Technology Untangled

The world is in a state of flux when it comes to energy production. Australian coal is being bought up by China as fast as it can be mined, Europe is coming to terms with Russian gas supplies being a bargaining chip in international politics, and the US is grappling with how to produce more energy whilst meeting green targets and keeping people in mining areas employed. 

It’s a tough balancing act. So how can countries realistically become more energy independent in a sustainable way with the tech that’s viable today? This is the first of a two part special. Next time we’ll be looking at how to make the most of the energy we already have.

We start off by meeting Doug Kothe, a Nuclear Scientist who, until recently, headed up the Exascale computing team at the Oak Ridge National Laboratory in the US. He's hugely excited by recent developments in the field, but is also a realist who understands that Fusion energy is still a way off being commercially viable and scaleable. 

So what are the alternatives? Professor Patricia Thornley from Aston University is Director of the Energy & Bioproducts Research Institute. They look at the energy potential of waste biomass - sewage and agricultural by-products - to provide not only electricity, but also materials such as plastics, and fuels such as gasoline, diesel and even jet fuel and hydrogen. Their research shows enormous promise -  up to 45% of the UK's energy needs could be provided in a carbon-neutral or even net negative way simply by processing agri-waste. In many parts of the world, close to 100% is achievable. 

But what about countries where land is at a premium? There's alternatives here, too. Carnegie Clean Energy is an Australian-based engineering firm who are perfecting their CETO wave-generation technology. They use submerged bouys pulling on cords to generate energy in an environmentally non-destructive way. As Carnegie CEO Jonathan Fievez explains, the difference in their technology is that the generators can pull on their own cords to raise, lower or angle themselves. That lets them both generate more electricity, and protect themselves from the bad weather and turbulent seas which have traditionally made the tech difficult to implement commercially. 

They do this via an ingenious AI tool called reinforcement learning, whereby an AI learns to control the bouys by being rewarded for the amount of energy they generate. Testing is currently ongoing, but early results suggest a 20-40% performance improvement with less wear and tear, which could be a lifeline for remote and island communities currently relying on diesel generators. 

Driving this AI technology is Hewlett Packard Enterprise Labs, who have been working in partnership with Carnegie. Christian Temporale and Maria Ridruejo have been implementing the project for HPE, and are excited by the progress that's been made. They believe that machine learning techniques such as this could make significant improvements in other technologies, such as 'smart' wind turbines, and developing better forms of solar panels.

2022 saw 421 registered natural disasters worldwide, including floods, drought, famine and earthquakes. It also saw new or escalating conflicts in Sudan, Syria and Ukraine. Thousands of NGOs, activists and charity groups do what they can to help those in need, whilst Governments and research groups try to come up with better ways of predicting, mitigating and avoiding disasters.

But you may be surprised to know there's a whole heap of ways that tech can help with rebuilding and prevention efforts. In this episode, we look at how grassroots groups and major organizations work together to leverage lateral thinking, agile mindsets, and technological expertise to mitigate the effects of societal upheaval, and even help in rebuilding efforts.

This episode was inspired by meeting Valerie Kuzmenko, a tech executive from Donetsk, who had to flee when the area became the epicentre of the original Ukraine war in 2014. In 2022, she found herself in Kyiv at the start of the invasion, and had to flee to London with her family and nothing more than a suitcase. Since recording this episode, she's found work as the Chief Marketing Officer at ScaleLabTech. 

Using tech to rebuild society is a field which draws together large and small organisations in partnership. At the larger end of the scale are organizations like Airbel labs. They are the research arm of the International Rescue Committee. Atish Gonsalves heads up their EdTech wing. Airbel partner with a number of large organizations such as Whatsapp to provide educational solutions in areas where schooling is difficult, and work hard to provide not only resources for children who would otherwise be out of education for long periods, but also to help teachers continue to operate through tough times and disaster recovery. 

Likewise, Hewlett Packard Enterprise use their technological expertise to provide solutions and assistance on some of the most pressing humanitarian issues, for example working with the American Red Cross to use AI to help route and maintain supplies of donated blood. However, HPE Head of Global Social Impact and Deputy Director of the HPE Foundation Fred Tan explains, it's by helping provide solutions and partnering with smaller, grassroots organisations that can encourage new ways of thinking and problem solving which can make a truly global difference, as well as encouraging HPE to think about its own operations.

