Tag Archives: startup

City as a Service: The Future of Urban Transportation

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Model of a smart city resting atop a computer tablet.Anheuser-Busch just made the first ever beer run in a self-driving truck. The truck delivered 51,744 cans of beer from Ft. Collins, CO to Colorado Springs, CO while the driver monitored the trip from the sleeper cab, at least on the Interstate 25 portion of the ride. The historic delivery was made by Otto, the trucking arm of rideshare company Uber, partly to showcase their capabilities and partly to deliver beer. The inaugural run had the full backing and blessings of the state of Colorado.

I have written about autonomous passenger vehicles and recently wrote about the development of flying cars. I wonder how these developments will change the landscape of cities. If in the future we just rent cars by the mile to take us to work and back, where will they go at night? Or will the same car be used at night to take us to the theater? Will there need to be as many cars, since people can share them? How will this change how we live? How we think about car ownership and the role of vehicles in a community could change. Just as we have moved to software as a service for our computing needs, we could soon have city as a service for transportation.

The Next 100

BMW just wrapped up a worldwide series of presentations they called the Iconic Impulses Tour. The final show was two weeks ago in Santa Monica, CA and highlighted their vision for BMW’s next 100 years. In addition to introducing new concept cars from Mini, BMW, and Rolls-Royce they are rolling out their vision of how these cars will fit into a new urban environment. To this end, BMW/Mini has created a venture accelerator called URBAN-X to encourage entrepreneurs to help develop their vision.

URBAN-X

The mission of this new venture is “to catalyze, educate, invest in and advocate for startups who are shaping the future of cities through technology.” I assume they are hoping that future includes vehicles, however they are encouraging forward thinking about all aspects of the urban experience. If you are a successful applicant, you get $60,000 in seed money and access to hosting, legal consultation and proprietary software. You also get a chance to spend three months with business developers and engineers from Mini to help bring your idea to fruition. Some of their recent ventures include Brooklyness which makes an intelligent bike helmet, CTY which creates data analytics products for traffic flow, and Nello which makes keyless entry products though a smartphone app. The application deadline to join the next group of lucky entrepreneurs is November 29th,  details at urban-x.com.

Thoughts

I am impressed that an automobile company is thinking ahead to a time when there are fewer cars and limited private car ownership. I assume that the car companies will own the vehicles and make money through subscription services, like today’s cloud service providers. With this scenario, the city will indeed look different and perhaps we can convert at least some city parking to green space and make other improvements. What ideas do you have for the future cityscape? Perhaps your idea is worthy enough to attract funding from a car company. Let me know your thoughts.

Author Kelly BrownAbout Kelly Brown

Kelly Brown is an IT professional and assistant professor of practice for the UO Applied Information Management Master’s Degree Program. He writes about IT and business topics that keep him up at night.

Brexit and the Technology Industry

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Puzzle with the national flag of great Britain and European Union on a world map background.The recent decision by Britain to exit the European Union (Brexit) has people asking a lot of questions. Some analysts are pondering British technology regulations and the state of the technology industry post European Union. There are surprising implications that perhaps have not been considered but probably would not have made a difference in the vote.

Silicon Roundabout

An area in East London has been dubbed Silicon Roundabout for the concentration of high-tech firms, particularly start-ups. In a 2013 Guardian article, director of Twilio Europe James Parton cites reasons for locating a hub in London, “…London was a natural choice for our first office outside of the U.S. Language, accessibility to rest of Europe, a vibrant start-up ecosystem, the financial market, talent and flexible business conditions were all contributing factors.” Other areas of Britain have attracted high-tech heavyweights and start-ups alike.

With Brexit, some of those desirable qualities could disappear. Accessibility to the single EU market is in jeopardy, which could result in less than favorable trade arrangements and higher tariffs for companies operating in an independent Britain. A recent BBC article suggests that Berlin, for example, will actively court those tech start-ups and venture capitalists that have been pouring money into Britain. In making her pitch, Cordelia Yzer, Berlin Senator for Commerce and Technology, said, “They are welcome, their talent is more than welcome. It’s a great place to live and we also speak English. Berlin is a place where their dreams can come true.”

