Archived Newsroom • Press Release |
|
ITU Telecom World 2014 Leadership Summit on the
Future
explores “mindboggling” pace of digitalization
Exponential organizations, new arenas of competition, artificial
intelligence, bio technology, big data analytics transforming our world
Doha, 8 December 2014 – The ITU Telecom World 2014
Leadership Summit on the Future launched debates today in an
eye-opening and inspiring journey into the future of the ICT industry and of
our businesses and societies.
Renowned futurists and international experts from a range of disciplines
came together to explore potential scenarios of the future with leaders of
public and private sectors from across the global ICT sector, and to gain an
understanding of how policies, strategies, business models and regulatory
approaches may need to adapt.
Opening the Summit, moderator and leading futurist Gerd Leonhard, CEO,
the Futures Agency, said, “From big data to artificial intelligence
and the singularity to robotics and the overall digital transformation of
society, culture and communications, we need to be aware of what challenges
are ahead and what opportunities we need to investigate right now. We need
to determine the balance between humanity and technology – and go beyond
fear to find our way forward.”
Highlights of the afternoon included:
- International expert in intelligent robotics Rolf
Pfeifer, Prof. em., University of Zurich, introduced Roboy,
a new breed of robot designed to provoke an emotional
reaction, encourage human-robot interaction and re-evaluate
often negative perceptions of robots.
- Rita McGrath, Professor, Columbia Business School, spoke
on the need for telecom companies to adopt a new strategic
approach in the new era of cross-sector partnerships, moving
competition from individual industries to arenas of
activity.
- Yuri van Geest, Managing Director of the Singularity
University Summit Europe, explored the singularity, the
concept of machines becoming more powerful than humans and
the need for exponential organizations in exponential times.
- Rohit Talwar, CEO, Fast Future Research, spoken on the
transformative drivers of change over the next decade and
how governments can prepare for a hyper-connected future,
emphasizing the importance of education in the digital
economy.
- Simon Torrance, CEO, Metaflight, called for creative
co-innovation and a new approach to partnerships in an era
defined by convergence with broadcasting and the blurring of
boundaries with vertical sectors.
ITU Secretary-General Hamadoun I. Touré highlighted the extent of the
positive disruption the industry, and the world, are facing: “The
opportunities are immense: trillion dollar new markets, social and economic
development, sustainable economies, green cities, life-enhancing apps and
services, convenience, ease, access to knowledge and new ways of doing
things we cannot currently conceive of.”
Closing the afternoon, Jean-Philbert Nsengimana, Minister for Youth and
Information and Communication Technology, Rwanda, said: “It has been a
rollercoaster in terms of discovery, learning and impressions. It is
challenging to realize technology is changing much faster than government
and the public sector, it is exciting to feel and touch the future of
robotics and hear about exponential organizations. Above all, it is exciting
to see the opportunities we have in developing countries in particular to
use these technologies to permanently fix some of the most daunting
challenges such as food security, environment and healthcare.”
ITU Telecom World is the leading platform for knowledge exchange,
innovation showcasing, networking and debate for the global ICT community.
ITU Telecom World 2014 is being held in Doha, Qatar, 7 – 10 December at the
Qatar National Convention Centre.
For more details on the event and daily highlights summing up the best of
each day’s activities, see
- Full highlights of each days discussions and key events
are available
here
- See the full event programme click here
- See the speaker line-up here
- For a full set of background blogs on the event,
including from Leadership Summit speakers, please visit our
event blog
Media Note: Media accreditation for ITU Telecom
World 2014, 7-10 December 2014, enables free access to the event for
registered media and analysts. Accreditation is compulsory. UN Press
accreditation is valid, but registration is required to obtain an event
badge.
Media registration is now open at the ITU Telecom World 2014 on site at
the Qatar National Convention Centre in Doha: Monday-Tuesday, 8-9 December
2014, 08:00 – 18:00 and Wednesday, 10 December, 08:00-16:00.
Accredited media will gain full access to all the different components of
the event, including the Leadership Summit, Forum sessions and Show floor as
well as the Media Centre and be able to take part in a host of networking
opportunities alongside leading public/private sector representatives.
Videos and photos from ITU Telecom World 2013 and 2014
are available.
Videos: www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLpoIPNlF8P2N0iBXOtP2bD5_u-8xy_Pba
Photos: www.flickr.com/photos/itupictures/sets/72157638139301335/
|
For more information, please click
here or
contact: |
Media
accreditation enquiries: |
Sanjay Acharya
Chief, Media Relations and Public Information, ITU
|
|
About ITU...