And on the ground, small organizations are doing truly remarkable work with technology. We're joined by Oksana Simnova and Vatalii Lopushanskyi of RebuildUA and UADamage respectively. These two groups grew out of very different fields - RebuildUA was in Argitech working on drone mapping Ukraine's enormous farms, and UADamage grew out of a team working on Neural Network and AI applications. They now work closely together, using drones and satellite images to map out damage to buildings in Ukraine, and then logging and assessing the damage caused and matching it against pre-war imagery to assess the need for repair. They are hopeful that their findings will help rebuild Ukraine, but also be useful in mine clearing activities in future war zones. 

Bad AI is becoming a major headache for organizations. Tech is a male-dominated sphere, which means that it produces, inherently, male-skewed AI driven by unconsciously biased datasets. The effects of this can be measurable. Run through the same AI, women can receive worse credit or loan agreements than their male counterparts, be pushed out from job openings, receive worse medical treatment, or even receive performance penalties for doing the same work as men to the same standard. So how has this situation emerged and, more importantly, what can be done about it?

In this episode, we speak to Erin Young, research scientist from the Alan Turing Institute, who are dedicated to solving societal problems using technology. Their research has found deep structural inequalities in the field of AI, including higher attrition rates for women, who are generally filling lower paid, less prestigious jobs than their male counterparts. 

That's having a tangible, real-world effect. Anjana Susarla is a professor in Responsible AI from the University of Michigan. She's been tracking instances of biased AI finding its way into society, including documented cases of women in common-property states where spouses incomes and assets are joined being given lower credit limits on cards than their male counterparts. She also documents several cases of poor AI decision making in AI-assisted hiring and HR systems.

So should these systems be using AI at all? Well, Ivana Bartoletti argues that sometimes, AI isn't the answer. She's the Global Chief Privacy Officer at WiPro, and an expert on bias in AI. She notes several cases where institutional bias has been backed up by AIs which reflected existing societal pre-conceptions, for example in AI giving lower exam scores to pupils from poorer backgrounds in the UK, and lower state benefits to migrants in the Netherlands.

So what should be done? HPE's Chief Technology Officer Fidelma Russo argues that, as project leaders and managers, a lack of diversity in AI and the creeping problems it's causing should have been identified by the industry some time ago. She says drastic change is now needed to fix the problem. Fortunately, it's one the industry is rapidly becoming aware of and is now at pains to fix.

Welcome to season four of Technology Untangled from Hewlett Packard Enterprise. A new series means a new format, so join your hosts - yes, plural - Michael Bird and Aubrey Lovell in unravelling the stories and technologies which are changing the way we work. Every two weeks, we take a look at an emergent story in technology and interview experts from across the field to get behind the headlines and find out what's going on and why it matters. 

Coming up in this season, we'll be looking at bias in AI, the rise of Exascale computing, and revolutions in healthcare among many more. 

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We hear a lot about Big Data. But what does it actually mean? Is it, quite simply, lots of data? Or is there more to it than that? Spoiler alert, there is. A lot more. In this episode, we're taking a look at the age of insight, and how Big Data has evolved from a technical concept to a way of extracting enormous value from the fumes of data meant for other purposes. We'll be meeting some of the people who have been taking raw data and adding context and insight to open up a world of value and possibility. We'll also be asking whether Big Data can get too big, and at what point it simply becomes too much to economically handle. We'll also be looking at whether there's a line to be drawn between collecting insights, and invasive mining of our lives for their data value.

In this episode, we'll be meeting with Professor Vedran Podobnik, lecturer at the University of Zagreb and Global Lead for Data, Analytics & AI at Hewlett Packard Enterprise. Vedran has been in the field of data, analytic and AI for over 15 years, and understands how the field (and the definition of Big Data) has evolved and grown over the years. He also understands better than anyone the unique challenges that a 'bigger, faster, better, more valuable' approach to our data can bring.

Heather Savory probably understands big data in practice better than anyone. In an incredibly varied career, she was the deputy national statistician for Britain's Office for National Statistics. She's also worked on Big Data for the United Nations, and currently sits as the Non Executive Director for the UK Parliament Information Authority. In short, she knows a lot about Big Data, and has spent much of her career transforming big public bodies to take advantage of it and embrace the age of insight. As the spearhead of the drive to open up data in British politics, she has seen first hand the incredible results which can be achieved when disparate and siloed datasets are combined, layered, and opened up to the outside world. She also understands first hand the challenges involved in convincing people to open up their data to scrutiny, and the challenges that can present organisations.

