Tech – Page 72

It’s not easy being green: How mobility will change in 2023

Next Featured, Tech / Rejus Almole / December 27, 2022

Few could have predicted the economic and geopolitical landscape that confronted the mobility sector in 2022. With the industry still reeling from materials shortages — particularly semiconductor chips — caused by COVID-19 lockdowns, the invasion of Ukraine has further tested the sector’s resiliency.

This has led to companies scrambling to wean themselves off Russian oil. The outcome of this has created a strong focus on renewable energy, including preservation, optimization of operational efficiency, and electrification, topics that’ll extend across all areas of mobility in 2023.

But there’s a lot more we can expect from the sector next year, and here are a few of those predictions.

Greater subsidized public transport

2022 saw countries like Spain and Germany subsidise public transport and these initiatives will extend into 2023.

France has banned short-haul domestic flights, reducing the cost of rail tickets along the way. We’ll likely see more countries investing in public transport to reduce citizens’ reliance on gas.

Solar electric vehicles (sEVs) will hit roads for the first time

We can expect big things for solar EVs in 2023. Sono Motors’ €25,000 solar electric hatchback, Sion, is expected to go into production in the second half of year. According to CEO Laurin Hahn, the company will begin fulfilling pre-orders within the EU after that. Although, the company is going through some issues.

Lightyear’s €250,000 Model “0” solar electric vehicle — which is developed in the Netherlands — will probably hit the roads alongside the Squad Solar City. Over in California, Aptera may also release its two-seater solar electric vehicle.

According to Sono Motor’s CEO, Hahn, the availability of technologically-advanced, safe, energy-producing solar electric vehicles — as opposed to simple energy-consuming EVs — represents a great leap forward in the electric vehicle industry to date.

He added: “Each of these companies are pioneers in an emerging industry that is committed to delivering on the dream of truly zero-emission mobility, which has evaded us for too long.”

Bidirectional charging to have its moment

Currently, EV bidirectional charging is a nice-to-have feature, but, in 2023, it will become far more sought after.

EV owners will want to reduce home and office energy costs, and using their EV as an alternative power source could be just the ticket.

Bidirectional charging usually requires a hardware investment. But according to Hahn, Sion could be among the first European car makers to offer consumers the ability to charge other vehicles or put energy back into a public or private grid (e.g. home grid) — without any additional hardware.

Ebikes are at a point of inflexion

2022 has been a great year for ebikes, with the hardware even outselling cars in the US. In much of Europe, they are becoming the ubiquitous mode of transport for urban dwellers.

Tanguy Goretti — co-founder and CTO of Cowboy — predicts a wider adoption amongst families who will continue to ditch their second car as it becomes too expensive to run. Ebikes provide families with “a more affordable, practical transport option that the whole household can share.”

TNW has reviewed many great ebikes for their great design and utility, but there’s also a considerable amount of software innovation that Goretti expects to grow in 2023.

He believes ebikes will have their iPhone moment, explaining that in the last 10 years, two significant hardware moments occurred: electrification and connectivity. He continued: “This is precisely what happened with iPhone or Tesla; hardware differences became less relevant, and software became the main element, and soon the ebike industry will follow suit.”

Micromobility will expand, but will struggle with profitability

2022 has been another big year for micromobility, as operators focused on expanding fleets and entering new markets. But the challenge of profitability has loomed large, leading to the layoffs we’ve seen across the entire tech ecosystem. This year major operators of shared micromobility services like Voi, Bird, and Tier have all significantly downsized.

lime scooter in paris — A Lime escooter being driven around Paris.

There’s also speculation that Paris may ban escooters in response to parking challenges and accidents, despite a boost in both ownership and ridership. The city’s contracts with Lime, Dott, and Tier are all up for renewal in February 2023, so expect to see the dangers of escooters dominating the French media.

Parking and sidewalk riding remain notable pain points, so expect to see more attention given to the technology that manages how escotoers are ridden and parked. Docking (and charging) solutions may become a critical part of city infrastructure in some public spaces to reduce clutter.

And then there’s Berlin. Beginning on Jan 1, bikes, escooters, scooters and motorcycles (rental or otherwise) can be parked in regular spaces free of charge. While I like the elevation of their status in the parking food chain, I’m just waiting for the hordes of angry car owners to drive over them.

There’s also good news in the UK with the Department for Transport extending trials of hire escooters until May 2024. This will be a litmus test as to whether vendors can improve rider behaviour and increase user numbers. That said, it’s unlikely we’ll see the ban lifted on private escooters, which are currently restricted to private land use.

The rise and rise of circular design

I predicted last year that circular design would be a key feature of 2022 — and this will continue.

As a reminder, circular design completely reimagines product creation, from the original blueprints to various lifecycle stages, and what happens to each element after it has fulfilled its original purpose.

Next year kicks off the expansion of global regulations for batteries and the origin of critical, but not infinite, materials like cobalt and lithium.

New EU Battery Regulations have created a series of mandatory incremental requirements. These force battery makers (and users like carmakers) to consider the battery lifecycle, from R&D to mining source materials, closing material recycling loops, and end-of-life battery management.

In practice, in 2023, we’ll see car and bike makers focused on closed-loop circularity where end-of-life parts are reused to make new designs. We can also expect an expansion of R&D in battery innovation from materials design to the development of reusable and repairable batteries.

Greater manufacturing of sustainable materials

In 2023, innovation will continue to grow in terms of the materials used to build our vehicles.

Volvo Electric Amazon truck — the first electric trucks from Volvo with fossil-free steel are now being delivered to customers.

This year, Swedish Volvo became the world’s first truck manufacturer to begin using fossil-free steel in its electric trucks. The steel is made by using a completely new technology with green electricity and hydrogen. The result is a significantly lower climate impact and an important step towards a net-zero emissions value chain.

Materials innovation also expands to bikes. Cycling Industries Europe, the industry trade body, is set to go all in on materials traceability and innovation in 2023.

Additionally, startup Roetz is working on a modular bike called Life, something made up of swappable parts. Modules will be repaired or remanufactured, ready for the next lifecycle. Roetz’s modular ebike will be launched in 2023.

