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Biggest trend impacting the retail industry in 2018:
1. Customer experience is more important than ever as retailers are striving to differentiate themselves in a challenging and crowded market. Consequently, experience per square foot will be the new retail metric to measure success.
2. Artificial intelligence will gain more clout with some executives predicting that 85 percent of all transactions will be AI-based by 2020.
3. The rise of the conscious customer will continue as consumers base their buying decisions on many factors beyond price. These new consumers, led and influenced by millennials, are exerting influence on retailers and forcing them to take action.
4. We've arrived at the intersection of elevated consumer expectations and technical possibility.
5. A tale of two hemispheres is playing out as platform players and non-traditional retailers expand their reach and offerings. Global Retail Trends by KPMG
Retail Technology Startups that are making a difference:
How Blockchain will Augment Retail
IBM conducted a recent study about how blockchain reinvents the consumer experience. The main benefits they described are that retail organizations—thanks to blockchain technology—can prove they delivered on their promises. Think about product authenticity, tracking and tracing reliable delivery throughout the supply chain, and accountability of suppliers.
The Technology of Light — the Realms of 'Science Fact'
Using optics to build waaaaay faster computers — atomically thin semiconductor that posses optical properties could make computers run on the femtosecond time scale, a million times faster. "The only way to build much faster computers is to use optics, not electronics. Electronics, which is used by current computers, can't go any faster, which is why engineers have been increasing the number of processors."
Neural networks for “Deep learning” computer systems, based on artificial neural networks that mimic the way the brain learns from an accumulation of examples, have become a hot topic in computer science, could be implemented more quickly using new photonic technology.
The new technology known as "opto-spintronics." — In the search for information technology that is even faster, smaller and more energy-efficient, scientists around the globe are exploring another property of electrons -- their spin. Electronics that exploit both the spin and the charge of the electron are called "spintronics."— a stepping stone towards future information technology.
Cybersecurity
"All warfare is based on deception." — Art of War by Sun Tzu
The ultimate goal of deception is to lure attackers to ‘decoy’ assets that look and feel real but aren’t.
5 ways deception is changing the cybersecurity landscape.
Cyber-intelligence expert Tom Kellermann sees a growing hostility in cyberspace, and he fears a new wave of advanced threats aimed not just at committing crimes, but at breaching critical infrastructure. Who are the top threat actors, and what are their key targets?
Changing the Balance of Power — Deception is unique in that an organization can safely watch attacks unfold, using a deception sandbox to engage attackers for deeper forensics. Security analysts can observe attackers in a safe manner because the assets under attack are high interaction decoys that are designed to trick an attacker into thinking they are escalating their attack, all while actively collect forensics. With deception, you can therefore engage an attacker and then use this threat intelligence to activate countermeasures.
If you are an exhibitor at any cybersecurity trade shows, you want to highlight how they (your audience) can easily be deceived by cyber technology, thus making their company vulnerable in the digital landscape.
Re-invention
'Creativity' and 'Newness' is the engine that is set to drive the growth of 21st Century Commerce —
New preception of thinking — For example, if you are a electronic manufacturer or contract manufacturers, you have to think about yourself as an "adaptive company that could commercialize your product from a sketch on a napkin, all the way up to full-scale global distribution and logistics." A new name, new face, new walk and new talk — a CMO's perspective on re-invention
Re-invention open doors as brands seize control of their customer data—and take control of their future. Customer data graphs that businesses own (rather than rent) will empower them to deliver laser-targeted ads, personalize brand sites for 1:1 engagements, accurately measure marketing performance and close the loop on attribution.
When is re-invention required? "You have to catch it just at the tipping point when things are going great, but the increases are diminishing and momentum is giving out." \
What entrepreneurs can learn from the big brands who successfully overcame such challenges.
Not personalization but, being personal is paramount in the process of re-invention.
Get to know your existing clients better. This easier if you exhibit at trade shows. Design your exhibit experience to map out your customer journey for hyper-personalization.
Financial Technology
Startup Fintech Resolved on Building Credit for the Millennials —
Chime, the no-fees mobile bank valued at $500 million as of its last round, has put some of its funds to use with its first acquisition.
Startup Fintech is resolved to make Credit Cards Obsolete —
Paidy, a Japanese fintech startup makes it possible for Japanese consumers to buy online without creating an account or using their credit cards.
166 years old legacy banking Brand is making it's move towards Fintech —
Wells Fargo created an artificial intelligence enterprise team in an effort to develop AI-based technology and strengthen its digital offerings in order to provide more personalized customer service. According to the Accenture report, “Banks that invest in AI and human-machine collaboration at the same rate as top-performing businesses could boost their revenue by an average of 34 percent and their employment by 14 percent by 2022.”
Fintech can Liberate us from Energy Poverty
At its core, the idea of producing more energy than you require and then selling it to the grid will revolutionize the energy sector, once coupled with blockchain, if it can be done on a localized, efficient scale. If we can encourage consumers to create their own energy and gain independence in the process, then we can expect to create a future in which one day we can create a sustainable world, based on affordable energy for all — energy poverty would be a thing of a less enlightened past.
Business Challenges in the Fintech Space
According to the 2017 Global Consumer Pulse Research, published by Accenture, 48% of consumers expect specialized treatment for being a good customer, with 33% of those consumers who abandoned a relationship doing so because personalization was lacking.
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Small Business Expo provides the resources attendees need to stay a step ahead of their competition. Check here for the schedule and registration.
1. Check here for Business Grants
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3. Check here to learn the Commerce of Customer Experience that is set to re-define your business model as you know it.
Cool Global Tech Startups
From blockchain and self-driving cars to AI to apps, search, and drones, here are some cool technology and startups from MWC 2018.
