumer expectations is driving the rapid growth of the IOT market, which is poised to reach $15 billion by 2020.

Amid this growing ecosystem, the CoE-IoT aims to provide start-ups with access to state-of-the-art infrastructure by stimulating co-creation in consultation with industry experts through Nasscom programs.  

Nasscom has reported a cumulative investment of around $60 million since 2014 for IoT startups, especially those that focus on lifestyle and wearables, embedded computing, industrial internet, and connected homes.

Photo by Rohit Gangwar from Pexels

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With the introduction of Internet of Things (IoT) and analytics technologies, anticipation is growing for even smarter solutions from the convergence of these technologies with others like cloud, mobility and social platforms.

However a continuing sticking point for industry players is the perceived lack of use cases that enable them to generate new sources of revenue. There is a need to gain new capabilities in terms of domain expertise and technical know-how.

Some enterprises have invested substantially in analytics platform and vertical expertise, others have entered into cross industry collaboration with enterprises outside their industry. At the same time, if enterprises decide to rapidly implement IoT without changing their operating model, they face challenges in delivering the new solution.

Regardless of how they go about doing it, IoT has enabled them to gain new insights that they did not have in the past to bring about new service offering that differentiate them from their competitors. The report looks at 10 use cases of how enterprises in the transport and logistics sector have done it.

Early examples of IoT-derived innovation include:

• Audi enhances its customers' experience while using sensors installed in cars to collecting real time information on traffic flow and drivers' behaviour.
• With DriveNow, BMW diversifies from selling cars to renting cars on members' usage.
• INRIX adopts a variety of ways to collect data on real time traffic patterns in the USA. And it developed capabilities rapidly through acquisitions to deliver more data.
• The Land Transport Authority of Singapore adopts a three-layer stack to alleviate traffic condition by resolving congestion together with the private sector companies.
• Navistar's prognostic solution has been used for pricing of vehicle components for over 200,000 trucks in the USA. It uses big data analytics to determine the lowest cost of truck configuration for fleet operators.
• Ryanair use big data analytics to understand consumers' purchasing behaviour as they no longer go for the cheapest tickets.
• Taxi Stockholm aids the tourism sector and generates revenue by providing tourists with hotspot heat maps with a smartphone app.
• UPS uses small data to make incremental changes in their operational processes.
• Volvo gives authorized repaid mechanics to access vehicle data to support servicing and components requirements.
• The E-bike Management system by SITAEL was developed in an effort to reduce the number of cars on the road.

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The integrations of the two companies will facilitate the development, application, and commercialization of IoT hardware in China. The companies have previously cooperated in smart home hardware, wearables, and smart cars.

Under the MOU, the new hardware ecosystem will bring together INGDAN.com's supply chain and project resources, and Suning Intelligent's sales channels and funds to accelerate the incubation, financing, product launch, and commercialization of smart hardware projects.

The initiative is positioned to drive greater integration of China's IoT industry and its traditional industries, as well as consolidate the field of intelligent hardware.

It is anticipated that projects from the collaboration will be able to receive vertically-integrated services including AI chip and module technology solutions, supply chain financing, and sales and distribution assistance, enabling a greater number of projects to realize industrial transformation.

INGDAN.com will help Suning Intelligent release a variety of intelligent hardware, including smart home devices, wearables, smart car devices, and many others. The companies will also work together to develop various new smart hardware products.

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Fitch noted that the Plan highlighted the use of digital cities to manage increasing urbanisation as the government repurposed coastal cities to become high-end research and development centres. It also shifted the focus of coastal settlements away from low-cost manufacturing.

In January 2013, a pilot was started with an initial 90 cities, growing to 193 cities by 2015. While smart city projects are centrally-coordinated and adopt a largely top-down approach, implementation is decentralised and carried out by municipal governments. Initiatives are managed by the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT), the Ministry of Science and Technology (MOST) and the Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Development (MHURD), along with some input from other ministries.

Fitch believes that China has managed to scale its smart cities programme thanks to the use of a public-private partnership (PPP) arrangement. Risk is shared between both private enterprise and the government, providing incentives for companies to take part in the construction and operation of the infrastructure.

Duties and liabilities are reportedly clarified during the agreement signing, as smart city developments normally take a long time to generate a positive return. Building a comprehensive smart city network also requires multiple stakeholders which are forced to co-operate with one another. China also benefits from an advanced technology supply chain, which boasts leading telecoms equipment makers and both tech software and hardware firms.

Technological applications

Smart sensors on machine-to-machine (M2M) connections are the most widely-deployed form of technology in smart cities. China's virtually nationwide mobile networks together with the widespread availability of NB-IoT networks and fibre infrastructure have allowed government-commissioned sensors to be adopted and used in a variety of ways.

Telecoms operators have been experiencing a surge in IoT connections, although we believe that a majority of these connections are of low value. China Mobile, for one, reported in H118 a growth in IoT revenues of 47.6%, despite M2M connections rising by 154% y-o-y.