Also, German company igus and Dutch company MTRL have partnered to create igus:bike, and what makes it so special is the fact that it is made from 90% recycled plastic waste, including the frame, bearings, brake levers, pedals, and belt.

So there we have it, just a few predictions for 2023. We know that even with challenges, the mobility sector is forever improving and evolving product offerings and changing how we move people and products for the better.

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How to make our homes and buildings more sustainable in 2023

Next Featured, Tech / Rejus Almole / December 26, 2022

According to the International Energy Association (IEA), the buildings sector in 2021 was responsible for around one-third of global energy and process-related CO2 emissions.

Specifically, 6% of these emissions resulted from the manufacture of cement, steel, and aluminium used for construction; 8% from the use of fossil fuels; and 19% from the generation of electricity and heat needed to maintain them.

This makes one thing clear: more attention needs to be paid to making our buildings greener and more sustainable.

Thankfully, 2023 will be the year when we start taking some significant steps towards this goal.

“The building sector has not received nearly the amount of attention that it deserves given the havoc it wreaks on the environment,” Talia Rafaeli, Partner at KOMPAS, a Copenhagen-based early-stage VC firm, told TNW.

“Next year, I think that the quicker we provide financing to scale sustainable technologies for the built environment, the faster we reach economies of scale to allow for widespread adoption,” she added.

Rafaeli specified that the investments should focus on the following: lower-emission concrete, green steel, cooling technologies to improve HVAC systems (heating, ventilation, and air conditioning), and heat pumps.

Optimistically, we’re already seeing European companies developing projects on lower-emission concrete and green steel production.

Among them, is the Finnish Betolar, a business is creating an alternative to cement-based concrete. There are also Swedish manufacturers H2 Green Steel and SSAB, which are developing hydrogen-based green steel solutions.

Yet, there is a lot to be done with pre-existing buildings. Dr Aidan Bell, co-founder of UK-based EnviroBuild maintains this is a “significant” step which should start with ensuring a house is well-insulated. “Roof and wall cavity insulation [in particular is] very cost-effective,” Bell told TNW.

There are also additional technologies for those who have already done the basics, he added, telling us about Airex a type of smart air brick that reduces heat loss.

Bell foresees two more trends picking up in 2023: the increased installation of solar PV panels on rooftops and the use of smart meters, which enable “better awareness of electricity peaks and troughs.” Even simple steps such as using machines overnight can assist in lowering peak demand on the national grid, he noted.

A way of encouraging this balance of energy consumption are flexibility services. Chantel Scheepers — CEO of OakTree Power — believes these are likely to become mainstream in 2023. The goal os these schemes is to offer consumers financial compensation for using less energy during peak times, she told TNW.

Scheepers noted that they’re gaining popularity in cities like London, where they’re being adopted by multinational companies, such as the Financial Times and Pinsent Masons — showing their “enormous potential” to optimize energy usage.

Ultimately, making our buildings more sustainable won’t happen in 2023 alone, but every small action we take is crucial in the long term — and there’s no time like the present to begin.

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Surprise: business leaders should be compassionate – here’s the evidence to prove it

business, House of Talent, Tech, Twitter / Paul Patrick / December 26, 2022

In the month after Elon Musk triumphantly announced his takeover of Twitter with his now famous “the bird is freed” tweet, he implemented a large-scale cull of the social media platform’s global workforce. While Musk’s rationale for this move was to make Twitter more efficient, how he carried out the cuts was widely criticised as showing a lack of compassion for employees.

Luckily, the public have spoken and Musk has promised to step down after embarrassingly being voted out in his own poll. But what can we learn from this and what kind of leader does Twitter need moving forward?

Twitter might instead benefit from a more thoughtful and caring approach to leadership. Research shows compassionate leaders boost staff morale and productivity, not to mention projecting a more positive image of an organisation and its brand to the world.

Compassion in this context can be taken to mean a leader who is understanding, empathetic, and that strives to help their employees. This kind of leadership is needed now more than ever. Businesses are facing difficult times because of the lasting effects of the pandemic and the rising cost of living. The UK was already experiencing a slump in productivity growth since the 2008 financial crisis and a decline in the standard of living, which is set to continue over the next two years. Brexit hasn’t helped this situation.

Such testing times warrant organizational leadership by compassionate and competent people with sound judgment and effective coordination skills. This also applies to political leadership. The UK has seen a lack of this in recent months while dealing with “partygate”, reported bullying, and harassment in government offices, and the dire effect of recent leadership decisions around the economy.

International leaders aren’t doing much better. The US appears to have become far more polarised, leading to the Capitol riots and suffered accusations of a “leadership vaccum” during the pandemic. In the EU, compassionate leadership appears to have been in short supply based on slow responses to COVID and the energy crisis. All of these examples suggest a need for more compassionate leadership.

What is a good leader?

Research shows that good leadership helps companies to be more competitive and boost performance, particularly concerning innovation and flexibility. One study argues that good leaders win followers because of three main attributes: sound judgment, expertise, and coordination skills. These qualities allow leaders to lead by example.

Unfortunately, however, not all leaders fit this bill. A recent Europe-wide study found 13% of workers have “bad” bosses, although participants tended to score their bosses worse on competence than consideration. Still, poor leadership can negatively affect workers’ morale, wellbeing, and productivity. A review of studies in this area reported that worker wellbeing tends to be better served when companies — and their leaders — allow workers to have some control and provide more opportunities for their voices to be heard and for greater participation in making decisions.

In addition to the competence and coordination skills highlighted in a lot of research to date, my research shows that “soft leadership skills” are also important. This is about being compassionate and making others — employees in particular, but also suppliers and customers — feel important. Leaders with such “people skills” are not just technically competent, they can also look at an issue from a human perspective, thinking about how it might affect people.

My recently published research used nationally representative data from the 2004 and 2011 workplace employment relations survey, which polls more than 3,000 organizations and over 35,000 workers. They were asked to score their managers on a five-point scale in terms of certain soft leadership skills, chosen to measure the impartiality, trustworthiness and empathy of leaders.