But is data alone enough? Well, no. Insights require human expertise to analyse, verify and act on them. That's where Dr Louise Blair comes in. She's the senior analyst and Head of Vaccines and Variants at Airfinity, a data analytics and insights company specialising in healthcare. Airfinity compares data from drug trials, medical reports, news articles and disease heatmaps around the world to offer advice and insight which helps Governments, the pharmaceutical industry and health services plan for the future and expect the unexpected. Taking data from as diverse sources as livestock markets, they are able to offer advice in a way that's never been possible before - by using human intuition to compare vast siloed datasets from different sources. 

Combining datasets can also be invaluable when it comes to predicting future threats in other spheres. George Webster is Chief Security Architect at HSBC (you may remember him from our last episode, on Ransomware). George has a background in using AI and insight to drive human efficiencies when it comes to cyber security, thinning out the field of false positives and helping identify genuine threats. He understands that a reliance on data alone isn't enough, and that even in the digital sphere, big data and the insights we can gain from it is best utilised to help, rather than replace, human expertise.

The long show notes for this episode can be found here: https://community.hpe.com/t5/hpe-blog-uk-ireland-middle-east/big-data-more-than-just-a-number/ba-p/7184566#.ZBA-7HbP2Ul

Cyber Security is big business. In fact, it's estimated to be worth $160 billion. But that's likely to be peanuts compared to the value of cyber crime, which is estimated to cost the global economy $600 billion in 2022 - nearly 1% of the global economy. And just one corner of that - ransomware - costs the same in damage and paid-out fees as the entire cyber security industry: $160 billion. In fact, if ransomware was a country, its GDP would be higher than Morocco or Kuwait. 

In this episode, we'll be examining the rise of ransomware, where the risk lies in modern-day attacks, who is behind them, and what we can do about it.

For Hewlett Packard Enterprise Senior Vice President and Global Chief Security Officer Bobby Ford, defeating ransomware is a constant and growing battle because its a straightforward payout for criminal gangs - there is no need to try and sell stolen data on the dark web or to foreign governments, you simply sell the victim back their access. He argues that the key to protecting ourselves is twofold. Firstly, use two-factor authentication wherever possible to guard against human weak-points such as opening infected emails. Secondly, be prepared to defend yourself. Be aware of the threats and where they are coming from, and mitigate them where you can, so long as it doesn't affect the running of your organisation. Beyond that, have a plan in place for being attacked, be that data recovery or, unfortunately, paying up. 

Chris Rogers is a Technologist at cyber security firm Zerto. He agrees that ransomware can be hard to avoid because humans are an inherent weakpoint, and ransomware attacks often come through human social engineering rather than password cracking. He points out that even momentary downtime can cause millions of dollars in damages. He agrees with Bobby that robust, quickly spooled up backups are an essential part of doing business. Unfortunately, that's easier said than done: Backups can sometimes be limited access, which is great for security but leaves organisations vulnerable if the key holder isn't immediately available. Beyond that, backups have to maintained incredibly regularly, as even a day's lost work for a large organisation can be a major blow. On the other hand, any back-up is better than no preparation at all. 

But how are cyber security threats like ransomware being treated at the very top of the tree? When it comes to cyber security, it doesn't get much more high value or (hopefully) secure than financial institutions. George Webster is chief Security Architect for HSBC. His office is tasked with quickly assessing threats, in particular APTs or Advanced Persistent Threats, and providing tools to counter them. He argues that the primary risk increase of the last couple of years has been people working from home, in situations where there are distractions and their security awareness may not be as strong as it was in the office. He also argues that on a wider level, it's not just staff who become more vulnerable as they are spread out: As ransomware becomes an increasing problem internationally, no organisation is safe anywhere in the world and being aware of the risk is key to countering it without shutting yourself off from the outside.

The long show notes for this episode can be found here: https://community.hpe.com/t5/hpe-blog-uk-ireland-middle-east/ransomware-should-we-be-worried/ba-p/7183709#.Y_3FpHbP1PY 

2022 has not been a straightforward year. A war in Ukraine has seen the world divided and global energy and food supplies disrupted. International tensions between China and Taiwan have reared their heads again. Recession is looming in many parts of the world, and whilst it makes less headlines, Covid is still very much a part of our lives.

