Important Innovations

  DAILY INNOVATION BRIEF                                                                                                  By Journalists Edward Kane & Maryanne Kane BMW TO MAKE HYDROGEN POWERED CARS                                                                                                                                                                       Source:  BMW German luxury brand BMW says it will make hydrogen powered cars Its strategy:  hydrogen is a great addition & alternative to electric battery power because EVs won't work for everyone everywhere, particularly where there are not enough charging stations to service widespread us e BMW is now pushing ahead with production of hydrogen vehicles after manufacturing a few hydrogen versions of its luxury X5 SUV late in 2022 Hydrogen has a number of compelling benefits:  zero carbon emissions, refueling in a few minutes & a very long range The big challenge concerning the widespread use of hydrogen cars is

   DAILY INNOVATION BRIEF                                                                                                  By Journalists Edward Kane & Maryanne Kane BMW TO MAKE HYDROGEN POWERED CARS                                                                                                                                                                      Source:  BMW German luxury brand BMW says it will make hydrogen powered cars Its strategy:  hydrogen is a great addition & alternative to electric battery power because EVs won't work for everyone everywhere, particularly where there are not enough charging stations to service widespread us e BMW is now pushing ahead with production of hydrogen vehicles after manufacturing a few hydrogen versions of its luxury X5 SUV late in 2022 Hydrogen has a number of compelling benefits:  zero carbon emissions, refueling in a few minutes & a very long range The big challenge concerning the widespread use of hydrogen cars is

  WORLD'S LONGEST RANGE eVTOL                                           Source:  AMSL Aero's Vertiia Australian startup AMSL Aero's new eVTOL, Vertiia, is powered on hydrogen & is designed to deliver 620 miles of range  The projected range is the longest, thus far, in the eVTOL global industry The Sydney, Australia company has just started test flights on Vertiia The 1st, remote-controlled test flight on a tethered, full scale demonstrator prototype was a success The electric, vertical takeoff and landing vehicle can fly 155 miles on its electric batteries and 621 miles with its hydrogen fuel cell powertrain It has 8 sets of motors and propellers on its box wing design for maximum aerodynamic efficiency Vertiia can carry a pilot and 4 passengers Wingspan is 23 feet, which should enable it to be part of urban aerial mobility Expected to go into service in 2026 for passenger transport, aeromedical and emergency services. GOOGLE BREAKTHROUGH ON QUANTUM COMPUTING          

Alphabet's Isomorphic Labs Using AI To Discover New Pharma Drugs                                  Source:  Google & Stock AI Images AI Could Accelerate Development & Cut Costs of New Drugs Google's innovation incubator Alphabet is putting artificial intelligence (AI) to work for the discovery of new pharmaceutical drugs.  Alphabet has launched a new company Isomorphic Labs in the UK to deploy advancements made by Alphabet's DeepMind AI to predict the shape of proteins with "incredible accuracy".  DeepMind's AI uses a model called AlphaFold2 to predict breakthrough proteins and their shape in the human body.  This capability is said by experts to be critical in the development of breakthrough drug therapies.   What Is the Significance of Alphabet's Move? It has great significance on a number of levels.  This fascinating development moves Google and Big Tech deeper into the healthcare industry.  The big hope and expectation are that AI will cut the t

Alphabet's Isomorphic Labs Using AI To Discover New Pharma Drugs                                  Source:  Google & Stock AI Images AI Could Accelerate Development & Cut Costs of New Drugs Google's innovation incubator Alphabet is putting artificial intelligence (AI) to work for the discovery of new pharmaceutical drugs.  Alphabet has launched a new company Isomorphic Labs in the UK to deploy advancements made by Alphabet's DeepMind AI to predict the shape of proteins with "incredible accuracy".  DeepMind's AI uses a model called AlphaFold2 to predict breakthrough proteins and their shape in the human body.  This capability is said by experts to be critical in the development of breakthrough drug therapies.   What Is the Significance of Alphabet's Move? It has great significance on a number of levels.  This fascinating development moves Google and Big Tech deeper into the healthcare industry.  The big hope and expectation are that AI will cut the t

  Google DeepMind AI Accurately Forecasts the Weather                                     Source:  DeepMind AI & London Brand New, Breakthrough Weather Forecasting System Weather forecasting historically has been very challenging and too frequently inaccurate.  The primary reason is the many variables that play a major role in the outcomes because of the volatile nature of the atmosphere.  Enter Google DeepMind AI which provides a new, high accuracy way to predict weather forecasts. Google DeepMind AI Accurate in Short Term WX Forecasts Learning based AI systems from DeepMind, which is based in London, are making real progress in expertly predicting short-term weather changes.  Researchers at DeepMind have been able to accurately predict the location and probability of rainfall within a 90 minute timeframe. DGMR's Highly Advanced Technology The new system has been developed by Google and the United Kingdom's meteorological office. DeepMind's prediction model Deep Genera

  Google AI System Accurately Forecasts Rain in 2 Hours                                     Source:  DeepMind AI & London Brand New, Breakthrough Weather Forecasting System Weather forecasting historically has been very challenging and too frequently inaccurate.  The primary reason is the many variables that play a major role in the outcomes because of the volatile nature of the atmosphere.  Enter Google DeepMind AI which provides a new, high accuracy way to predict weather forecasts. Google DeepMind AI Accurate in Short Term WX Forecasts Learning based AI systems from DeepMind, which is based in London, are making real progress in expertly predicting short-term weather changes.  Researchers at DeepMind have been able to accurately predict the location and probability of rainfall within a 90 minute timeframe. DGMR's Highly Advanced Technology The new system has been developed by Google and the United Kingdom's meteorological office. DeepMind's prediction model Deep Gene