These employees were asked whether their managers:

could be relied on to keep their promises
were sincere in attempting to understand employees’ views
dealt with employees honestly
understood that employees had responsibilities outside work
encouraged people to develop their skills
treated employees fairly
and maintained good relations with employees.

The results suggest that workers’ perception of good quality leadership is also positively affected by managers being upbeat when discussing organisational performance. This kind of leadership boosts workers’ wellbeing, helping employees experience greater job satisfaction and lower levels of job anxiety.

This research suggests that compassionate leaders help to both enhance company performance and boost worker wellbeing. It shows that improving the quality of leadership is worthwhile. This can be achieved with recruitment, appraisal, and training of leaders that elevate soft leadership skills.

Good leaders matter. As organizations and society in general face particularly difficult times, compassionate leadership could make a real difference to future business success.

Getinet Astatike Haile, Associate Professor in Industrial Economics, University of Nottingham

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.

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Mainland Europe finally gets its first satellite launch facility

Next Featured, Tech / Paul Patrick / December 23, 2022

Story by

Ioanna Lykiardopoulou

Ioanna is a writer at SHIFT. She likes the transition from old to modern, and she’s all about shifting perspectives. Ioanna is a writer at SHIFT. She likes the transition from old to modern, and she’s all about shifting perspectives.

On January 13, 2023, Spaceport Esrange — mainland Europe’s first satellite launch facility — will be inaugurated in Sweden. This marks a critical milestone for the continent’s space industry.

Spaceport Esrange will provide the European Space Agency (ESA) with an independent getaway to the stars, enhancing its current capabilities in French Guiana.

At first, the spaceport will be used to launch satellites into orbit.

“Satellites are decisive for many functions of the daily lives of today’s modern world, and the need for them will only increase in the years to come with space playing an even more important role,” Stefan Gardefjord, CEO of the Swedish Space Corporation (SSC), said in a press release.

According to the SSC’s data, around 10,000 new satellites are expected to be launched over the next few years. By 2040, their total number could reach 100,000 — a 1,900% increase compared with the operational satellites in orbit today.

Mainland Europe will get its first satellite launch facility — Spaceport Esrange under construction in November 2021. Credit: Copyright SSC

Spaceport Esrange will also host testing of the ESA’s Themis program, which is Europe’s initiative for reusable rocketry. Themis’ reusable space launcher will start first-stage tests, seeking to achieve vehicle liftoff and recovery.

Finally, the facility will be used for suborbital test launches of various next-gen rockets.

Thanks to the above, Spaceport Esrange will help establish the continent’s resilience in space. As per Gardefjord, it will enable a “secure, competitive, and sustainable Europe.”

The launch of Spaceport Esrange will also be a huge positive for startups working in this sector. Not only will there be ample business opportunities, there’s also the question of talent. Having a launch facility will require skilled operators, many of whom will move into different companies, spreading their expertise across the whole continent and helping accelerate and grow Europe’s space sector.

At the moment, Spaceport Esrange is trying to attract satellite owners and orbital rocket manufacturers for potential partnerships. The first satellite launch is expected late 2023.

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The European Innovation Council splashes some cash on another 78 startups

Next Featured, Tech / Paul Patrick / December 22, 2022

Story by

Ioanna Lykiardopoulou

As part of the 2022 European Innovation Council (EIC) Accelerator program, the Commission selected 78 startups and SMEs to receive up to €470 million in funding.

Depending on its needs, each company will get up to €17.5 million in grants and/or equity investments.

The latter will be made through the EIC Fund, which is now “fully operational” after appointing Luxembourg-based Alter Domus as an external fund manager to streamline the equity payment process and avoid past delays.

The selected companies span across 17 EU and EEA nations, with the addition of Israel and the UK.

Among them, 17% of startups and SMEs are located in Germany, 14% in the Netherlands, and 12% in France and Spain, respectively. These countries combined make up 53% of the total selection.

Below you can see a detailed graph of the number of companies selected in each country:

European Innovation Council's Accelerator funding or startups and SMEs in 2022 — Source: EIC Accelerator

And you can observe on the map below, the selected startups are mostly located in Western and Northern Europe, while Eastern countries in the EU/EEA aren’t represented at all:

European Innovation Council Accelerator funding 2022 for startups and SMEs

Notably, the sector that attracts most funding by the EIC is health — with 51% of the selected companies offering technologies for medical solutions. Other industries include mobility, climate management, energy storage, agriculture, manufacturing, and AI.

Here are three notable examples of the finalists:

Spanish Inbrain Neuroelectronics is engineering graphene for the development of neural interfaces, seeking to revolutionize the treatment of neurological diseases.
Estonia-based Efenco is aiming to reduce natural gas needs and carbon emissions in industrial usage by enabling the industry’s transition to hydrogen with HERC, a novel plasma-assisted combustion (PAC) technology.
Energy Dome in Italy is working on a long-duration battery energy storage system based on a closed thermodynamic loop that uses CO2 as working fluid. Thanks to the properties of carbon dioxide, the system can store energy efficiently and cost effectively.

These 78 companies will join the 314 selected for funding by the European Innovation Council so far. This is bound to grow, as the EIC’s Accelerator fund has secured €1.13 billion for 2023.

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Why supporting Ukraine’s tech ecosystem is so important

Entrepreneur, Europe, Growth Quarters, Tech / Rejus Almole / December 22, 2022

War has decimated much of Ukraine’s economy, but a notable exception is the IT sector. As of November, the industry’s annual export revenues had hit a record $5.5 billion — 13% more than in the same period last year.

Since Russia invaded in February, 58% of Ukrainian tech firms have processed new orders from clients. Despite brutal assaults, martial law, and general mobilization, 85% have restored their pre-war business activities. That’s according to Lviv IT Cluster, a community of companies, universities, and local authorities.

“Ukraine’s tech industry is not only showing the ability to operate fully, but it’s demonstrating growth,” says Stepan Veselovskyi, the group’s CEO. “The export of IT services grew by 9.9% compared to last year, and brought in more than $6 billion in revenue, surpassing the 2021 figure by $542 million.”

