Tech Talks Central

Evangelia Diapouli, Postdoc Researcher in the institute of Nuclear Technology & Radiation Protection at NCSR "Demokritos", talks about their international environmental project which involves linking research discoveries with decision makers ie. state authorities. Their ‘EU Life Program’ funded project offers quantitative assessment for air pollutants, helping officials make informed decisions when it comes to effectively controlling emissions. The team is now continuing their work by researching how these specific concentrations of air pollutants are affecting our lives outdoors and indoors, every day. Interviewed by Vicki Kolovou for Tech Talks Central.

We had the pleasure to interview Dr. Athanasios Dimoulas in the past and it seems that this interview is as interesting as the previous one. Athanasios Dimoulas is the head of Epitaxy and the Surface Science Laboratory at NCSR “Demokritos” and he gives us an update with the latest developments of new novel materials in nanoelectronics. The explosion of big data and IoT has resulted in a great need for energy efficient smart devices. Dr Dimoulas shares some of the problems and insights with their research on these hard to develop materials like graphene, Weyl fermions and others. He then reveals how crystals could simulate a “particle accelerator” and test some of the fundamental principles and assumptions in high energy, elementary particle physics and cosmology. This could result in discovering new interesting properties and being able to integrate them faster in electronic devices, capacitors and transistors, in the hope of impacting emerging Quantum Technologies. Interviewed by Sakis Triantafyllakis for Tech Talks Central.

Combining elements from Internet of Things and social media, the Greek startup company Bioassist offers services that will bring mobile health in the life of every elderly and chronic patient who desires to live independently. Petrina Smirli, the CEO of Bioassist and her team of five, talks about their mobile app called “Πάντα μαζί” (in Greek) or “Heart around” (in English). It bundles homecare and services with social networking, using easy, secure and user-friendly technology. All that is needed, is just an internet connection and a tablet - the app helps the users stay in touch with loved ones while, at the same time, offers real time monitoring of their vital signs and 24/7 support from a dedicated Help Desk; SOS button included. Interviewed by Yannis Rizopoulos for Tech Talks Central during the eHealth Forum Festival in Technopolis, October 2016.

Humane is a Greek social enterprise, a network empowering people with chronic diseases and disabilities; they believe in these people’s abilities, potentials for work and their power to change society by being an active participant. Ariadne Kosmadaki, herself a pharmacist and a member of the Humane team of ten, describes how they’re developing “reaction products” like T-shirts with messages on them in support of patients with different disabilities and diseases. Their motto is think - care - empower and their goal is to launch a multi-platform for all needs, sell their Humane products in special boutiques in Athens and then expand in different regions, within the EU. Interviewed by Yannis Rizopoulos for Tech Talks Central during the eHealth Forum Festival in Technopolis, October 2016.

Insybio (from Intelligent Systems Biology) is a bioinformatics company focusing on biomarker discovery while their main product is a software platform to analyze biological data. Christos Alexakos, COO of Insybio, explains that -with the aid of their platform- they research the cause of diseases, not the results, and that’s the first step towards personalised medicine. Meaning, that if we find the right biomarker, we can make drugs adapted to each organism or therapies best suited for each case and the biology of each person. The same platform may be also used for nutrition issues and Insybio has already started a project with international giant Nestle trying to discover biomarkers that can be used to produce nutrition products for personalized diets. Interviewed by Yannis Rizopoulos for Tech Talks Central during the eHealth Forum Festival in Technopolis, October 2016.

Bloode is a social enterprise aiming to change the perception we have for blood donors in Greece (and not only…), where less than 1% of the population are blood donors. As a consequence, donations cover only half of the blood units needed every year. So, a group of friends created a few years ago a platform matching people in need of blood with donors. Alex Sotiropoulos, a member of the Bloode team, describes what they have done up to now, the actions they have taken and -more specifically- how they try to educate young people and their teachers, so they will become volunteers. He also tells us about the awards they have won and their effort to “export” their solution internationally, as more than 40 countries all over the world face the same problem. Interviewed by Yannis Rizopoulos for Tech Talks Central during the eHealth Forum Festival in Technopolis, October 2016.

Anni Pakarinen, project researcher at the University of Turku and coordinator of the WellWe project, explains how their platform promotes a family’s healthy nutrition choices, physical activity and wellbeing, utilising available resources in their everyday life. She talks about how the platform takes into consideration the research outcomes they collected from pre-school kids, their families and healthcare professionals from children's centres and health clinics. Their approach includes gamification elements which could potentially make healthy development choices much easier for professionals working in health or social services and children's’ support centres. Last, Anni reveals the next steps and how they are thinking of broadening the scope of the project. Interviewed by Sakis Triantafyllakis for Tech Talks Central during the eHealth Forum Festival in Technopolis, October 2016.

Mobiltron is developing an app called WOVER that uses Artificial Intelligence algorithms and your smartphone sensors to better understand your activities, predict or detect if you are in danger. It all started when a good friend of Stavros lost his life. It motivated Stavros Schizas, CTO & Co-Founder of Mobiltron, to find a solution to prevent such incidents from happening. Stavros explains how their private beta app works, how they fine tune their algorithms and how they transform all the data into insights. He also analyses their business strategy, how they will try to scale their service to more users and which monetisation business models are being explored at the moment. Interviewed by Sakis Triantafyllakis for Tech Talks Central during the eHealth Forum Festival in Technopolis, October 2016.

Everyone has come across the need to get a second or third medical opinion, from a top doctor abroad, only to find it comes at a high cost and it’s difficult to find the right lead. Sorin Dragomir, CEO of Healthcare Software Alliance, explains how Webhippocrates connects patients with top doctors from all over the world on a reasonable fee. He goes on to talk about the story behind the platform and why he personally experienced the need for such a solution. Webhippocrates is in private beta and has already been involved in 40 serious cases in Romania. Interviewed by Sakis Triantafyllakis for Tech Talks Central during the eHealth Forum Festival in Technopolis, October 2016.

Medicine waste is a big issue worldwide. Only in Greece, over 14 tons of medicinal drugs are thrown away while more than 2 million people live under the poverty line. Teti Psarrou, Head of Marketing at GIVMED explains how they’ve managed to create a community of users who donate their redundant medicines to those who need them, but can’t purchase them. They have partnered with several organisations and NGOs in order to make the matchmaking process more efficient. What is remarkable is that the community within the last 4 months has donated drugs valued at 10.000 euros. They are already looking to expand their network outside of Athens and other countries. GIVMED was recently awarded the 2016 judges’ Social Impact Award. Interviewed by Sakis Triantafyllakis for Tech Talks Central during the eHealth Forum Festival in Technopolis, October 2016.