The deployment of sensors to collect massive amounts of data has enabled artificial intelligence (AI) to take an increasingly important role in smart city planning. AI is being used to process and tag people and objects from closed circuit television (CCTV) streams, and used in a variety of ways, including:

• Public transportation: CCTVs are used to monitor passenger volumes at bus/train stations in order to manage the frequency of buses/trains.
• Energy management: Usage of smart grid infrastructure to manage intermittent and dispersed supply from technologies such as solar and wind.
• Disaster prevention: Water-level sensors are used to detect imminent flooding of monsoon drains and rivers.
• Fire prevention: Drones are installed with thermal cameras to detect unusual heat patterns to alert firefighting personnel.
• Traffic control: Motion sensors to detect roads with high vehicular traffic in order to adjust traffic light timings. AI detects emergency vehicles such as ambulances and change traffic lights to green to allow a smooth passage. AI is also able to detect accidents and alert human traffic controllers.

Ubiquitous connectivity has led to the widespread adoption of mobile financial services (MFS), which have now become indispensable and integral to Chinese life. M-payment services such as AliPay and WeChat Pay are used on a daily basis at retail shops and for public transport payments, allowing the government to generate substantial geo-locational data can be used for city-planning.

Small cities, large opportunities

While smart city applications in China's Tier 1 cities (Guangzhou, Shanghai, Chongqing, Beijing, Tianjin, and Shenzhen) have gained most of the attention, we believe that opportunities in Tier 3 cities will remain the biggest due to the relatively larger infrastructure investment gaps. With the implementation of smart city projects being decentralised in nature, the chance to gain regulatory approval to begin construction should be quick, as government is smaller in less populated cities.

As that the opportunity to construct residential properties in less developed cities is also large, municipal governments can take a top-down approach in the construction of smart housing, for instance. In areas with high levels of development, most technologies have to be augmented on existing infrastructure, sometimes creating barriers to implementation.

Implications and barriers

The rise of smart cities and continued collection of data has given rise to privacy and cybersecurity concerns. Chiefly, China's Internet Security Law, which came into effect in June 2017 mandates companies which store data to share it with the authorities when requested.

This allows, in theory, the government to de-anonymise MFS and mobile phone data and identify a specific individual's movement, although there will likely be a disconnect as certain daily transactions are done via offline channels. For instance, Apple has had to store its iCloud data domestically, so the state can theoretically access an individual's iCloud data at any time.

Fitch says technology trials in smart cities have also provided telecoms operators and tech companies a real-time testbed for their products and services, which in-part have contributed to the pace of their research and development (R&D). Telecoms carriers are given dense cities to test run their network trials instead of limiting them to closed environments, and tech companies are allowed to test their services on limited amounts of the population. The success of smart cities will also provide a platform for China to replicate its success into other Belt and Road (B&R) cities. B&R initiatives such as the Manila Bay Project will largely adopt success cases of smart city technologies in China. We expect capital cities along the B&R route, along with Chinese companies, will be beneficiaries of the smart city success.

Fitch also concludes that the success of smart city initiatives will be largely contingent on policy continuity of provincial and municipal governments. The decentralised nature of smart city implementation, once again, means that the central government can provide strong guidance but whether initiatives are taken-up is contingent on the receptiveness of provincial governments.

Fitch cautions that unexpected budget shortfalls and provincial level austerity measures can unexpectedly threaten the progress of smart city developments, and companies involved in the initiative must be cautious of this.

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Juniper Research predicts that by 2022, mobile operators can collectively generate an additional $35 billion annually from new and underdeveloped revenue streams.

Juniper Research observed that with the number of connected devices expected to nearly triple between 2017 and 2022, from 17.5 million to 51.5 million, demand for ubiquitous connectivity would accelerate; representing a clear opportunity for the expansion of enterprise-facing products.

In the report, Future Mobile Operator Business Models: Challenges, Opportunities & Strategies 2018-2022, the researcher suggests that services such as Internet of Things (IoT) enablement, A2P messaging, carrier billing and big data analytics would collectively deliver a net increase of more than $7 billion this year.

It If implemented, these, together with cost savings identified in the study, would enable operators to offset the impact of falling voice and data revenues and maintain, or even increase, current margins.

The new report also stated that while big data collection presented some challenges around security and anonymization, raw or packaged data could be monetised via pay per usage, metered usage or flat subscription.

CRM: critical for customer retention

Additionally, the research outlined strategies through which mobile network operators (MNOs) can reduce costs across their operations. It argued that significant improvements were required in CRM (Customer Relationship Management) to maximise customer retention, critical in saturated markets.

According to research author Dr Windsor Holden, ‘There are still high levels of dissatisfaction with regard to issues such as time taken to answer complaint calls. Furthermore, as operators seek to diversify and offer new services they will, in turn, need to ensure that their CRM services are robust enough to cope with the inevitable array of queries these will provoke.’

Meanwhile, the research also recommended that operators should implement network sharing to reduce site lease and infrastructure costs. It claimed that the strategy would reduce both capital and operating expenditure, plus enabling faster deployment and reducing carbon footprints.

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