Veselovskyi (center) at the IT Arena conference, which his organization runs. Credit: Lviv IT Cluster

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This triumph over adversity has been indispensable for Ukraine. While conflict ravages the country’s coffers, the sector provides wages for workers, taxes for the economy, and technical support for the war effort. Tech provides the military with encrypted communications, UAVs, and cyber defenses, and civilians with digital IDs, air raid alerts, and online payments.

IT will also be integral to the post-war recovery — but getting there will be tough.

It can be mutually beneficial.

A summer survey by Lviv IT Cluster found that over 50,000 IT workers had relocated since the invasion, while a further 7,000 had joined the armed forces. Those that remain now endure blackouts caused by attacks on infrastructure. Some fear that empathy from clients will dwindle as war fatigue sets in.

As the challenges mount, help from overseas becomes increasingly crucial. But the benefits of support extend far beyond altruism.

“Charity is good, but you can also work with companies. It can be mutually beneficial,” says Oleksandr Yatsenko, managing partner at BRISE Capital, a Kyiv-based investment firm.

Yatsenko (far right) also works for the Ukrainian Startup Fund and software firm Finmap. Credit: Lviv IT Cluster

Indeed, Ukraine’s tech ecosystem has a unique blend of assets. The country’s rich history in computer science laid the foundations for a thriving sector. Today, it encompasses over 200,000 IT specialists and one of the world’s biggest pools of tech talent. Stellar programming skills, a high level of English, and a timezone that overlaps well with both the US and Europe comprise a compelling package.

These attributes have made Ukraine a global hub for IT outsourcing. Now, the country wants to turn its expertise into domestic tech giants.

President Zelensky’s administration has made bold moves to bring these ambitions to reality. this future. In 2019, his government established the Ministry of Digital Transformation. By 2024, the department aims to put every public service online, expand access to high-speed Internet; teach 6 million Ukrainians digital skills, and increase tech’s share in GDP to 10%. It currently accounts for around 4.5%.

Industry is united with government.

To reach these goals, the government has championed business-friendly policies: low taxation, minimal paperwork, and massive deregulation, alongside extensive anti-corruption reforms and funding initiatives, such as the Ukrainian Startup Fund.

This program has been bolstered by collaboration between the public and private sectors. War has made both sides appreciate their interdependence.

“The world should know that industry is united with the government and they help each other,” says Ivan Babichuk, chairman of the supervisory board of Lviv IT Cluster. “And it makes [Ukraine] a protective and secure place to run a business — despite the whole security issue around the country.”

Babichuk (right) in conversation with Ukrainian official Alex Bornyakov. Credit: Lviv IT Cluster

The hardships of war have added further qualities. Ukraine’s digital infrastructure and economy has been remarkably resilient since the full-scale invasion, while the workforce has acquired a rare blend of courage and adaptability. New skills in crisis management, leadership, teamwork, and efficiency have been forged in conflict.

“Most companies have retained customers and the volume of their contracts,” says Alex Bornyakov, Ukraine’s Deputy Minister of Digital Transformation. “Ukrainian developers have shown that they are capable of doing their job well even under extreme conditions. For the whole world, this is an indicator that Ukraine is a reliable partner and an attractive investment destination.”

We’ve become more active — and stronger.

Some tech businesses have thrived since the invasion. Take Mosqitter, which won the prestigious IT Arena Startup Competition in 2021. While the conflict escalated, the company grew its team and developed a new product line.

“Difficulties bring you opportunities and possibilities for growth,” says Olga Diachuk, the company’s COO. “It shows you who you really are, what you are made of, and how smart you are.”

Digital businesses also typically require fewer physical resources — which makes their revenues increasingly important to Ukraine. Brick-and-mortar stores, for instance, are now more likely to close due to safety concerns than e-commerce sites.

Nonetheless, tech firms face immense challenges of their own. Investment from overseas will be crucial a component of their future fortunes.

“It’s very important to keep the support of the local tech ecosystem from outside as Western-based funds do,” says Joachim Laqueur, General Partner at VC firm Acrobator Ventures.

“Technology is such a long-term beneficial force. Now we’re seeing the first wave of successful companies breaking the ground. Even during the time of war, these people, these companies are able to address problems that are not restricted by borders.”

Laquer (second from right) was on the jury for the 2022 IT Arena Startup Competition, which was won by WRAP, an app that automates video production flows. Credit: Lviv IT Cluster

People who already invest in Ukraine note that war is fostering a unique set of skills. For example, thousands of volunteer hackers have joined the IT army, an organization that’s defending Ukraine against Russia’s vaunted hacker groups.

Members of the group have attained unparalleled experience. Mykhailo Fedorov, the country’s Minister of Digital Transformation, describes the conflict they’ve withstood as “the first world cyber war.” The volunteers now want to share their expertise with international allies.

“Ukrainian tech companies are strengthening their cyber defense capabilities, and can help other countries better understand the nature of modern cyberattacks,” says Veselovskyi, the Lviv IT Cluster CEO.

The First World Cyber War. The first IT Army in the world. 270K of angry IT-warriors of cyber frontline. Rutube shutdown. AI tech & identification of war criminals. And many more cases to disclose after the victory. You are free to join, by the way. pic.twitter.com/3PDP075nU5

— Mykhailo Fedorov (@FedorovMykhailo) May 26, 2022

Despite these strengths, the potential of Ukraine’s tech sector will only be fulfilled through support from the international community. For Veselovskyi, the simplest way they can help is by cutting all ties with Russia.

“The next step is motivating your local governments to support Ukraine and get involved with Ukraine’s fundraising initiatives,” he says. “The future safety and economic prosperity of Europe depend on the victory of Ukraine on the battlefield. You can start working with Ukrainian companies already today through our B2B platform Lviv Tech.”

To forecast the sector’s future, Veselovskyi’s team surveyed over 5,000 tech industry representatives. In the most positive scenario, which presupposes European integration and liberalization of the economy, 78% of the respondents would remain in Ukraine. A further 12% would try to move abroad, while another 10% are yet to decide.

