The first MyWorld of Tomorrow (MWOT) Africa expo and conference hosted by Business Connexion was attended by over a thousand delegates today at the Sandton Convention Centre. Its Africa’s first technology showcase of its kind with world-renowned speakers, industry thought leaders and a vast display of technologies of the future to be showcased over the next three days.
The conference key note speaker, Jared Cohen, Founder and Director of Google Ideas at Google Inc., and Bestselling author of The New Digital Age spoke on the power of technology’s influence on society and the African continent “because Africa has a young population, new inventions will be emerging from the continent and attracting further investment.” Cohen said.
Innovator and Trend Analyst, Dion Chang spoke on the new, invisible threat to businesses; Digital Burnout “We’ve reached an interesting tipping point. For years there has been a growing friction between our online and offline worlds.” Chang said while addressing the pervasive nature of technology today that is proving to be a major source of domestic conflict in families as people are inevitably glued to an electronic device during mealtimes or even in bed. “We’re so consumed by technology and there are no more eureka moments, we’ve lost the art of monotasking.” he added.
Kevin Ashton gave an insightful talk on The Internet of Things and touched on technology’s ability to advance healthcare on the continent making reference to rural Zambia that uses SMS technology for HIV testing and treatment. Ashton, who coined the term “Internet of Things” also stated that the African continent is well positioned to lead the Internet evolution “It’s not difficult to predict the future. What’s difficult is believing it.” he said.
Luke McKend Google South Africa Managing Director has worked on several local technology development projects in South Africa and he spoke on African internet success stories. On education, McKend stated that teaching has remained unchanged in 150 years making both teaching and learning ripe for the disruption that technology can bring to the continent.
Amongst the MWOT Africa exhibitors in the Expo Zone, was anchor partner Samsung who brought in their Mobile Clinic, a state of the art mobile facility that provides a range of https://antidepressantremedy.com/xanax-alprazolam/ medical services to the public, with a focus on screening for ailments such as diabetes, high blood pressure and many more.
There were long queues to try out the latest in Virtual Reality technology, including a virtual dressing room and a motion driving simulator added to the fun for young and old technology enthusiasts today.
“Day one has been a resounding success. We wanted to attract people from all walks of life and put different types of technologies into the palms of their hands, and we did that. Our conference speakers delivered on thought provoking insights on technology on the African continent, we’re looking forward to tomorrow.” said Matthew Blewett, Business Connexion Chief Investment Officer.
Click here for images from Day 1 of MyWorld of Tomorrow.
