This week’s a2tech360 conference has continued the newer Applied AI conference, which highlights trends in artificial intelligence applied in a variety of ways to real-world needs. No longer is AI only a mysterious force powering conversational assistants. Speakers at this year’s A2.AI conference covered a whole host of applications for AI technology, from multitouch attribution to analyzing customer insights.
Kicking off this year’s expanded Ann Arbor Mobility Summit was a panel discussing the “Changing Face of Automotive in the New Normal” with Senior Product and Strategic Planning Manager at Waymo Cristi Landy, Bill Frykman who works on connected vehicles at Ford and leads City Solutions Team, and Kara Grasso who works on solutions for mobility, autonomy and electrification for Denso. Moderating was Carla Bailo, president of the Center for Automotive Research, which provides independent research on the automotive industry.
“If we choose, the impact economy can give new meaning to the term Roaring Twenties,” says John Denniston, a former Silicon Valley VC and founder of Shared-X, an agritech startup that works to raise global farmers out of poverty through sustainable technology and community programs. “There is a movement afoot,” Denniston says behind the scenes at Ann Arbor’s annual tech trend prediction conference 2030: What The Future Holds, “to redefine the purpose of business so it’s not just about profit. There’s this fascinating economic phenomenon going on right now where consumers, investors, and workers are all forcing companies to be about more than just profit.” It’s unusual to have all three forces pushing in the same direction at once, Denniston says, and he attributes this to global issues and the trend among younger generations to seek purpose in their work and to expect companies to be a part of global solutions.
It’s finally here: Ann Arbor’s annual tech week, a2tech360, starts today and runs all next week with 16 online tech events highlighting the latest innovations and trends in mobility tech, Midwest investment, software, security startups, and life sciences.
The judging criteria for the inaugural a2tech360 Ann Arbor tech week hackathon Hack:A2 was this: Innovation and/or Ambition (slightly weighted over other categories) User Interface or Experience Overall Quality Product Viability Technical Achievement We couldn’t wait to see what the teams came up with. All went in looking pretty enthusiastic, assuring us that we could…
It has been a crazy couple of weeks. From sliding in from a University of Michigan writing conference straight to interviewing nearly two dozen people at Intermitten, speaking with Duo’s Dug Song to trekking around Ann Arbor’s tech scene and tech talk, to future-proofing our automotive software and learning where the mobility tech industry is…
“I’m having so much fun,” a boy tells his mom. We’re on Liberty, and the green Tech Trek backpacks are so ubiquitous that an extra 500 people registered on site to visit the local tech companies who opened their doors around downtown Ann Arbor for Tech Trek for a total of 2101 attendees. Kids and…
“Ann Arbor is the best educated city in the U.S.,” Wacker Chemical president and CEO David Wilhoit told us before the start of Tech Talk, capping off Ann Arbor’s 2019 tech week before the Tech Trek this afternoon that started it all. Companies like Wacker, which according to Wilhoit and one of his divisional managers…
“People used to drive for fun. It’s not fun anymore. It’s not working,” said John Tolva the founder of Cityfi at the opening of the a2Tech360 Mobility Summit at The Graduate hotel on Huron Street in Ann Arbor. Americans spend 75 minutes a day on daily trips, he said, and we know that cycling to…
Honestly, it’s tricky, predicting the future. Would you listen to anyone who told you what to expect in 5 years, much less 10? We went into the a2Tech360 conference 2029: What The Future Holds with a teeny bit of skepticism since all we do is future tech and now tech and vaporware tech that will…
