17 Dec Monthly Trend Report – December

It’s December, the time of year where we start to feel the dip in temperature as we approach the end of the year, 2020 is coming to a close and there is still a large percentage of us who are either working or studying from home. To keep you and your skills up to date, here at Prepr we have prepared a report on some of the latest tech trends in each of the Industry Future Challenge (IFC) industries. 

 

Healthcare: Accurate Decisions Making with AI 

The application of Artificial Intelligence (AI) is now commonly used in the healthcare industry. For example, AI can be used to interpret data that is entered into the system and provide suggestions for treatment. This speeds up the clinical decision-making process because the process of analyzing large amounts of data is automated. A UK-based startup company, Babylon Health, has built an AI system that can efficiently read, comprehend and learn from anonymized, aggregated and consented medical datasets, patient health records and the consultation notes that clinicians make. Doctors can then use the information that was provided by the system to make informed decisions. 

 

Education: Immerse Students into Learning with VR

Virtual Reality (VR) is changing the way students learn in classrooms. VR can help to promote learning through engagement, as most people learn best by doing. The technology puts the students into a virtual world where they can interact with what’s in it, giving them a hands-on experience with the subject/ topic they are learning. For those who are interested in learning about the solar system or have a hard time grasping this topic, Titans of Space Plus is a VR educational software where users can explore and learn about the solar system. The users are taken on a tour around the solar system and with them, there is a guide explaining things as they go.

 

Manufacturing: The Rise of IoT

Automation plays a huge role in the manufacturing industry. Many companies have been, if not, are starting to invest in technology that will help to increase the efficiency and accuracy of their productions. A noticeable change that has occurred is the rise in the number of companies that are making investments into Internet of Things (IOT) devices. Devices such as sensors are located on the machines where data is collected and then communicated to the cloud. Companies can then access the information remotely allowing them to monitor the production and make any changes to the process from wherever they are.

 

Automotive/ Transportation: Making Deliveries in the Sky

Amidst the pandemic, people are trying to avoid having physical contact with others as much as possible. In our previous report, we had talked about contactless delivery using autonomous vehicles, for this report we will talk about drone delivery. Drone delivery as the name implies delivery is made using drones. Several companies, such as Alphabet and Dominos have already started making drone deliveries and it is expected that more companies will join in on this bandwagon. 

 

Energy: Construction Begins for the World’s Largest Battery Storage Facility

There has been a never-ending concern regarding the use of fossil fuels and their impact on the environment. Many businesses and organizations are constantly looking for innovative ways to improve their process/ production while reducing the amount of energy that they use. During the summer, Tesla and PG&E (Pacific Gas and Electric Company) had started the construction of what would be the world’s largest battery energy storage facility. Located in Moss Landing, Monterey County the facility stores renewable resources that can be used later, therefore decreasing the consumption of fossil fuel. 

 

Hospitality: Replacing Card Keys with Mobile Apps 

Personalization is one of the factors that influence customers’ experience in the hospitality industry. In recent years, the hotel business has seen a rise in the use of mobile room keys as opposed to regular plastic cards. Mobile room keys offer benefits such as allowing customers to check-in or out, order room service, and more through the use of an app. By implementing this technology, hotels will be able to personalize the customer experience while at the same time save on the cost that was used to produce and maintain the plastic cards.

 

Retail: Overcoming Hesitation Through Social Shopping 

Social shopping is a rising trend when shopping online. It is a method of shopping where social media sites/ applications are used to get opinions and or recommendations from others (i.e. friends/ family/strangers). Many of us are often hesitant during the purchasing stage. This is when companies like Preenster come into play. They created an application where users can get feedback on the item they plan on purchasing. Through this application, they can create polls for the item(s) they plan on purchasing and then send it out to people to participate. 

 

Food: Using AI to Monitor Crop Growth

Monitoring what happens on a farm is difficult and time-consuming. Now, with the help of AI technology farmers can now monitor their corps from anywhere. Ceres has created a farm management solution that uses aerial imagery and analytical tools to keep track of the progress. The data that comes from the solution will then provide insight as to problems that are occurring and provide suggestions for improvement. 

 

Technology: Real-Time Processing on the Edge

There is a constant demand for faster turnaround time when it comes to processing data. As the amount of data that is being collected expands, more time is needed to process the data. Introducing edge computing, which allows for data to be processed from the edge of the smart device rather than being processed in a cloud that is located far away. With edge computing, less time is needed to process data allowing for better operating performance. Mutable Cloud Platform created by Mutable allows for edge computing by offering companies space from underutilized nearby servers, thus giving them access to faster internet and processing speed. 

 

Environment – Natural Resources Canada: Investing in the Adoption of Electric Vehicles

Earlier this month the Government of Canada had invested $1 million into a project that addresses the concerns surrounding electric vehicles (EV), specifically to charging and the energy that is used. The company behind this project, SWTCH has proposed an innovative blockchain-based EV charging platform that will significantly reduce the cost of EV charging transactions and enhance grid efficiency. The goal of this project is to increase the number of EV owners/ users, therefore reducing the number of greenhouse gas emissions as fewer people use cars that run on fossil fuel. 

 

Government – Employment and Social Development Canada: Supporting Early Learning and Child Care

In 2018 the Government of Canada launched the Early Learning and Child Care Innovation Program. They had announced their plans to invest in innovative projects in hopes of improving the quality of early learning and child care across Canada by fostering cutting-edge practices. This year the Government will give priority to proposals that focus on post-pandemic recovery. 

 

Spotlight: Upcoming Challenges

 

The Industry Futur{e}Challenge is a recurring monthly challenge series that rotates through 10 core industries; Automotive, Energy, Food, Healthcare, Manufacturing, Retail, Technology, & Transportation, under the umbrella of 5 different verticals; AI/ML, Cybersecurity, Smart Cities, Growth, & Recovery.

 

 

 

The Future Sustainability Challenge is a recurring monthly challenge series

that aligns with the United Nations 17 Sustainable Development Goals, and tackles a diverse subsection of local and global issues in relation to the Industry Future Challenges each month.

 

 

 

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