But organisations exist to solve problems and provide solutions. So, to mark the end of a rollercoaster year, we're pulling together leaders from three organisations to talk about the challenges they've faced this year, and how they are moving forward into 2023.

For Hewlett Packard Enterprise Senior Vice President and Global Chief Security Officer Bobby Ford, it's been a year of building bridges. Amid growing security threats from criminal gangs, individual players and even nation states, Bobby has been reaching out across conflict lines to build partnerships and understanding among his industry peers. He's also been on the lookout for the next potential threat - be that online or in the 'real world', from geopolitical instability to forces of nature, he is setting his sights on planning for the unexpected in 2023.

Nicole LaPointe Jameson is the CEO of Evil Geniuses, one of the world's premiere eSports teams. Amid a huge growth in the sport around the world, as an international team they've faced challenges in crossing borders and keeping their team safe and united. They've also felt the ongoing effects of hardware shortages which have plagued the tech industry over the last two years: In particular, a shortage of graphics cards and even equipment as basic as computer mice has had a lasting knock-on impact on the team. On the other hand, as a growing sport that's rapidly entering the big leagues financially, 2022 has been a great year for Nicole and eSports at large, and as the value of the sport grows, it's increasing professionalisation - insight driven scouting, training and welfare - becomes more viable and important. For Nicole, 2023 is all about building on that success.

And finally, to the other end of the spectrum and a sport where data, detail and design matters more than any other - Formula 1. Christian Horner is the CEO and team principle of Oracle Red Bull Racing, who in 2022 overcame logistical challenges and international tensions to take their first constructors championship since 2013, and driver Max Verstappen's second consecutive drivers championship.

For Christian, 2022 has been a year of spinning plates - the team was forced to prioritise winning the 2021 season above developing their 2022 car, and so had some catching up to do early in the season. With major new regulations coming into play for 2023, the team once again has its work cut out to develop a new car and tailor it to the precise needs of the driver and race - as well as bring a team of hundreds along with watch-like precision.

This is 2022 Untangled. 

You can find the long show notes for this episode here: https://community.hpe.com/t5/hpe-blog-uk-ireland-middle-east/lessons-from-2022-turning-challenges-into-opportunities/ba-p/7182094#.Y9z8qnbP1PY

Autonomous vehicles are a hot topic. Their incredible ability – and at times lack of it – is a source of controversy as much as a source of wonder, from avoidable crashes to drivers literally sleeping at the wheel. What's undeniable is that you can now theoretically sit in a car and let it take control as it guides you along the road. But is that actually a good idea? Is technology truly ready to take the wheel? In this episode, we’ll be meeting some of the people and organisations aiming educate us about the limitations - and build appropriate levels of trust - in autonomous vehicles.

We'll be meeting with Dr Claire Blackett of the Institute for Energy Technology in Norway, an expert in human-centred design who is keen to ensure that the flawed human driver isn't forgotten in the race for automation. We'll also be chatting to Dr Lionel Robert of the University of Michigan, who specialises in building trust in autonomous vehicles, and sees a near future of blended driving where driver and machine will share the burden as we slowly build to full automation.

We'll also talk to Hewlett Packard Enterprise Chief Technologist, Matt Armstrong-Barnes, to discuss how far away we truly are from real AV's (spoiler, it's decades) and ways we can safely transition to a driverless world through small steps, and an increasing use of emerging AI technologies.

And finally, we'll be talking to Erik Coelingh, head of product at Volvo-Owned automotive safety firm, Zenseact. They are focusing on using incremental steps in autonomous vehicle technology and AI to make humans the best drivers they can be in a world where automotive technology increasingly encourages us not to concentrate.

The long show notes for this episode can be found here: https://community.hpe.com/t5/HPE-Blog-UK-Ireland/Autonomous-vehicles-are-we-steering-in-the-right-direction/ba-p/7170668#.YtZUTXbMKUk 

Since 1990, the global rates of extreme poverty have gone from around 40% to around 10%, and ending World Poverty entirely by 2030 is one of the UN’s Key Sustainable Development Goals, announced in 2015. However, progress is slowing, and 710 million people around the world still live in extreme poverty - currently earning below $1.90 per day. So how can technology help? In this episode, we’ll be meeting some of the people and organisations aiming to eradicate poverty through the use of technology. 

