Episode 211: Google’s Anthos and the death of Stringify

This week Kevin and I spend a chunk of the podcast discussing the end of Stringify and the other options available to users. We also talk about the need for an easy way to transfer automations from one system to another. After that, we tackle Google’s Anthos cloud platform and what it means for the IoT and edge before veering back to consumer news with IKEA’s partnership with Sonos.  Then we cover the plethora of smart cameras at the ISC trade show, more details about Google’s mysterious Mistral board, a new HomeKit device from Eve, and JD Powers getting into the IoT. We close by answering a question about stopping your friends from telling your Google Home what to do.

The Sonos and IKEA collaboration produced this speaker/lamp combo.

Our guest this week is Andy Coravos who is the CEO of Elektra Labs, a startup that is trying to create scientifically accurate benchmarks for medical devices. The early audience is pharma companies who want to remotely monitor participants in clinical trials and need to know if the step counter on the Apple Watch or the heart rate monitor on the Fitbit is accurate. Coravos was also a former EIR at the Food and Drug Administration, and she talks about the steps the agency is taking to regulate digital health products without standing in the way of innovation and security. It’s a great conversation.

Hosts: Stacey Higginbotham and Kevin Tofel
Guest: Andy Coravos, CEO of Elektra Labs
Sponsors: SoftwareAG and IoTWorld

  • Throwing in the towel on Wink and the tinkerer’s smart home
  • Google performed some sweet jujitsu with Anthos
  • Smart cameras are boosting demand for AI at the edge
  • How to eliminate the threat of digital snake oil in connected health
  • What other agencies can learn about regulating the IoT from the FDA

Episode 147: Okay Google, manage my home

At CES I made the decision to traumatize my family and swap out the Amazon Echo for the Google Home despite Wi-Fi challenges. We kick off this week’s show explaining why, and discussing some new tricks the Home has. From there, we hit the partnership between Maersk and IBM to create a digitized supply chain using the blockchain. Then we talk about a startup that might help with that effort. Add in news bits ranging from BMW acquiring ParkMobile to a new low power wide area network module that can last 15 years, and we round out the first half of the show. We also answer a listener question about radiation from IoT devices. If you’re not clued in on this subject, we’re living among radiation with things like WI-Fi and phone signals in our homes, which is why some are resorting to purchasing an EMF Meter to measure these levels of radiation. Listen on if you’re interested.

Port of Algeciras, Spain. Image courtesy of Maersk.

Our guest takes us back to the topic of IoT networks and the future 5G holds for the internet of things. Chetan Sharma is the founder of Chetan Sharma Consulting, and is a widely respected telecom analyst. He talks about what networks are likely to succeed and why, and then also digs into his thoughts on how we should rethink competition and M&A in the digital economy. He also asks if it’s too late to regulate anticompetitive data practices in the U.S. I hope you enjoy the show.

Hosts: Stacey Higginbotham and Kevin Tofel
Guest: Chetan Sharma of Chetan Sharma Consulting
Sponsors: PointCentral and CBT Nuggets

  • The Google Home has a secret API
  • IBM and Maersk ask what blockchain can do for shipping
  • What 5G means for IoT and which flavor arrives first
  • Things to know when picking a LPWAN
  • Our anticompetitive regime is built for the 20th century, not the 21st

Episode 130: Nest’s a security company now and Hitachi’s new industrial IoT explained

Wow. This week saw some big news from Nest as it announced a new security system plus other devices. August also updated its line of locks and promised a better doorbell. Meanwhile, rumors of an Amazon Alexa security system or even glasses emerged. And Google leaked some news. We also talked about smart grid M&A and Comcast buying Stringify, a company that links together myriad devices and lets you create scenes. Kevin also shared his thoughts on the Apple Watch with LTE and we answer a reader question about garage doors.

A Nest Detect sensor in action.

On the guest front, we speak with Rob Tiffany, the CTO of Lumada, about Hitachi’s new industrial IoT play Vantara. He discusses the existential threat that faced Hitachi and why it needed to make a move as well as shared how Hitachi is offering trains as a service. There’s a lot to digest in this show, but it’s a solid overview of the big news this week.

Host: Stacey Higginbotham and Kevin Tofel
Guest: Rob Tiffany of Hitachi Vantara
Sponsors: ForgeRock and Xively

  • The Nest Connect and Security is the return of Weave
  • So much hardware getting released and leaked
  • On the Apple Watch with LTE, manage your networks or manage your expectations
  • IoT posed an existential threat to Hitachi’s business
  • How to turn a train into a service

Episode 95: The industrial internet is gaining ground

You asked and we delivered! This week Kevin discusses the possibility of using the Nvidia Shield as a smart home controller of sorts (and gives his impression of its gaming chops). I give an early review of the Stringify app which is now out for Android and iOS. We also discuss “The Big Show” as folks call the National Retail Federation conference that happened this week, hitting on how players like Intel and Zebra are staking out territory. There’s some Nest news, a bit on another service provider offering a smart home plan and our thoughts on Sonos’ new direction.

The Industrial Internet of Things Lab at National Instruments.

After the news, I brought on three industrial internet experts to talk about the state of the industrial internet of things, tips for smaller companies at setting your pricing in a negotiation with larger players and insights on PTC’s strategy after it bought all of those IoT and augmented reality companies. I’m curious if you guys see what PTC CEO Hepplemann sees when it comes to the future of AR.

Hosts: Stacey Higginbotham and Kevin Tofel
Guests: Jamie Smith, Director of Embedded Systems at NI, Alex Davern CEO of NI, and Jim Heppelmann CEO of PTC
Sponsor: Dell

  • New Raspberry Pis boost compute
  • Can connected retail save the brick and mortar store?
  • Sonos, Nvidia’s Shield and Stringify thoughts
  • Who’s buying the industrial IoT
  • Taking Pokemon Go to the factory floor