The best way to help Ukraine is to invest in Ukraine.

This outcome can provide the foundations for a flourishing post-war industry. To build this, continued support from Europe will be essential. Government officials have sought to spread this message at IT events around the world.

“We tell them one specific thing: the best way to help Ukraine is to invest in Ukraine,” says Bornyakov, the Deputy Minister of Digital Transformation. “Work with Ukrainian companies, give money to Ukrainian startups, and if you are able to hire Ukrainian freelancers, do it.”

The stakes are extremely high. IT remains the only industry in Ukraine that still shows growth. If it shrinks, the whole country will suffer. If it expands, however, the sector can help Ukraine not only survive, but flourish.

Why supporting Ukraine’s tech ecosystem is so important Read More »

The Autobahn’s upcoming wireless EV charging isn’t for you

Next Featured, Tech / Mike M. / December 21, 2022

Story by

Ioanna Lykiardopoulou

As we’re moving towards an EV-dominated future, efforts to introduce wireless on-road charging systems are increasing.

Now, Germany’s famous Autobahn will welcome its own wireless charging system — although it won’t be available to individual EV drivers. Instead, it will power a public bus transporting passengers to the city of Balingen.

The technology will be provided by Israeli wireless charging company Electreon, which will collaborate with German EnBW — an EV charging infrastructure provider — for the realization of the project.

Electreon will deploy 1km of Electric Road System (ERS) along a stretch of the Autobahn, providing dynamic wireless charging while the bus is in motion. This will be accompanied by two static charging stations placed at stops along the bus route.

The project consists of two phases: firstly, the deployment of a 400-meter-long route with two static charging stations. Secondly, the expansion of the electric road by another 600 meters.

Notably, this endeavor follows a successful pilot of the two companies in the Germany city of Karlsruhe. An electrified road was installed at the EnBW training center, powering a local public bus at peak hours.

“We have already shown in our joint Karlsruhe project with EnBW how effective, safe, and easy to deploy wireless dynamic charging is. We hope this is the start of many more projects on public and private roads in Germany,” Dr. Andreas Wendt, CEO of Electreon Germany, said in the press release.

The Israeli company has run wireless on-road charging projects in Italy and Sweden as well.

But although Electreon and several US-based companies are testing the tech, only a few European companies are active in the field. These include Italian Enermove, German-based Magment, and Swedish Elonroad.

Wireless on-road charging could play a pivotal role in eliminating range anxiety and the inconvenience of long charging times at stations. This, in turn, will facilitate the transition to electric vehicles.

On the downside, it requires a tremendous change (and investment) in infrastructure, which, by the time it is realized, might turn out to be obsolete as a result of technological advancements in conventional charging stations. Perhaps, the European industry is taking a wait-and-see approach before shelling out all that cash.

The Autobahn’s upcoming wireless EV charging isn’t for you Read More »

Psst, automating these 3 parts of your business is the best thing you can do right now

Artificial Intelligence, business, Neural, Tech / Rejus Almole / December 21, 2022

Content provided by IBM and TNW

Thanks to the convergence of several trends and changes across different markets and industries, automation is becoming a critical factor in the success of businesses and products. Advances in artificial intelligence, in parallel with the accelerating digitization of all aspects of business, are creating plenty of opportunities to automate operations, reduce waste, and increase efficiency.

From managing your Information Technology (IT) bill to finding bottlenecks in your business processes and taking control of your own network operations, here are three areas where companies can gain from applying automation.

1. IT automation

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Practically every large organization has IT. Even small companies that don’t have in-house IT staff may pay for another company to do it for them. The growing demand for IT can put extra strain on professionals who must deal with the ever-expanding and changing landscape of application and compute platforms.

“I’ve never met an IT person or CIO who said they have so much time and budget that they can do everything the business asks and more. There’s always a shortage of ability to drive projects through IT,” says Bill Lobig, Vice President of IBM Automation Product Management.

The talent shortage is highlighting the need to provide automation tools to IT staff so they can manage application uptime and keep IT operations stable.

Fortunately, advances in artificial intelligence are helping companies move toward smart automation by gathering and processing all sorts of structured and unstructured data.

“We’re seeing companies have more confidence in applying AI to a broader set of data, including log files and metrics and information that are spinning off of the systems that are running in your business (databases, app servers, Kubernetes, VMs),” Lobig says.

Previously, IT experts may have optimized their infrastructure through informed judgments and overprovisioning their resources. Now, they can take the guesswork out of their decisions by using AI to analyze the data of the IT infrastructure, find patterns, estimate usage, and optimize their resources.

For example, J.B. Hunt, a logistics and transportation company, uses IBM Turbonomic software to automate the scaling of its cloud and on-premise resources. For their on-premises environment, J.B. Hunt is automating all non-disruptive actions 24×7 and scaling non-production actions during a nightly maintenance window.

“Workloads scale and spike—it’s not static. No matter how much performance testing and capacity you put into sizing an application deployment, it’s a guess, albeit an educated one. You don’t really know how your customers’ workloads are going to vary across different times,” Lobig says.

In their public cloud environment, the J.B. Hunt team has been using a combination of recommendations and automated actions to manage their resources. Over the course of 12 months, Turbonomic executed nearly 2,000 resizing actions which—assuming manual intervention requires 20 minutes per action—freed up over 650 hours of the team’s time to focus on strategic initiatives.

2. Business processes

Business processes are another area that can gain from advances in AI and automation. The previous wave of automation in business processes was mostly driven by robotic process automation (RPA). While RPA has had a tremendous effect on productivity, like other solutions, it has limits too.

RPA only addresses tasks that you think need automation. It can automate a poorly designed process but can’t optimize it. It also can’t handle tasks that can’t be defined through deterministic rules. This is where “process and task mining” enter the picture. According to Lobig:

RPA executes scripts to automate what you tell it to do. It’s very deterministic and rigid in what it can do, automating highly repeatable tasks. Process and task mining find inefficiencies you can’t see.

