The Big Tech Show

In the original dot com boom, all you needed was an idea and you were showered with millions in funding. But is the same now happening with cryptocurrency and blockchain?
This week, Adrian meets David Wachsman, the founder of the world’s largest Blockchain focused PR agency. It has chosen Dublin as its headquarters to serve Europe.
Adrian asks whether crypto is a bandwagon that people are jumping on. The two talk about possible use cases versus actual examples of blockchain in action now.
David also deals with the question of why so many fringe industry players have been catapulted into a starring role just because they are now involved in the crypto industry.
And Adrian talks about examples of ethical breaches in journalism within crypto-oriented media organisations, specifically the issue of articles for cash.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This week, Adrian throws off the shackles in a free-ranging conversation with the Irish Independent’s environment editor, Paul Melia. The two discuss the current state of big tech companies, why electric cars are a tough sell at present and the credibility gap that cryptocurrency evangelists sometimes suffer.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

We talk about the life of a startup founder being loaded with pressure and stress. But one of Ireland’s best known technology executives, who went from managing a $5bn division of Cisco to starting and selling his own startup, says that life in a big company was actually far more taxing than running your own business.

Barry O’Sullivan spoke to Adrian Weckler about it, and a host of other things, in this week’s podcast.

“I never missed any of the kind of trappings of being a senior executive at a company like Cisco,” he says. “I would say the stress level of being a CEO of a startup for me was about 10pc of what it was to be a senior executive at a company like Cisco.”

“When I ran a $5bn business at Cisco, it was a continuous grind. There were always presentations to the board on investments and acquisitions and so on. And every big company has lots of politics. When you’ve got a job like that, at a company like Cisco, it’s a big job and it’s very well paid. You always kind of have to be on all the time, you know?”

“What was most stressful was that decisions often took a long time to make. You would think that as a very senior executive that you would have the power of all the decisions you want to make. But quite a lot of stuff had to be presented and has to be decided with your peers. At a startup you can just do it.”

O’Sullivan now advises a $33bn venture firm, Permira, on investments and acquisitions. He also sits on the board of Genesys, the tech company that bought his Altocloud startup and which has just announced 200 new jobs in Galway.

What happens when the tech company you build becomes wildly successful? Do you change?

At the Web Summit, Adrian sat down with the Des Treanor, co-founder of Intercom, the €1bn software firm. They talked about dealing with success, company culture, artificial intelligence and where Intercom goes from here.

The Big Tech Show is brought to you this week by PwC.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Adrian returns to Dublin following Apple’s MacBook Air and iPad Pro launch. Joined by Sunday Independent business correspondent Michael Cogley and INM head of product Steve Dempsey, he goes through the most important features of what was announced and asks whether pro tablets can be a long term replacement for current laptops.

Irish Independent business editor Donal O’Donovan joins the discussion to figure out whether the Web Summit, which kicks off in Lisbon on Tuesday, matters to Irish business. Is the event too closely tied with founder Paddy Cosgrave? And does Cosgrave’s foray into political topics help or hinder the conference?

There’s also a look at the politics and ethics around the mass walkout at Google during the week, followed by a dissection of what may be holding up the National Broadband Plan.

This week’s episode is brought to you in conjunction with PwC.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Mark Little is one of Ireland’s most recognisable media technology figures. From being an anchorman on RTE television to founding Storyful to becoming boss of Twitter in Ireland, he has seen the business from all angles.

Now he’s back with a new venture that aims to reinvent app-based news. Together with former journalist and Facebook executive Aine Kerr and ex-Storyful collaborator Paul Watson, Little has launched ‘Kinzen’.

Adrian sits down to talk to Little, Kerr and Watson about the problem they’re trying to solve and what lies ahead for the news business.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

When do comedy and technology mix? Why is social media so much to the fore in critical analysis of current events? This week, Adrian chats to a contemporary master, David Schneider, about the role of comedy and social media in our daily lives. Schneider is one of the writers and actors on seminal British comedy series such as 'The Day Today' and 'I’m Alan Partridge’.
Adrian also catches up with Lory Kehoe, the Irish boss of the blockchain specialist company, Consensys. They discuss some of the applications for blockchain in business today and whether it cold have a role in creating new economic models for the media industry.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In a week that saw the resignation of the Minister responsible for the National Broadband Plan, Adrian asks some blunt questions about whether the whole rural rollout plan is going to be delayed and, if so, for what reasons. Adrian is joined in analysing the whole sorry saga by the Irish Independent’s political correspondent, Laura Larkin and the Sunday Independent’s business correspondent, Michael Cogley.

Adrian also catches up with Oisin Hanrahan, the Dublin tech entrepreneur who raised almost €100m for the US online service firm Handy Technologies, after the company was sold to Nasdaq-listed Angi Homeservices.

And Adrian gets a hands-on look at the latest range of updated Amazon gadgets, from the Echo speakers to the new Echo Input, as they prepare to launch into the Irish market.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

How do you ask for money for your startup?

That’s the question that Adrian put to Peter O’Malley, the co-founder of a new startup that has raised €1m from a variety of ‘business angels’ that include Paddy Cosgrave, CPL boss Anne Heraty and former Paddy Power chief Breon Corcoran.

Is there a difference between approaching ‘friends and family’ and business contacts? What sort of plan do you need to have in place?

Peter talks about his own experience and how he and co-founder Galen Lowney realised that there was space in the market for their startup, Advisable.com.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

How do you ask for money for your startup?

That’s the question that Adrian put to Peter O’Malley, the co-founder of a new startup that has raised €1m from a variety of ‘business angels’ that include Paddy Cosgrave, CPL boss Anne Heraty and former Paddy Power chief Breon Corcoran.

Is there a difference between approaching ‘friends and family’ and business contacts? What sort of plan do you need to have in place?

Peter talks about his own experience and how he and co-founder Galen Lowney realised that there was space in the market for their startup, Advisable.com.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.