The long show notes for this episode can be found here: https://community.hpe.com/t5/HPE-Blog-UK-Ireland/World-poverty-Is-technology-the-great-leveller/ba-p/7169364#.Ys7vh3bMKUk

Ending World Hunger by 2030 is one of the UN’s Key Sustainable Development Goals, announced in 2015. We’re now half way to the final milepost, but estimates still put the number of people in the world who are suffering from hunger and malnutrition at around 811 million, more than 9% of the world's population. So how can tech help? In this episode, we’ll be meeting some of the amazing people at the cutting edge of ending world hunger through the use of technology.

A view from above:

Satellite technology could be a game-changer in connecting remote rural communities to the outside world, helping small-scale farmers produce better yields, and allowing them to more effectively ship and sell their produce. Mark Jarman, CEO of Colombia-based satellite project development firm AgriTierra, shares his thoughts on how the emergence of small, cheap constellations of satellites allows constant, real-time monitoring of land and economic conditions in ways which weren’t possible just five years ago - even to those with only the bare minimum of connectivity.

Uniting the public sector and private business:

Speaking of bare-minimum of connectivity, one of the most important ways in which rural economies can grow and become more efficient and productive is to get access to communications technology, a aunting task when they don’t necessarily have the financial ability or education and training to do so. Combating that is Isabelle Mauro, Head of Information, Communications & Technology (ICT) Industries at the World Economic Forum. The WEF is the world body bringing together the public and private sectors, and has been pushing for greater co-operation and work on lifting developing communities out of hunger and poverty. Isabelle believes that the practical means to connect communities exist: rather, the challenge is to provide a financial incentive for companies and Governments to reach out to poorer areas where the business case for connection might not be so obvious.

IoT in the soil:

One of the firms leading the charge to bring rural communities into the digital age is Hewlett Packard Enterprise. Brian Tippens is their Head of sustainability, and has been working closely with WEF, and partners around the world such as Purdue University, to bring HPE’s experience in data and connectivity to the farm, with solutions as diverse as networked soil-sample and moisture analysis units, which can tell farmers exactly what the conditions are like in any part of their farm (or in the community as a whole) at any one time. Their end goal? For the field to act almost as a data centre in itself, storing and analysing data at source, and in real-time.

Meat the Future:

But what about advances away from the farm, or produce supply chain? The world has an insatiable appetite for meat, and one which is only growing as people are lifted out of poverty. That puts a huge strain on farmland and the planet due to the intensive effort required to raise livestock, and the poullution that causes. However, with the advent of STEM cell technology and improved compute power and data analysis, another option is on the horizon: Cultured or lab-grown meat. Daan Leuning is Co-Founder and CTO at Meatable, a company which is scaling up the production of lab-grown beef and bacon to commercial levels, using cutting edge technology. They believe that creating cruelty-free meat with low-space and energy requirements could revolutionise the way we eat, as well as eventually providing cheap, nutritious food to large parts of the world.

So whether we’re looking down from space or down into a petri-dish, there’s plenty of exciting developments which could help end world hunger by 2030. Will it be enough? Well, that depends on the appetite of those in power to make a change.

Key takeaways:

• Within the last five years, satellite and connected communications technology has become more available, low-cost, and low-latency - to the point where it can now help poor farmers in remote areas.
• The best way to lift the world out of hunger is through public-private partnerships which provide funding and a business case to spread this technology through the developing world.
• Within a decade, non-traditional vertical and cultured farming could revolutionise the way we consume food, as well as drastically reducing the environmental impact of storing, shipping and producing what we eat.

Links and resources:

The UN Sustainable Development Goals

The World Economic Forum’s Edison Alliance

What if we could solve world hunger? An article by HPE CEO, Antonio Neri

Tech Impact 2030 - How HPE is driving positive change through technology

Meatable - revolutionising the way we think about meat.

AGRITierra - Empowering digital solutions for a resilient agricultural and environmental future

Satellite Applications Catapult - A digital archive of work into satellites and agriculture

Daan Luining on LinkedIn

Brian Tippens on LinkedIn

Isabelle Mauro on LinkedIn

Mark Jarman on LinkedIn