  Loon Subsidiary Being Shut Down                                                  Source: Loon Not Commercially Viable Google's parent company Alphabet has decided to shut down its internet balloon services company after concluding that the business of using high altitude, large balloons to deliver the internet is not commercially viable.  In a way, the decision is a surprising one because the technology works.  Alphabet founded Loon in 2011.  And it has successfully delivered internet services to disaster areas and to Kenya.  But the company says it could not find a way to get the costs low enough to "build a sustainable, long term business". Great Intentions The goal and purpose of Loon was to bring connectivity by high flying balloons the size of tennis courts to global, underserved areas that are too remote or difficult to connect with broadband.  That proved to be too expensive. Loon certainly made every effort to make it work. It conducted years of  testing with ba

  Google App, Smartphone, AI & a Runner's Determination                                             Source:  Thomas Panek's 5K Blind Runner Does 5K Run With No Human or Dog Assistance This is a news story that is so uplifting! A blind runner, in New York City, ran a 5K or 3.1 miles in Central Park without a guide dog or any human help.  He did it on his own with navigation provided by artificial intelligence through his headphones connected to his smartphone.  The runner is Thomas Panek, who is a well known blind person dedicated to running and also to running his Guiding Eyes for the Blind, that trains guide dogs to assist the blind.  Panek is an innovator and adventurer who just keeps on pushing the limits of his own successes.  Those successes have a great deal of application to all of us. Personal Journey to Google Panek is 50 years old.  He lost his vision in his early twenties from a rare genetic condition.  As I runner, I can't imagine what it is like for him to

  Loon Stratospheric Balloon Internet                                                Source:  Alphabet's Loon Loon Already Operational for Kenya Loon is one of Alphabet/Google's most fascinating projects.  Loon delivers  high speed, broadband internet from high altitude balloons in the stratosphere. Loon is operational and beaming internet services into Kenya.  This is a very different approach to low cost, broadband internet systems like Elon Musk's Starlink which is satellite based..    Internet From the Stratosphere Not Space  Loon's internet delivery service is coming in to customers from wireless internet balloons, developed by Alphabet, Google's parent company.  And it is in direct competition with SpaceX's Starlink, the ambitious, growing mega-constellations of low-Earth orbit satellites, being launched by CEO Elon Musk to provide the world with inexpensive, high speed internet. Musk has launched nearly 800 small satellites, now in low Earth orbit, and ha

  Partner to Develop Self-Driving Semi Trucks                                                            Source:  Daimler Trucks and Waymo Driverless Big Rigs Daimler and Alphabet/Google Waymo announced today that they are collaborating on the development of self-driving Class 8 semi trucks.  Specifically, they plan on incorporating Waymo's automated system into Daimler's Freightliner Cascadia semi trucks.  These are very big rigs capable of hauling 33,000 pounds. Big Win for Waymo This is a big win for Waymo which has been trying to collaborate with major, established automakers.  Waymo CEO John Krafcik, during a conference call about the deal, said it will take some time to develop the braking, steering and other technologies needed to bring fully self-driving semi trucks to market in high volume.   Highly Competitive Traffic with Tesla Daimler and its competitor PACCAR control more than 70% of the Class 8 semi truck market in the US.  But, the competition is heating up.  In

Google Developing Holographic Glasses Source:  Google Glass Source:  Google/Saarland University Smart Tattoos Smart Tattoos in the Pipeline Search engine giant Google is developing the next generation of wearable technologies.  Examples of what they're working on include simple pairs of sunglasses that project holographic images, inter-meshing the digital and physical worlds.  And Google is developing temporary tattoos that when placed on the skin transform into working touchpads.  Google is developing and funding these fascinating technological innovations through its Interaction Lab.  The lab is part of Google Research, which is focused on technological breakthroughs. Smart Tattoos Google's smart temporary tattoos are loaded with sensors that react to touch and function as a touchpad on your skin to connect with your devices.  Google is developing them with Saarland University in Germany.  By developing an R&D pipeline of wearables, Google is on t

COVID-19 Accelerating Autonomous Deliveries Source:  Waymo Big Investor Money Pouring In COVID-19 is accelerating a big shift in the global autonomous driving industry.  Business is booming in the autonomous delivery of packages, not the autonomous driving of people.  Companies like self-driving technology company Waymo are enjoying a huge boom in its business of package deliveries and a big influx of capital from investors. Fresh Capital Big players like Waymo, which is owned by Google's parent company Alphabet, are getting a big jump in funding.  Waymo now has $3 billion in fresh capital after expanding its first funding round.  It just raised $750 million in mid May.  According to Reuters' analysis, investors have poured $6 billion into two dozen companies involved in autonomous deliveries in the past seven months.  The technology ranges from drones to big, autonomous trucks. Global Phenomenon:  Future of Travel.   The growth in autonomous deliveries i

For Apple and Google, Big Health Tech Futures Source:  Stock Image Perspective from Apple CEO Tim Cook Apple and Google are launching their joint coronavirus contact tracing software. They just provided the first version to Android and iOS  developers to test it before a broader consumer launch.  The public launch will happen when Apple and Google approve the final public health version. This is a huge move in tracking the spread of the virus.  Apple alone controls a whopping 50% of the global smartphone market.  The contact tracing over their phones will provide a key means of spotting  and preventing the spread of the coronavirus, while protecting individual privacy. Consumers Opt In or Out It's up to each individual to decide to opt in or opt out of the contact tracing technology.  Both Google and Apple say the system will not disclose the individual's identity.  For those who opt in, there will be easy Bluetooth based contact tracing across iOS and Android smart pho