High Finance

Another potential issue for tech firms in Britain is access to capital. Start-ups in particular, but all tech firms in general, are capital-intensive operations mainly used for talent and equipment. A recent Reuters article reports that Standard and Poors and Fitch Rating recently dropped their credit rating for the country. This could make it harder or more expensive for companies to borrow capital for expansion or for a start-up. These companies could consider other EU centers such as Berlin or Paris, where funds are less expensive.

Data Privacy

The EU and the U.S. are working on the latest changes to their data privacy agreement. The EU has some of the toughest privacy laws in the world with Germany and France leading the charge in areas such as “the right to be forgotten,” which require companies such as Google to erase all internet history of an individual upon their request. Britain has pushed for less stringent regulations but it remains to be seen whether they will still abide by the EU-U.S. data privacy agreement. That brings up the question of whether data flowing through Britain will still adhere to those standards, or will it be less secure?

Thoughts

The exit is still being planned, though EU countries are pushing to get it done sooner rather than later. With the separation come questions for high-tech companies and consumers. These will be sorted out over time and I will be watching the developments with interest. Can you think of any tech benefits or drawbacks to a post-EU Britain? Let me know your thoughts.

Author Kelly BrownAbout Kelly Brown

Kelly Brown is an IT professional and assistant professor of practice for the UO Applied Information Management Master’s Degree Program. He writes about IT and business topics that keep him up at night.

Is College Essential for Young Entrepreneurs?

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Young business people in a meeting.In a recent article about Thiel Fellows the question was raised once again: “Is college for everyone?” With rising tuition rates and more young people competing to get into the best schools, it is a valid question. Does a college education give you a return on investment commensurate with the investment of time and money and the opportunity cost of foregoing other ventures? I have touched on this question in previous blog posts but want to visit it again, hopefully, with a fresh perspective.

Thiel Fellows

Peter Thiel is a billionaire who made his fortune in finance and venture capital investing. He was one of the original founders of PayPal and provided the first outside funding for Facebook. In 2010 he founded the Thiel Fellowship. Thiel Fellows are given $100,000 to forego college and instead focus on their own ideas and passions. His premise is that the brightest and most motivated young people should be given an opportunity to explore their ideas outside of the walls of academia (though Thiel himself has degrees in philosophy and law from Stanford). Fellows are supported for two years through networking, summits on entrepreneurship, and connections to venture capital. Thiel has provided for a contingent of approximately 20 people under age 20 each year since 2010 and there are openings for the next class.

Where are They Now?

The author of the article mentioned above interviewed a small number of Thiel Fellow graduates. Some have successfully formed start-up companies. Some moved on from their original idea when it proved unworkable. Others have actually gone back to complete their education. They all credit at least part of their success to the Thiel Foundation. It helped them focus on their ideas and gave them a framework and network to build on those ideas and produce a product or service.

University Entrepreneurship Programs

The Thiel Fellowship comes at a time when universities are growing their own in-house entrepreneurship programs. The University of Oregon, for example, is a partner in the Regional Accelerator and Innovation Network (RAIN) Eugene. This gives students the opportunity to work on projects and connect with people in the community and learn how to start a business from the ground up. Critics of Mr. Thiel are hoping that programs like RAIN will give students a chance to pursue personal projects and a college degree at the same time. In other words, it is not one or the other but both.

Thoughts

I believe that college is very important but realize that life takes us down many paths. College is just one of those paths. A rigid four-year college experience right after high school may not be best for everyone, and we need to make sure that we have a way for learners to step in and out of the college experience as they choose. College may be interspersed with work, research, travel, volunteer opportunities, or starting a company. I pursued a college career while working full time and found it a very rewarding experience. My son has completed two tech schools and is at the top of his vocation. Now in his mid-twenties, he is contemplating going back to school to complete his bachelor’s degree. Is Peter Thiel correct in his assumptions? For some young people, absolutely. For others, an opportunity such as that would be lost without the background of a college experience. What do you think? Is college for everyone? Would the money best be spent elsewhere? Is there an absolute prescribed time for going to college? Let me know your thoughts and experiences.

Author Kelly BrownAbout Kelly Brown

Kelly Brown is an IT professional, adjunct faculty for the University of Oregon, and academic director of the UO Applied Information Management Master’s Degree Program. He writes about IT and business topics that keep him up at night.