Wearables – The Internet of Us

Brought to you by The Connected Devices Group

There is immense excitement about wearable technology, but after the whimper of approval for the Apple Watch, where is the wearables industry going? There is no doubt about the level of innovation in wearables, as companies fight to extend connectivity to everything we wear.

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About the event

This event brings together leading industry analysts from Beecham Research, Cambridge Consultants, Deloitte, WebMobility and WiFore, along with a range of leading wearable startups, including AON2, Aseptika, AudioWings, Braci, eScent and Kovert Designs.  It will look at industry trends: the issues for major electronics manufacturers, the opportunities and barriers for startups which have to compete against household names and the new business models that the industry will need to develop.  Our startups will talk about their personal experiences and the challenges they have faced.  With a pragmatic approach to the reality of the wearables market, It promises to be the event of the year for anyone involved in this bright new area of consumer technology. Join us for this stimulating one day event, hosted by Deloitte at their London offices and sponsored by Cambridge Consultants.

The current battle for the wrist may be stalled, but elsewhere companies are campaigning for our ears and eyes and then to everything else that touches us. The ultimate prize is to extract value from our most personal data. The challenge for the industry is to make technology as easy to use and as desirable to own as the fashion industry has achieved with clothing and jewellery. What is the potential for wearable tech? What are the business models? And who will be the winners? Some of the industry’s most respected speakers attempt to provide answers, including Paul Lee, Deloitte, Ruth Thomson, Cambridge Consultants, Jenny Tillotson, eScent, Claire Duke Wooley, Beecham Research, Nick Hunn, WiFore Consulting, Ken Blakeslee, WebMobility Ventures,  and Jon Howes, Beecham Research.

The Connected Devices SIG is championed by Paul Green of Arkessa, Nick Hunn of WiFore Consulting, Antony Rix of TTP Group and Tim Whittaker of Cambridge Consultants.

To follow this SIG on Twitter, @CambWireless, please use #CWCD

We are also extremely grateful to Deloitte UK for hosting this event and Cambridge Consultants for sponsoring lunch.

Hosted by Deloitte LLP

At Deloitte we identify with and celebrate the spirit of entrepreneurship.

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Sponsored by Cambridge Consultants

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Agenda

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The information supplied below may be subject to change before the event.

10:30

Registration and networking over refreshments

11:15

Introduction to the Connected Devices SIG by Nick Hunn, WiFore Consulting

11:25

The outlook for wearable computing; Paul Lee, Head of Research, Tech, Media and Telecommunications, Deloitte

At the beginning of the year, wearables were the talk of the technology sector, and predominated at January’s Consumer Electronics Show, and were a major feature at the Mobile World Congress in February. At the start of the year, Deloitte forecast a ten-million unit, £2 billion year for wearables in 2014. Now that we’re in the final third of 2014, Deloitte’s Paul Lee, head of research for tech, media and telecommunications, provides an update on the likely out-turn for the wearable market this year.

11:45

Setting the scene for wearables - why now?; Ruth Thomson, Head of Consumer Product Development, Cambridge Consultants

From enabling athletes to improve their performance and technique, to increasing efficiency of workers, to helping you to track your wellbeing we are finding wearable technology has a huge number of possible applications. This talk will set the scene for the rest of the day by introducing the topic of wearables, exploring why this is happening now, and what could be next.

12:05

The market for smart wearables; Nick Hunn, WiFore Consulting.

The consumer electronics industry has convinced itself that wearable technology will be the next big thing, with analysts predicting a market worth over $30 billion by 2020. That belief is driven by a desperate need for major companies to find something to follow on from laptops, tablets and PCs all of which are being commoditised. The problem is that their model for wearable technology is built around technology push, trying to shape their technology to fit consumers. It is a strategy that is likely to fail, as wearable technology is more, rather than less, personal. This presentation takes the contrary viewpoint, investigating the market opportunity from known consumer behaviour and preferences. It still suggests it will be close to $20 billion in 2020, but with a different mix of products and service models.

12:25

Panel Session

12:50

Lunch and networking

13:50

Anatomy of wearable success: what are the key ingredients for developing a wearable technology market?; Ken Blakeslee, Chairman, WebMobility Ventures

Contextual Technologies that augment our awareness to personal and environmental situations which are relevant to a precise situation and location will become more and more valuable to individuals. Device technology is only part of the puzzle, however applications software, analysis/correlation engines and ecosystems need to be in place for this to succeed. This talk looks at the ecosystems and business models that will be key to success.

