Summer Briefing from Centre for Business Innovation

  

 

CfBI Summer Briefing  2023                   

with meeting dates for your calendar                       

 

 

 

As a contact of the Centre for Business Innovation we are pleased to share hot news about CfBI Consortia and our upcoming meetings – as well as the Cambridge Innovation Summit on September 26^th when we all get together in Cambridge.  If you would like to get involved, please contact the consortium leaders below or talk to me about how your organization can benefit from joining us.                                    

                                                                                   2023 Gallery

                

               

 

CfBI’s latest headlines

 

With COVID well behind us now we are fully physical again – but still use the Hopin platform to enable members from around the world to participate virtually to network  and to pick up recordings of talks and discussion.

 

•       The Corporate Venturing Leadership Forum (CVLF-5)  has been busy over the past few months, with meetings in Canary Wharf, hosted by Kadans, and a recent trip to Food Valley in Wageningen, hosted by Yili. We discussed the latest problems for innovators, such as finding and working with start-ups, and integrating them into a corporate environment. We also explored how to build successful ecosystems. The trip to Food Valley gave us a valuable insight into the future of food and how corporates can work with start-ups to bring new products to market. We also had a tour of Yili's brand new state of the art labs - apparently regularly tested making pizza! If you are interested in working with start-ups to transform your business, then I encourage you to join us.  Contact: adam.swash@cfbi.com

 

•       (NEW) The Future of Education Consortium (FoE-1) is a dynamic community of forwardthinking policy makers, educators, technologists, and visionaries dedicated to shaping the future of education. We bring together public and private sector organisations from across Europe that are passionate about education and aspire to enhance student engagement, improve outcomes and foster lifelong learning by incorporating cutting-edge technologies. Together, we will redefine the boundaries of education and pioneer transformative learning experiences. We are currently inviting members to join this  new Consortium - our Consortium leaders will be attending the Cambridge Innovation Summit on 26th September ready to introduce the Consortium to anyone who's interested. We plan to launch on Sept 27^th.

Contact: futureofeducation@cfbi.com

 

 

•       The Microfluidics Consortium (MF-14) Having visited San Francisco (including site visit to Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory), Zurich (including site visit to the de Mello Lab at ETH)  and Boston (including site visit to MIT nano lab)  this year, we will be in Cambridge UK (Trinity Science Park) on Sept 27^th  with a world class programme of research, applications and venturing talks, table top demos, site visits and all the networking you can handle!! . Agenda and registration here. Following this we will meet in Paris, France on tbc Nov 20/21 (convenient for delegates at Medica the previous week)  and then in  San Francisco on Feb 1/2 (timed to fit with the Photonics West Conference).  For details, contact Peter Hewkin on ceo@cfbi.com

 

·         The Medical Adherence and Digital Health Consortium (MADH-7) takes a collaborative pan industry approach to the expensive problem of poor adherence to treatment regimes, and the opportunities presented by digital health to support increased adherence and patient engagement. Building on existing work in the sector, the group progresses through the use of focussed working groups, currently looking at; improving the use of behaviour change in digital health apps (creating an implementation framework in association with experts from Kings College London and Asthma + Lung UK): increasing the quality of adherence measurement: and agreeing and progressing along a feasible industrial roadmap to the better use of digital to improve adherence. The next meeting will be in Cambridge on Sept 27th following the Cambridge Innovation Summit. For details, contact Jeremy Holland at jeremy.holland@cfbi.com

•       The Nano-Carbon Enhanced Materials (NCEM-9) consortium has the mission to provide a unique inside into carbon nanotechnologies and an opportunity to address commercialisation challenges. Members are currently particularly interested in enabling materials and technologies for upcoming generations of batteries. For more information, please contact the NCEM Consortium leader, Dr Bojan Boskovic  

 