Process and task mining can answer questions such as, is your business really running the way you think it is? Is everyone completing processes in the same way? What should you optimize first? It helps you get past the low-hanging fruit and find the hidden inefficiencies of your business that can also be addressed with automation.

3. Networking

In the past, networking was a specialized hardware-based discipline largely controlled by big telecommunications companies. Today, the networking ecosystem is more complex as enterprises now require ubiquitous application distribution in a hybrid multi-cloud environment, from customer prem, to edge, to private and public clouds.

The challenge is deploying and connecting all application endpoints at scale. Networks must be agile and dynamic to maintain application performance, availability, security and user experience. Today’s networks, however, face unprecedented challenges that can render them unresponsive and unadaptable to change. Enterprise and service providers can address those needs, delivering custom enterprise network value with self-service enterprise control.

Organizations can now own and manage their networking functions and end-to-end connectivity without being experts in switches, routers, radio-access networks, and other hardware.

“Networking has become just another part of the application supply chain (like databases, VMs, and containers) that companies are already running. Why not have your network be part of your full IT landscape so that you can apply AI to optimize it?” Lobig says.

For example, consider a large multinational bank that provides its customers access to their accounts overseas through ATM machines. The company previously outsourced network connectivity to a big telco. When the telco faced an outage in one country where the bank provided service, the customers could not access their funds. Although the bank didn’t have control over the networking service, it was fined for the outage.

Now, thanks to software-defined wide area network (SD-WAN) and automation and orchestration tools such as IBM’s AIOps solutions and IBM SevOne Network Performance Management, the bank can assume control of its own software-defined network, instead of shifting such an important responsibility to another company. New application-centric network connectivity can enhance those capabilities. This can drive enhanced security, intelligent observability, and service assurance, while providing a common way to manage networks across the diversity of infrastructure, tools, and security constructs.

Another area of networking that will provide new opportunities for automation is 5G.

“A lot of people think about 5G as a faster networking technology. But 5G is going to transform and disrupt B2B use cases. It can really bring edge computing to the forefront,” Lobig says.

There’s an opportunity for organizations to leverage software-defined networking and 5G to unlock new business models where high-bandwidth, low latency, and local connectivity is crucial.

An example is DISH Wireless, a company that’s working with IBM to automate the first greenfield cloud-native 5G network in the US. DISH Wireless is using IBM’s network orchestration software and services to bring 5G network orchestration to its business and operations platforms. One application they’re working on is enabling logistics companies to track package locations down to the centimeter, thanks to edge connectivity, RFID tags, and network management software.

“We’re helping them do this with our telco and network computing automation, edge computing automation, and enabling them to set up state-of-the-art orchestration for their customers. These unexpected industries can use 5G to really transform how business gets done across different areas,” Lobig says.

Where is the industry headed?

Automation is quickly evolving and we’re bound to see many new applications in the coming months and years. For companies that are at the beginning of their automation journey, Lobig has a few tips.

In the business automation space, look at process and task mining. Do you really know where the time is being spent in your enterprise? Do you know how work is getting done? If you use this technology, you’ll be able to identify the patterns and sequence of events that go into good outcomes and those that go into bad outcomes. Armed with these insights, you can redesign and automate the processes that have the biggest impact upon your business.

Lobig also believes that IT automation will be a bigger theme in 2023 as the world faces an energy crisis and electricity costs potentially become an escalating problem. IT automation can help organizations to use the capacity they need, which may translate into savings.

IT automation can also be important in tackling the climate change crisis.

“These days, you can tell whether your organization’s data center or workload is running on a renewable energy source,” Lobig says. “With that data, IT automation has the potential to automatically move workloads from cloud to on-prem and back and across hyper-scalers to optimize for costs and efficiencies.”

As for the future, Lobig believes that low-code/no-code application platforms will play an important role in automation by enabling more employees to build the automations that can enhance productivity.

Psst, automating these 3 parts of your business is the best thing you can do right now Read More »

5 job hunting tips to get your dream role in 2023

Design & Dev, House of Talent, Tech / Rejus Almole / December 20, 2022

As the new year approaches, many of us are thinking of moving into a new role or career in 2023. It’s an exciting time to try something new. But, don’t let the labor shortage fool you, the job market is more competitive than ever.

While there are plenty of opportunities out there, particularly in the tech sector, the rise of remote working also means that job seekers in 2023 will be competing against a global talent pool.

Two candidates may be equally qualified, but one will have the edge over the other because they know how to present that experience in the most effective––and relevant––way. Along with nailing the perfect CV, there are lots of steps you can take to maximize your employment chances.

Here are five tricks to help you land your dream job.

1. Get to grips with ATS keywords

While it might not be true that recruiters only look at a CV for six seconds, there are other challenges to getting your application noticed. Enter: Applicant Tracking Systems (ATS).

Businesses are using this software to filter or rank applications (99% of Fortune 500 Companies are believed to use ATS) and, if your application doesn’t contain the right search terms, it may not be picked up.

ATS keywords are specific words or phrases that employers have identified as requirements for a role. Keep them in mind as you tailor your application to each job you apply for. Match keywords and job titles from the job listing and keep the formatting of your CV simple and clear.

2. Focus on specifics

Whether it’s on a CV, an application, or in an interview, get specific about your achievements. Identify the headlines, as it were, of your job experience. It could be that successful project, that key client win, or that growth in revenue that helps you stand out.

You don’t have to embellish what you’ve achieved, this is about contextualizing it for potential new employers. Having topline stats, achievements, or successes to share can also highlight your transferable skills if you’re hoping to move into a new area.

3. Update your online presence

Your online presence can have a bigger impact than you may think. Considering how you represent “Brand You” online can provide new opportunities to showcase why you’re the best person for the job.

Update your LinkedIn profile to full effect. Recruiters scout for talent on LinkedIn, so make sure you have an up-to-date work history, achievements, and other relevant information. Share your work and successes on your Twitter, Instagram, and other social media platforms.

4. Network for the long term

Networking doesn’t have to be as blunt as trying to land a new job through someone directly. Consider it an exercise in making connections, and don’t forget about mutually beneficial networking. Perhaps you can connect two people who can help each other out? Developing a good reputation and a professional network of contacts can only be a good thing.

