Lifeboat Foundation

If the combination of Covid-19 and remote work technologies like Zoom have undercut the role of cities in economic life, what might an even more robust technology like the metaverse do? Will it finally be the big upheaval that obliterates the role of cities and density? To paraphrase Airbnb CEO Brian Chesky: The place to be was Silicon Valley. It feels like now the place to be is the internet.

The simple answer is no, and for a basic reason. Wave after wave of technological innovation — the telegraph, the streetcar, the telephone, the car, the airplane, the internet, and more — have brought predictions of the demise of physical location and the death of cities.

Remote work has become commonplace since the beginning of the Covid-19 pandemic. But the focus on daily remote work arrangements may miss a larger opportunity that the pandemic has unearthed: the possibility of a substantially increased labor pool for digital economy work. To measure interest in digital economy jobs, defined as jobs within the business, finance, art, science, information technology, and architecture and engineering sectors, the authors conducted extensive analyses of job searches on the Bing search engine, which accounts for more than a quarter of all desktop searches in the U.S. They found that, not only did searches for digital economy jobs increase since the beginning of the pandemic, but those searches also became less geographically concentrated. The single biggest societal consequence of the dual trends of corporate acceptance of remote work and people’s increased interest in digital economy jobs is the potential geographic spread of opportunity.

Continue reading “Who Gets to Work in the Digital Economy?” »

Please see my article published today in Skytop Strategies. Thanks and have a great weekend!

Essential emerging technology: companies are woefully unprepared by chuck brooks.

Link to article:

Continue reading “Skytop Strategies” »

Weighing cost vs. benefit

For small business owners, implementing sustainability initiatives may seem more like a pipe dream than a tangible goal, as the technology can be costly to implement. What’s more, businesses that are using technology to drive sustainability must employ talented workers who can tap into those resources and streamline operations for the greatest economic and environmental benefit.

However, as companies can leverage automation and data analytics to increase efficiency, adjust energy usage, reduce waste and otherwise help with sustainability, the cost of investing in automation is worth it. By giving company leaders the ability to see the big picture in terms of carbon footprint, data and automation can help optimize operations and improve a company’s bottom line.

“Brain computer interfaces” — devices that allow you to operate a computer with your mind — are already in human trials. And they’re about to be a really big business.

One way for small businesses to tackle carbon emissions is to go down the route of purchasing carbon offsets.

Guest contributor describes what carbon offsets are all about and how small businesses can contribute to emission reductions.

Simply put, we need a reliable and secure energy grid. Two ways to ensure continuous electricity regardless of the weather or an unforeseen event are by using distributed energy resources (DER) and microgrids. DER produce and supply electricity on a small scale and are spread out over a wide area. Rooftop solar panels, backup batteries, and emergency diesel generators are examples of DER. While traditional generators are connected to the high-voltage transmission grid, DER are connected to the lower-voltage distribution grid, like residences and businesses are.

Microgrids are localized electric grids that can disconnect from the main grid to operate autonomously. Because they can operate while the main grid is down, microgrids can strengthen grid resilience, help mitigate grid disturbances, and function as a grid resource for faster system response and recovery.

Gene therapy pioneer — dr. katherine high, MD — president, therapeutics, askbio.

Dr. Katherine High, MD, is President, Therapeutics, at Asklepios BioPharmaceutical (AskBio — https://www.askbio.com/), where she is also member of the AskBio Board of Directors, and has responsibility for driving the strategic direction and execution of pre-clinical and clinical programs of the company.

Continue reading “Dr. Katherine High, MD — Gene Therapy Pioneer — President, Therapeutics, Asklepios BioPharmaceutical” »

A new law seems to strip away the IP rights of Western firms | Business.

Apple is set to expand ads to new areas of your iPhone and iPad in search of its next big revenue driver. Also: The company slows its pace of acquiring startups, and Peloton embarks on a major overhaul.

Last week in Power On: Apple’s delay of iPadOS 16 and Stage Manager keeps the focus on the iPhone 14.