Applied AI Weekly News

Justin Grammens

Greetings IoT Weekly News Readers!

I have another awesome issue covering the latest news on the Internet of Things, but wanted to first point out a few articles of interest. First, is an article on how "IoT Could Be the Killer App for Blockchain". I was asked recently by the folks at Omni PCB to give my thoughts on what I see on the horizon. Blockchain and IoT were one of my top picks.

Another cool article is on "Bringing Collective Intelligence to The Industrial Internet of Things Makes Devices Compute". Industry 4.0 is an area we have been working in for years and are seeing a lot of interest in by companies of all sizes at Lab 651. The article in this issue gives a really good overview of the changes that I'm seeing around Industrial IoT and forward thinking applications.

Finally, if you are in the Twin Cities, you definitely should take part in the 5th annual IoT Hackday on Oct 27th, 2018. This is an event where we bring together more than 2 dozen team to compete and build a fun and unique IoT products. This is the only Hackday that specifically covers the Internet of Things in the upper midwest and I'm proud to say that as one of the cofounders, it's been an event that I love being a part of each and every year.

I hope you enjoy this issue and remember to follow us on LinkedIn, Twitter and Facebook

News

IoT Could Be the Killer App for Blockchain

As the number of sensors in vehicles, factory machinery, buildings and city infrastructure grows, companies are looking for a secure and automated way of enabling a mesh network for transactional processes. Blockchain appears to best fit that bill.

The total number of connected Internet of Things (IoT) sensors and devices is expected to leap from 21 billion this year to 50 billion by 2022, according to recent data from Juniper Research.

Is The Internet of Things Growing Too Fast?

Soon, there will be seven times more data-generating devices on the planet than there are human beings. And that number just keeps growing. The latest stats out of Juniper Research put the projected number of connected IoT (Internet of Things) sensors and devices to grow to more than 50 billion by 2022, up from today’s paltry 21 billion devices — or 140% growth.

OpenAI Sets New Benchmark for Robot Dexterity

Nothing in this world — animal or robot — quite comes close to the flexibility and dexterity of the human hand. For engineers at the Elon Musk-founded nonprofit OpenAI, this presented both a challenge and an opportunity. How could their researchers use artificial intelligence to teach a robot to manipulate objects as artfully as a human?

Smart Home Modular IoT Wireless Control System

Developers based in Hong Kong have this week announce the creation of a new smart home intelligent modular Internet of Things wireless control system, which is “unlike other IoT or intelligent home appliances”. Watch the demonstration video below to learn more about the wireless control system launched via Kickstarter.

Thermostats, Locks and Lights: Digital Tools of Domestic Abuse

“When we see new technology come out, people often think, ‘Wow, my life is going to be a lot safer,’” said Katie Ray-Jones, chief executive of the National Domestic Violence Hotline. But “we often see the opposite with survivors of domestic violence.”

Sponsor

IoTHackDay.MN

IoTHackDay is Minnesota’s annual hack day for inventors and hobbyists working on the Internet of Things!

No matter fun or functional, IoTHackDay is a great place to build a product. Teams work toward three prizes - a prize for business viability, a prize for creativity, and an audience choice award. Teams will work from 8am-7pm, then the event will open to the public at the end of the night for voting. There’s also a separate, educational activity for kids and teens to learn how to program lights for costumes!

Business

Bringing Collective Intelligence to The Industrial Internet of Things Makes Devices Compute

Since the advent of computers, the languages have been designed to facilitate communications between people and computers. But the landscape has changed and in the age of the Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) that approach simply doesn’t cut it. What is now required is a software language that allows both machine to machine and machine to computer communications.

4 Truths and a Lie About Digital Transformation

To keep pace with modern business, companies must continually position themselves in the best possible stance to embrace new growth and adapt quickly to evolving market pressures. Technology, more than ever, has become integral to accelerating advancement and efficiency, and so companies have been looking to digital transformation, also known as DX, to meet future challenges.

Consumer

Tesla Can Change so Much With Over-the-Air Updates That It’s Messing With Some Owners’ Heads

When Consumer Reports recently found that the braking distance on the Tesla Model 3 was worse than that of a Ford F-150, CEO Elon Musk took the criticism and found a solution. Days later, Tesla shipped an over-the-air update that, according to CR’s testing, improved the braking distance by 19 feet. It’s a wild idea: your car automatically downloads some code, and it’s instantly safer. It also wasn’t possible even a few years ago, and some have held it up as an ideal example of how futuristic technologies can make our lives better.

Analysts said it was “unheard of.” Jake Fisher, CR’s director of auto testing (and the person who originally flagged the issue), said he’d “never seen a car that could improve its track performance with an over-the-air update.”

Which Smart Appliances Work With Amazon Alexa, Google Home, and More

Within the next two years, most major appliance makers will offer extensive lineups of smart appliances, part of the ever-expanding "internet of things." That's according to Christine Edwards, a market analyst with Gap Intelligence.

"This year, LG announced that 100 percent of its home appliances portfolio will offer its smart ThinQ connectivity," Edwards says. "Samsung shared that its portfolio is approximately 90 percent currently connected, with plans to feature 100 percent connectivity by the year 2020."

Development

Udoo Bolt Is First Ryzen V1000 Based Hacker Board

Seco has won KS funding for its open-spec, $229 “Udoo Bolt” SBC, which runs Linux or Windows on AMD’s Ryzen Embedded V1000 SoC. The SBC supports up to 4x displays, and offers SATA III, 3x M.2, 2x HDMI 2.0, and Arduino and Grove expansion.

Crowd Funding

You Can Crowdfund a Robot That Will Nag You to Stand up Straight

There’s a new robot on Kickstarter that’s supposed to help you obtain good posture at your standing desk. It’s an Alexa-enabled gadget named Giiro, which uses the accompanying Giiromat, a mat you place on the floor in front of your desk, to sense if you’re standing up straight and distributing your weight evenly.