If you’re trying to break into a new area, ask to meet a mentor or someone you admire for a coffee. Make it clear it’s just a chat and you don’t expect anything. You may pick up some valuable advice, and they may remember you if an opportunity does arise.

5. Keep track of opportunities

Job boards are a fantastic place to begin your job search. Sign up to mailing lists and join online groups related to the areas you’re interested in. Follow key people on social media and keep an eye on what they share and post.

While there may not be actual job listings, it’s good research and will keep you up-to-date on your industry. You never know when the ideal opportunity might pop up. And when it comes to job sites, bookmark them and commit time to checking them regularly for new postings and insights into potential employers.

If you’re considering a move in the new year, there are three interesting job opportunities below. Be sure to check out the House of Talent Job Board for thousands of available job openings.

Data Science Lead, Accenture, Dublin

Accenture is a global professional services company working across disciplines including digital, cloud, and security. This role sits within The Dock’s Havoc team, which is made up of 60 entrepreneurial problem solvers and based in Dublin, Ireland. You’ll own, drive, and execute the team’s data science strategy, and work to identify data science opportunities within client projects. You should have strong academic qualifications in a relevant field and experience in data science applications is also a must. Looking for a different opportunity? Check out further roles with Accenture here.

Software Asset Manager, WPP, London

WPP is a creative transformation company and offers clients a range of communications, experience, commerce, and technology services. In this London-based role you’ll be responsible for operating the Software Asset Management (SAM) practice to optimise WPP’s asset base and manage/reduce risk. The successful applicant will need to have experience working in an IT asset management role and in working with ITAM or CMDB tools. Expertise in end-to-end SAM ownership for vendors such as IBM, Oracle, Microsoft, SAP, and VMware is also a must. WPP is also hiring for a number of other roles, which you can find here.

Backend Engineer, Purchase Risk Management, Zalando, Berlin

Ecommerce fashion platform Zalando connects customers, brands, and partners across 23 markets. This backend engineer position sits within a dynamic and diverse group of engineers and applied scientists. The role offers the opportunity to work on cutting edge projects, improve Zalando’s operational excellence and shape the team’s way of working. You’ll need up to three years experience as a backend engineer for cloud-based technologies––preferably on AWS––and knowledge of object oriented programming such as Java and Python. Zalando has even more opportunities here.

To find your next career adventure and discover even more exciting job opportunities browse The House of Talent Job Board today

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Europe’s first-ever exascale supercomputer will launch in Germany next year

Next Featured, Tech / Rejus Almole / December 20, 2022

Story by

Ioanna Lykiardopoulou

JUPITER is set to become the first European supercomputer to make the leap into the exascale era. This means, it’ll be capable of performing more than an exaflop (or 1 quintillion) operations per second. In other words, the device’s computing power will surpass that of 5 million laptops or PCs combined.

The European High Performance Computing Joint Undertaking (EuroHPC JU), which is being behind the project, has now signed a hosting agreement with the Jülich Supercomputing Centre (JSC) in Germany, where JUPITER will be located.

Under the terms of the agreement, JUPITER (which stands for “Joint Undertaking Pioneer for Innovative and Transformative Exascale Research”) will be installed on the campus of the Forschungszentrum Jülich research institute in 2023. The machine will be operated by the JSC.

This new supercomputer will be backed by a €500million budget, split equally between the EuroHPC JU and German federal and state sources.

JUWELS supercomputer Germany — Germany’s fastest supercomputer, JUWELS. Credit: Forschungszentrum Jülich / Sascha Kreklau

A major technological milestone for Europe

JUPITER’s remarkable power will support the development of high-precision models of complex systems. The machine will be used to analyse key societal issues in Europe, such as health, biology, climate, energy, security, and materials. It will also support intensive use of AI and analysis of enormous data volumes.

Experts expect the computer to improve research quality (while reducing costs), and integrate future technologies such as quantum computing. The device will be available to a wide range of European users in the scientific community, industry, and public sector.

Along with its outstanding computing power, JUPITER will feature a dynamic, modular architecture, which will enable optimal use of the various computing modules used during complex simulations. Notably, JUPITER has been designed as a “green” supercomputer and will be powered by green electricity, supported by a warm water cooling system. At the same time, its average power consumption is anticipated to be up to 15 megawatts — approximately six megawatts less than the US Frontier exascale supercomputer.

Upon completion, JUPITER will become the ninth (and best) supercomputer the EuroHPC JU has provided to Europe. Three are expected to be available shortly, and five are already operational. Among them is LUMI, which has been ranked the fastest in the EU and third fastest in the world.

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GraphQL could be the key to taming the API explosion

Apps, Design & Dev, Future of Work, Tech / Rejus Almole / December 20, 2022

Application development has a long history of quick evolution and transformation, perhaps faster than any other industry. The tools we use to create and host our applications are constantly changing.

The fast developments in programming tools provide plenty of opportunities to create software for companies of different sizes, industries, and budgets. However, the added flexibility and diversity of tools — as well as the constantly changing landscape — also introduce their own set of challenges.

Developers must be able to create their apps in ways that can adapt to the scale and changes that their organization, customers, and infrastructure undergo. Fortunately, with the shift toward graph-based programming, companies will be much better equipped to maintain their agility as they continuously grow and adapt to the needs of their customers.

The challenges of modern application development

One of the blessings — and curses — of modern application development is the many options you have.

You can choose between running your application on your own servers, in the cloud, or in a hybrid model. You can use a serverless model, where a cloud provider manages your server in the background and you focus on functionality, or choose a containerized model, where your application is packaged into a docker file. You can choose between different models of data hosting and storage, including data warehouses and data lakes. And you can make these and many other choices for each component of your application.

The benefit of this powerful variety of computing and storage platforms is that you can adjust your application according to the needs of your customers and your organization. However, the downside is the added complexity that comes with communicating with the many different service APIs that support your application.

GraphQL helps developers communicate with APIs through flexible and structured data queries.

