Google Project Loon wins contract to connect remotest parts of the Amazon
WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF Only half the world’s population have internet connectivity, so companies are finding new ways to connect the remainder. Interested in the Exponential Future? Connect, download a free E-Book, watch a keynote, or browse my blog. Today the fact that over half the world’s population don’t have access to...
T-Mobile first to flip the switch on nationwide US 5G coverage
WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF 5G can be delivered using a varieties of spectrum and T-Mobile just used their lowband spectrum to push 5G nationwide. Interested in the Exponential Future? Connect, download a free E-Book, watch a keynote, or browse my blog. Months after the US Department of Defense warned that the US is...
China’s central bank is close to launching its own cryptocurrency
WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF As the use of cash falls to record lows around the world central banks issuing their own digital currencies looks more like a matter of when not if. Interested in the Exponential Future? Connect, download a free E-Book, watch a keynote, or browse my blog. Officials from the People’s...
Fortune CEO’s plan to abandon shareholder first model and be more future focused
WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF Today’s shareholder first philosophy was fashioned in the 1990’s, but now Fortune 100 CEO’s are proposing a radical overhaul of the system to favour communities, individuals, and the future. Interested in the Exponential Future? Connect, download a free E-Book, watch a keynote, or browse my blog. The world is...
DNA based marketing is becoming a reality, and brands are cashing in
WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF As gene sequencing gets cheaper, and as companies get more access to personal information, from biomarkers and wearables to big data, companies can target you in ultra-personalised ways you’d never likely dreamt of before. Interested in the future and want to experience even more?! eXplore...
Experts warn Facebook’s cryptocurrency could help it become a virtual nation
WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF As more of us become a part of online communities we are seeing the rise of the world’s first virtual nations, nations without territory or borders that can threaten the status of sovereign nations. Interested in the future and want to experience even more?! eXplore...
5G networks let construction workers in Germany clear building sites in South Korea
WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF As network speeds increase, and latency falls, it opens up a whole new world of possibilities for the future of remote working. Interested in the future and want to experience even more?! eXplore More. Recently there have been a flurry of developments in the construction...
Satellite launch kick starts Elon Musk’s quest to connect everyone on Earth
WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF Over 3.5 billion people on the planet aren’t connected to the internet, for better or worse, and space internet is here to change that. They’ve finally done it – for years I’ve been talking about how a raft of companies were planning on launching...
Russia announces plans to temporarily disconnect itself from the global internet
WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF People think of the internet as one, global network, but it’s being nationalised and splintering. Many people think that the internet is one thing, one “amorphous system” that crosses borders, and is, in essence, the digital fabric that unites the world. But, as China...
Ownerless companies on the rise as startups experiment with new business models
WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF Blockchain will let us build new types of companies in new ways, including ownerless companies where funds and profits are divided automatically between individuals. Slowly, very slowly, we’re seeing the emergence of the world’s first fully autonomous companies, from small hedge funds in Hong...
Government can’t do it alone any more, says Apple’s CEO
WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF As individuals and organisations start becoming more powerful than many governments, people are wondering if private companies can solve humanity’s problems faster. As I travel around the world, from America to Africa, Europe to the Middle East, and Japan to Singapore, talking to people...
Just as 5G starts rolling out 6G is in the already in the works
WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF The march of technology never stops, and as users celebrate Gigabit mobile speeds Terabit mobile speeds are already on the drawing board. While countries around the world are just beginning to roll out their first 5G networks that operate at Gigabbit speeds, technologists at...
FCC opens up new spectrum for 6G, 7G and “whatever’s next”
WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF As mobile communications become more important to businesses and governments the US wants to encourage innovation. Commercial 5G networks are barely operational in the US right now, but that hasn’t stopped engineers from thinking ahead to 6G, which is already on the drawing board...
Department of Defense warns the US is falling behind China on 5G
WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF New 5G mobile networks will unleash a torrent of new innovation, and the US DOD fears that the country will be left behind if it doesn’t release new spectrum. The US led the charge on 4G LTE, which gave US companies significant power in...
Qualcomm releases its first WiGig chipsets to push WiFi to gigabit speeds
WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF The combination of Gigabit WiFi and 5G now mean it’s possible to ditch your traditional fiber based broadband provider, and cut another chord. Earlier this month, the Wi-Fi Alliance announced that the next generation of Wi-Fi devices will be called “Wi-Fi 6,” all but...
Google unveils Stadia its cloud gaming service launching in 2019
WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF Streaming games from the cloud is a natural evolutionary step, but there are plenty of hurdles to overcome, such as the availability of content, performance, and latency, among others. Interested in the Exponential Future? Connect, download a free E-Book, watch a keynote, or browse my blog. Google unveiled their...
JP Morgan becomes the first major US bank to roll its own crypto coins
WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF Bitcoin may have its critics, but noone can argue the impact that cryptocurrencies have had on the world, and now one of the US’ biggest banks is jumping on the bandwagon. With talks of China creating the first blockchain based national cryptocurrency and Ohio...
SpaceX seeks FCC approval to bring space based internet to the entire US
WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF Laying down hundreds of thousands of miles of fibre optic cable has had its day as space based internet platforms compete with established telcos. Private spaceflight firm SpaceX has been publicly planning to deploy a network of “Starlink” satellites to offer broadband internet for several years...
Beyond 5G, China eyes dominance in 6G networks by 2030
WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF As countries vie for leadership in 5G some countries are already eyeing leadership in 6G. The race for leadership in the 5G world might still be in its early stages but China, alongside the UK who started work on a new 6G standard back in 2015,...
US military identifies virtual nations as a potential security threat to US sovereignty
WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF The internet means citizens can now become part of large, virtual collectives, or nations, and there are fears these nations, with their own rules, welfare and support systems, could threaten the power and influence of sovereign nations. When is a nation not a nation?...