14:10

The expanding frontier of wearable scent and smell; Jenny Tillotson, Founder, eScent

eScent® technology introduces a totally new dynamic and sensation to the wearables sector. As fashion and technology collide creating new opportunities; one is to engage further with the senses, e.g. wearable scent technologies that enable consumers to sense context and dispense scent accordingly, whilst extracting content experiences via mobile and IoT. This talk is about eScent®, a wearable device embedded discreetly into clothing and jewellery that provides an awareness and contextual sixth sense with wide-ranging applications in fashion, wellbeing, healthcare, multi-sensory retail, AR and entertainment. It delivers a localised ‘scent bubble’ around the user that is relevant to the situation, condition or location, augmenting how we as humans interact with the physical world around us.

14:25

“Attractive” wearables: bridging the gap between great designs and bespoke electronics; Fabio Pania, CTO, Kovert Designs

While in the past Technology has only been associated with function and usefulness, today’s tech products need to be “attractive” to the consumer in a more articulate and complex way. Kovert Designs is currently addressing this need in the space of Wearable Technology by launching a collection of smart jewellery. This talk is about making technology useful and beautiful and the challenges and perks that come with it.

14:40

Wearable to forewarn of impending respiratory failure; Dr Kevin Auton, Managing Director and Founder, Aseptika Limited (Activ8rlives)

WHO predicts that lung disease will be the World’s fourth biggest killer by 2030. A third-generation wearable monitor for people that suffer from lung diseases, such as Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD), Asthma, Cystic Fibrosis (CF) and non-Cystic Fibrosis Bronchiectasis (NCFB), will forewarn of a collapse in respiratory function as part of a self-management plan developed in collaboration with the patient’s
healthcare team and supported by self-monitoring at home.

14:55

Panel session

15:20

Refreshments and networking

15:50

The future of wearable technology (in two parts): 1) Technology on its’ own isn’t enough 2) What technologies should be used?; Claire Duke Wooley, Fashion Technology Analyst and Jon Howes, Technology Director, Beecham Research

How different do wearable products need to be for these markets to really take off? This talk looks at the
approaches that are expected from both a fashion and a technology viewpoint to create demand, change
perceptions and avoid future disillusionment.

16:10

Wearable technology as a safety standard; Juma El-Awaisi, Product Manager, Braci

For centuries people with disabilities and impairments have been concerned about their safety and well-being both at home and in public. This short talk will focus on revolutionizing wearable technology for the deaf and hard of hearing.

16:10

Wearables: seeing through the hype; Arthur Amarra, Founder, AON2

This talk will cover the brief history of wearables, the current wearable craze (and what's wrong with it) and what (we think) will make wearables successful. We will focus on feelings/experience, completeness and execution

16:25

Wearable technology as a safety standard, Juma El-Awaisi, Product Manager, Braci

For centuries people with disabilities and impairments have been concerned about their safety and well-being both at home and in public. This short talk will focus on revolutionizing wearable technology for the
deaf and hard of hearing.

16:40

Wearables and the internet of sound; Carl Thomas, CEO, Audiowings

With wearables blurring the division between human and network, the computer has truly become personal, augmenting and enhancing our sensory perception. Most wearable devices to date have focused on our vision, by putting interfaces in glasses and on wrists. However as we move into the Age of Context, audio has the ability to provide passive access to relevant content without distracting us from our everyday lives. This talk looks to examine the power of audio as the most viable interface to power the wearable age.

16:55

Panel session

17:25

Complete evaluation forms

17:30

Event closes

Speakers

Arthur Amarra

Arthur Amarra (AON2)

Kevin Auton - Founder & Managing Director, Aseptika (Activ8rlives)

Kevin is a biochemist who has invented, developed and manufactured, 12 different life sciences products and marketed them throughout the World. Dr Auton has held several leadership positions in SME technology companies in the East of England region over the last decade and consulted for a number of companies in the life sciences/medical devices area who are seeking to convert promising technologies into real-life products.

Dr Auton is a named inventor on 7 patents, including: Biomarkers for Lung Infections on which Aseptika relies. Previously, Dr Auton founded NextGen Sciences and Cellexus Biosystems, having held senior positions in: Genomic Solutions, Pharmagene, Lark Technologies and Millipore. Dr Auton has a Ph.D in microbial biochemistry from Southampton University, studying the protein and co-factor expression patterns of a bacterium.

Ken Blakeslee - Chairman, WebMobility Ventures

“ WebMobility Ventures is focussed on Discovery, Advisory and Investment in Innovations in the emerging Services Convergence areas of Mobile”

Claire Duke-Woolley - Operations & Brand Manager​, Beecham Research

Juma El-Awaisi - Chief Marketing Officer, Braci


Jon Howes - Advisor to the Board, Hiving Technology

Jon Howes is an independent advisor to a range of leading IoT innovators throughout the world. His board advisory roles include both Hiving Technology and the IoT Security Foundation. He has delivered results in product management and market engagement for many high growth start-ups since 1993. He also applied his IoT and security knowledge in the role of Technology Director, and latterly as an advisor, for leading IoT market consultancy Beecham Research in the last 6 years. Jon's strategic planning capabilities have been applied to sectors as wide-ranging as consumer, automotive, smart grid and healthcare.