“Many applications must communicate with dozens, even hundreds of services during runtime. In some cases, every application update (mobile, web, etc.) requires hundreds of API calls to different services,” says Peggy Rayzis, Sr. Director of Developer Experience at Apollo Graph, Inc. “This requires a huge and complicated effort by developers, who must ensure all these different services are compatible and can interoperate.”

The added complexity also makes it difficult to iterate, add or modify features, or change the underlying infrastructure. In each case, redundant implementations and inconsistencies between services force developers to go through intensive changes in their code to connect all the old and new services.

Graph-based programming to the rescue

One of the trends helping developers tackle the complexity of the application ecosystem is graph-based programming. Graph-based programming enables developers to add a data schema layer between their application and the API services that run behind the scenes. This layer of abstraction decouples these parts and enables them to evolve without causing major disruptions in each other.

“Basically, the idea is that you add an intermediate layer that enables your application to interact with your data entities by querying a graph,” Rayzis says. “The graph layer is uniform and flexible, regardless of what kind of infrastructure is working behind the scenes, whether it’s an on-prem server, a cloud VM, a REST API, a data warehouse, or a serverless function such as AWS Lambda.”

Graph-based programming was popularized by GraphQL, a data-query language introduced by Facebook in 2015. GraphQL helps developers communicate with APIs through flexible and structured data queries. This makes it easier for the developer to focus on the data schema and logic of the application and also maintain the stability of the application as the APIs evolve and change.

We’re seeing 30% of fortune 500 companies building their apps on the supergraph.

Companies and applications of different sizes can benefit from graph-based programming. Rayzis says:

Regardless of size and structure, every application can benefit from graph-based development. As your app grows or your data infrastructure changes, your graph remains consistent and remains tied to the logic of your app.

For example, Walmart used GraphQL to create a federated schema of different entities used across their different applications and services offered on web and mobile. With GraphQL, they could remove a lot of the code being replicated across their APIs, unify their applications, and become much more agile in rolling out features and improving the user experience.

The next generation of graph-based tools

“What we found over our six-plus years working with developers implementing GraphQL at scale is that its flexibility is its greatest strength, but it can also lead to some negative consequences if it isn’t implemented in a principled way,” Rayzis says.

These limitations led to the idea of the supergraph, Apollo’s special implementation of GraphQL. The supergraph goes beyond the basic benefits of GraphQL, which are to replace data-fetching and backend for frontend (BFF) code with schema and queries. It brings together a company’s data, microservices, and digital capabilities, creating a unified composition layer for the whole organization. The supergraph architecture is built on Apollo’s open technology, Apollo Federation. Apollo also provides GraphOS, a cloud-based platform of tools with an edge runtime and schema delivery pipeline for the supergraph. According to Rayzis:

The supergraph allows you to distribute the graph schema across different teams and different services, but then unify it together into one interface for the client. It’s about solving real customer problems. It’s based on our years of experience, helping customers implement GraphQL. And really, the main principles are that it’s one unified layer, built-in modules that you can evolve over time.

One of the companies that have benefited from the supergraph is Booking.com, one of the world’s largest online travel agencies. Booking.com has been around since 1996 and is thus running a lot of legacy code and infrastructure. This makes it very challenging to change the software architecture, especially as the company employs thousands of engineers and needs to make sure they can collaborate safely.

Thanks to the flexibility and versatility of the supergraph, Booking.com was able to make a phased transition to GraphQL without breaking any of their services. As they gradually rolled out the supergraph across the organization, the engineers and managers realized its benefits and helped accelerate the transition. The full adoption of the supergraph has enabled Booking.com to ship 40% faster, sometimes doubling the speed at which they’re releasing features. At the same time, they’ve managed to considerably reduce mistakes and breaking changes.

“We’re seeing 30% of fortune 500 companies building their apps on the supergraph. And I think that number is only going to increase in the years to come,” Rayzis says.

It’s going to dramatically lower the barrier for app development and make it so that more developers can create apps. It’s going to continue to reduce the time needed to create those apps. And so by making it more approachable, and reducing that time, you’re going to see even more innovation.

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European startups in residential solar have raised over €500 million in 2022

Next Featured, Tech / Rejus Almole / December 20, 2022

Over the past year, the skyrocketing fuel prices across Europe have increased consumer interest in alternative sources of energy, such as solar power. And as demand has been on the rise, 2022 was a good funding year for startups focusing on providing photovoltaic (PV) technology to residential customers.

Specifically, European startups in the sector have raised over €488 million — and that’s excluding the €855-million debt funding round attracted by Berlin-based unicorn Enpal.

Notably, 86.4% of the amount has been injected in German-based startups, including 1Komma5°, Zolar, Sunhero, Enpal, Einhundert, and Sunvigo.

1Komma5° has received the highest funding throughout the year at €200 million. Founded in 2021, the company has secured high-tier investors such as Porsche and is introducing an interesting business strategy: aggregating individual companies that offer solar services and bundling them together.

Beyond Germany, residential solar tech companies that have seen an increase in capital are also active in Spain (Samara), Sweden (Sunroof), Norway (Otovo), Estonia (Solarstone), and the UK (Naked Energy, Solivus).

Among them, Spain-based Samara offers another interesting case. Founded in the summer of 2022, the startup has managed to raise €6.4 million within six months.

The company uses software to develop a comprehensive, customer-centered solution, ranging from the installation of solar panels to EV chargers. The technology enables users to preview solar panel installation through a 3D model, estimate energy savings, and calculate their positive environmental impact through a decrease in CO2 emissions.

What all the companies have in common is the aim to enable the transition to solar energy by focusing on affordability and convenience: from easy installation practices and maintenance services to customizable options and energy monitoring tools.

Overall, 2022 has enabled startups in the space to attract even more capital, demonstrating their potential to provide better services to consumers, and in turn, promote further the switch to solar power.

And as Europe is pushing for the adoption of sustainable forms of energy, we can expect that solar tech startups will see higher investment in the coming year.

Published December 19, 2022 – 4: 31 pm UTC

European startups in residential solar have raised over €500 million in 2022 Read More »