Valossa is an artificial intelligence engine for video processing. The Oulu, Finland-based startup uses combined computer vision and audio recognition algorithms to recognize things in video content the way a human does.
White Raven is a digital browser and AI software for connected and self-driving cars. This innovative Israeli startup is completely redefining how you interact with smart vehicles, with deep learning and computer vision underpinning a visual search engine that superimposes data on real-time car camera footage.
Tipping Point of Blockchain Technology — Industry Segments that is faced with Major Disruption
Financial services:
Functions that still rely on a paper trail are prime candidates for blockchain, which could streamline asset management settlements, insurance claims processing, Know Your Customer (KYC) efforts, and international payments, among other efforts.
Transportation and shipping:
In the marine industry, blockchain has the potential to speed up trade finance dramatically in the areas of processes based on fax machines for transmitting documents to the dozens of stakeholders involved.
Healthcare:
The healthcare industry is exploring the use of blockchain as a way to aggregate information. The technology could be used to give healthcare providers and other stakeholders secure, real-time access to error-free medical records.
Energy and Utilities:
Blockchain can serve as an inexpensive, transparent platform to record and validate financial or operational transactions across a distributed network of utilities and customers. Utilities from Austria to Brooklyn are experimenting with energy exchanges supported by blockchain.
U.S. wireless industry association CTIA announced a new security certification program targeting the IoT space. This will create a more secure foundation for smart cities, connected cars, mHealth and other IoT applications.
C3 IoT partners with Google Cloud to boost AI and IoT application development.
Businesses Beware! This smart plug could act as an entry point into the network to launch other attacks.
US-based chipmaker Qualcomm and Taiwan’s MediaTek are betting big on India’s IoT market and working with various device makers and telecom service providers, focusing especially on the narrow-band IoT (NB-IoT) segment.
5G shaping up the Automobile Industry — Autonomous vehicles will be one of the biggest sectors where 5G will make a difference, since the 5G network will allow cars to be connected to each other and surrounding infrastructure.
This listings app, which is owned by Zillow is hoping to distinguish itself with a new feature called Trulia Neighborhoods. The idea? To give people a real feel for what it’s like to live in a neighborhood before they move there.
Environment in the Age of Anthropocene
The Race to Zero Emission
Pellion’s battery can pack nearly double the energy of a conventional lithium-ion battery, making it able to, for example, double the time a drone can spend in the air. That 100% increase in energy density is a step change compared to the annual 10% or so improvement the battery industry currently averages.
Healthcare
Personalized Medicine —
The sale of 10.4 million shares, brought in $241.1 million for Rubius Therapeutics, which the company plans to use to fund the engineering of red blood cells for off-the-shelf treatments for autoimmune disorders, cancer and rare diseases.
Telemedicine — The Emerging Concept in Heathcare
Learn Key Trends from Vidyo's Infographic. Clinical Efficiency. HIPPA-Compliant. Remote Patient Monitoring. Simple & Affordable.
Hacked by Greys
Hackers attacked an IoT parking kiosk by connecting it to a adult leisure site. Officials are unsure whether or not the attack had malicious intent — the signature of the Grey Hats.
Grey hats are somewhere in-between the Black and the White Hats, and often cause mischief to highlight vulnerabilities but aren’t out to cause danger or lasting damage.
Healthcare
US testing of Chinese CAR T-cell Gene Therapy to begin soon
$350 million in funding has been dished out by Johnson & Johnson to China's Nanjing Legend Biotech, in exchange for co-development and marketing rights.
Bio-engineers are Perfecting the Art of Lab - Grown Lungs
State of Digital Health
The digital health ecosystem is exploding, to the tune of billions of dollars a year in new investment. Bridging the employer-employee divide — Whitepaper Report
Every time a customer keeps a full box of clothes, they can pick a charity to which Kidbox will donate a kid’s outfit. “An unintended consequence of this program is that parents are starting a conversation with their children about giving back earlier than they would have otherwise,” says Miki Berardelli, Kidbox’s CEO.
“That’s the emotional currency that is a differentiator for us.”
When Innovation is Sparked by Environmental Disaster
“Companies are made up of people. In this fire, you just felt the energy of the organization come together, then you saw the results.”
The Technology of Being Human — Creating Conversation by Machines
For as long as humans have existed, conversation was dependent on finding a coincidence of conversational needs — now, artificial intelligence will aid humans in creating those coincidences.
Across industries, the next generation of intelligent solutions are moving into physical environments. Technology Vision 2018
Small Business Owners
Be a Star — Professional financial advice for your employees. Provide them with tool to help them analyze their retirement portfolio health.
Get Funding — Top 100 Crowdfunding blogs and websites
Relearn Taxes — 10 Tax Saving Hacks
Pay 0 Interest Until 2020 — Banks are now offering incredibly long periods of 0% Intro APR interest. If are looking to make a big purchase in the coming months, switch cards and save money.
Emerging Space Economy
“If we find water resources on the Moon, we can develop a whole new resource industry in space."
Re-thinking and Re-Designing Real Estate
The company’s re-imagined “for sale” sign speaks to a growing recognition that real estate’s most valuable data originates in the real world.
Peril and Partners, Innovation and Integration in Cyber Trade
Samsung made the first super-fast, low-power memory chip specifically for 5G and AI-powered mobile applications.
Vodafone announced plans to use its network of IoT devices to develop a drone tracking system for commercial clients to protect their infrastructure.
Siemens signed a deal with Alibaba to roll out their industrial IoT products in China using Alibaba’s cloud infrastructure.
ZTE shares soared as it met a final US demand.