Jon is now continuing his long term commitment to contributing to community efforts as Advisor to the Executive Steering Board at the IoT Security Foundation and in his support through IoT thought leadership seminars for the British Computer Society. Leading R&D and marketing activities with Fujitsu and Ferranti in the preceding years, Jon helped launch many types of products including some of the first GSM cellular solutions. He combines a strong technical background particularly in wireless, semiconductor and security technologies with deep market knowledge of IoT-related sectors.

Nick Hunn - CTO, WiFore Consulting

For the past thirty years Nick has been closely involved with short range wireless and communications, designing technology that helps to bring mobility to products, particularly in the areas of telematics, M2M, IoT, wearables, smart energy and mobile health. He is closely involved with the Bluetooth SIG, the Continua Alliance and other medical and wireless standards bodies. He is the author of 'The Essentials of Short Range Wireless' - a book attempting to explain the application of wireless technology to product developers.

Paul Lee - Partner, Global Head of TMT Research, Deloitte LLP


Fabio Pania - CTO, Kovert Designs

Carl Thomas - Director, Audiowings

Ruth Thomson - SVP Global Consumer Business, Cambridge Consultants

Jenny Tillotson - Founder, eScent

Dr Jenny Tillotson is one of the early visionaries in the wearable sensory technology domain working at the intersection of personalised fragrance, smell communication and experiential fashion. She spent over 15 years at Central Saint Martin researching 'Sensory Fashion' and is the driving force behind eScent®, a transformative technology for emotion-based scent dispersal. She holds a PhD in Printed Textiles from the Royal College of Art and a degree in Fashion Communication from Central Saint Martins. Tillotson is also a Fellow of the Royal Society of the Arts, an Associate of the British Society of Perfumery, a Winston Churchill Fellow and a Visiting Scholar in Dept of Chemical Engineering & Biotechnology at the University of Cambridge. She is a named inventor on awarded wearable scent technology and smart fabric patents and has worked with Google, International Flavours & Fragrances, Philips, The North Face, Cambridge Consultants and Adeline Andre Couture. eScent® was recently acknowledged as an "Up & Coming" Innovation by the TransTech Community and won 'Best Innovation Award' at the Wearable Technology in 2016.

SIG Champions

Paul Green - Creative Director, Iotics

Paul originated Arkessa in 2006 - the business that provides remote internet services to multitudes of machines. He is currently creating the services Arkessa will offer in five year's time. His professional life combined engineering and science has taken him through a variety of roles, including design and production engineering, business planning, marketing and corporate sales, mainly in the telecommunications sector. Interestingly, the first product he introduced to manufacture is now is in the Science Museum in London. A passionate and committed Christian, Paul is as excited about materials science and quantum physics as he is interested in railways, walking, skiing and the natural world.

Nick Hunn - CTO, WiFore Consulting

For the past thirty years Nick has been closely involved with short range wireless and communications, designing technology that helps to bring mobility to products, particularly in the areas of telematics, M2M, IoT, wearables, smart energy and mobile health. He is closely involved with the Bluetooth SIG, the Continua Alliance and other medical and wireless standards bodies. He is the author of 'The Essentials of Short Range Wireless' - a book attempting to explain the application of wireless technology to product developers.

Tim Whittaker - Head of Professional Audio Visual, Wireless & Digital Services, Cambridge Consultants

Cambridge Consultants was started in 1960 to pioneer the delivery of independent design and development services in electronic, mechanical and product engineering: we are one of the founder companies of the high-technology Cambridge Phenomenon. Our history of world-class services is augmented by our development of intellectual property in areas including telecommunications, software, silicon, medical devices, machine learning, and by more than 20 successful spin-out ventures. Today Cambridge Consultants employs over 900 world-class engineers, scientists, project managers and technicians with offices in Cambridge UK, Boston, Seattle, San Francisco, Singapore and Tokyo; we provide the full range of services for excellent product design to a worldwide client base in the wireless, consumer, industrial, energy and medical markets. Tim Whittaker is a System Architect in the Wireless business unit, where he has taken the technical lead in projects using radio
standards like Bluetooth, ZigBee, DECT, and in the creation of specialist communications schemes for new applications, or to use new spectrum allocations.

Event Location

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Location info

Deloitte, Stonecutter Court, 1 Stonecutter St, London EC4A 4TR

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