#BigIdeas2016: Start-Ups, Tech Giants & Innovation
2015 saw the development and progression of a number of innovative products, services or milestones. In this series, professionals predict the ideas and trends that will shape 2016. Read the posts here, then write your own (use#BigIdeas2016 in your piece).
Predictions in this post:
- Slack will go Mainstream
- SpaceX will break-down more space travel barriers
- Start-Up -> Tech Giant Partnerships will continue to be key to innovation
- Virtual Reality will not go Mainstream… Yet!
- Wearables will become more Health-Oriented
Start-Ups: Slack will go Mainstream
Slack has been long known as the fastest growing start-up (>2 million Users after launching in Aug 2013). For those not familiar, Slack is a service which essentially combines products such as Microsoft’s MS Project, Outlook, SharePoint and Office Suites into one streamlined product. It is exceptional but has not quite gone mainstream… yet!
The Slack API has been open for developers to integrate and develop plug-ins and add-ons. This has seen integration with the likes of Twitter, Google and Dropbox. The further maturing of this API will further bring-down barriers and offer a host of opportunities for easier expansive integration to both corporate enterprises and start-ups alike. A maturity which will see Slack go mainstream in 2016.
Travel: SpaceX will break-down more space travel barriers
SpaceX achieved a huge milestone in a realising a future of expansive space travel when they vertically landed their Falcon-9 rocket after launch and orbit. For those not familiar with SpaceX, Elon Musk’s company has been a pioneer of technologies to break-down the barriers to space travel. A journey which only six months earlier hit a setback when one of their rocket launches failed. Similar Virgin Galactic achieved similar setbacks when one of their launches resulted in the death of its pilot.
Whilst Virgin Galactic are equally well positioned to win the space race, SpaceX achieving the substantial milestone of Launch -> Orbit -> Land with over 80% of components still in-tact is a remarkable achievement.
SpaceX will continue to innovate. They will continue to see setbacks, but what business doesn’t? 2016 will be a key year for space travel where incremental success upon SpaceX’s Falcon-9 will prove successful.
Tech: Start-Up -> Tech Giant Partnerships will continue to be key to innovation
Business giants in the past has tended to get complacent and in some instances be outmaneuvered by the nimble start-ups/innovators. MySpace -> Facebook; Blockbuster -> Netflix; Nokia -> Apple; Microsoft -> Slack (?); to name a few. See the article by Clayton Christensen on this topic.
Whilst innovation is key to keeping at the forefront of consumers minds, businesses have tended to partner as a means to innovate. At Hewlett Packard Enterprise, we partner with a number of start-up organisations in delivering some of our innovative solutions.
As barriers to entry are further broken down, innovation becomes both a risk and opportunity for business. As with the Hewlett Packard Enterprise example, amongst many other Tech Giants, throughout 2016, such strategic partnerships which will drive Enterprise innovation will continue to deliver success.
Tech: Virtual Reality will not go Mainstream… Yet!
Having seen an Oculus Rift in action, they are massively impressive. Especially when connected up to a responsive nesting unit. For those not familiar, the Virtual Reality units have been in development for a number of years, but only recently (2012) have they appeared to be close to a consumer release. Oculus Rift, although developing their units for a business use-case, or as the best example suggests a medical use-case, questions often are raised on when they will go mainstream.
Oculus Rift is due to release in Q1 2016 as are other Virtual Reality units. But as with any new technology, can these really go mainstream right away? Virtual Reality needs to deliver a kick-ass experience. The units look to cumbersome. They are not commuter units where most of us tend to use our smartphones. They are generally expensive (for the more advanced units anyway).
However, Virtual Reality units have massive potential in markets such as Medical, Gaming and Sports. Yet 2016 will generally prove to be too early for a mass widespread consumer adoption of such an evidently great technology.
Tech: Wearables will become more Health-Oriented
Questionable to many, aside from the Apple die-hards, has been the Apple Watch. A wearable which brings the Apple iPhone to your wrist. Similarly, the likes of Pebble and Garmin have innovated further to enhance their own wearable technologies.
The likes of Garmin sports watches with Heart Monitors have been around for years. These generally had the bands which sit around the chest and perform limited measures. In the past year, these have extended to cover Heart Rate, Cadence and linkage with a smartphone providing extensive coverage such as VO2 Max.
This smartphone-driven integration is key to future innovation. There has long been talk of widespread medical usage. Vitals such as Blood Pressure to name an important use-case. Others could include Blood Sugars for diabetics. Theranos and their blood testing capabilities offer a glimpse of the art of the possible on a relatively accessible scale (ignoring the recent negative press). 2016, building on the successes of the previous year in meditech and the increasing pressures on the UK NHS and ObamaCare, will prove to be a great platform for further innovation.
About Stephen
Stephen Baines is a Senior Management Consultant and Distinction MBA currently working for Hewlett-Packard Enterprise in addition to pursuing a number of external entrepreneurial ventures. If you wish to contact Stephen, please contact him via LinkedIn or his Twitter handle (@baines1986).
Read more about Stephen at Stephen’s personal website