The Cambridge Innovation Summit is the annual occasion when members of all our consortia come together to learn from and with each other. Supported by generous sponsorship from BSI (British Standards Institute) and CPI (Centre for Process Innovation) and now in its 9^th year CfBI’s flagship event will  be  in physical format  on Sept 26th 2022 (with a programme of case studies, panel discussions,  a curated matching session with leading start-ups  and all the networking you can handle. The Summit takes place  a beautiful Cambridge riverside location with a dinner afterwards in the Great Hall of Westminster College – just  a short walk along the river from the summit location. We are delighted to have headline speakers from Microsoft Research, ARM, Linguamatics  and University of Cambridge  already confirmed.  For those who cannot make the physical event the Advanced Hopin  features will be used to allow virtual breakout room discussions and ad-hoc 1-2-1 video meetings.  Access is free to all members of CfBI consortia – but there is a modest fee for non-members. For details  & registration follow the links here www.cambridgeinnovationsummit.com

 

Add Cambridge Innovation Summit  2023 to your calendar. Do it now!

                                         

CfBI is currently testing ideas for new consortia in exciting spaces such as: ‘AI – practitioners’ ,   ‘Brain / Machine Communications’ and ‘Additive Manufacturing’. The Cambridge Innovation Summit will include a structured breakout sessions for members to work on what they would like to see from new consortia like these. Do let us know if your company would like to stimulate a new consortium in the trusted CfBI format.

 

Want to know more about us?  CfBI’s Executive Summary with details of all our consortia benefits of joining can be downloaded here – or contact me for a chat.

 

We  look forward to seeing  you “upclose and personal”  again!

 

Dr Peter F Hewkin - CEO

Centre for Business Innovation

"Creating Collaborative  Communities" 

See our  member logos  t: ++44 1223 850173 m: ++44 7951721110 e: ceo@cfbi.com

w: www.cfbi.com

 

Company Registered in the UK under number 06839754 at Harrison Clark Rickerbys Limited, 50-60 Station Road, Cambridge CB1 2JH

 

 

Future of Education Consortium launches

 

CfBI and European Diplomats launch the Future of Education Consortium

Embrace the power of collaboration, embrace the future of education.

Are you passionate about the Future of Education? Does your organisation work to

advance education by incorporating cutting-edge technologies? Then do not miss this

opportunity!

The education landscape is evolving constantly, driven by rapid advancements in

technology. These advancements bring about great opportunities to foster inclusive,

interactive, and personalised teaching experiences. While the potential of EdTech

solutions is undeniable, there are numerous hurdles and risks that need to be

considered. Let us face the challenges associated with these developments together

and use the potential to prepare teachers and learners for the future!

CfBI and European Diplomats are excited to introduce the Future of Education Consortium:

As a member of the Consortium, you become part of an exclusive community that

embraces change and embraces the potential of technology. Collaborate with

renowned experts in educational technology, pedagogy, curriculum design, and more.

Engage in stimulating discussions, exchange insights, and discover cutting-edge

approaches that enhance student engagement, improve outcomes, and foster lifelong

learning.

With the Future of Education Consortium, you gain access to a wealth of resources

and knowledge. Stay at the forefront of educational trends, research, and best practice

through curated content, exclusive reports, and thought-provoking Consortium

meetings. Our Consortium is committed to equipping you with the tools and insights

needed to navigate the evolving educational landscape successfully.

Expand your horizons, unlock new opportunities, and find inspiration from fellow

change-makers who share your vision

Details from futureofeducation@cfbi.com

Cambridge Innovation Summit Sept 26 2023

 

Come and join us in Cambridge UK for the Cambridge Innovation Summit on Sept 26th!  This is a highly interactive day of  learning from and with some of the world's top companies with all the networking you can handle in beautiful Cambridge surroundings - and topped off with a gala dinner at Westminster College

Our headline theme is AI and we are delighted to be sponsored by The British Standards Institute and the Centre for Process Innovation.

We have confirmed speakers from:

- ARM

- Microsoft Research

- University of Cambridge Centre for Existential Risk

as well as an AI pitching segment introducing some of the regions most exciting start-ups.

Follow the links from www.cambridgeinnovationsummit.com for details and registration

See you there!

Delegates from all of CfBI's consortia come together with selected invited day guests.

Thoughts from Eindhoven - CVLF 1.4

The key theme that emerged in Eindhoven was that of TIME.

What a treat to go to the HighTech Campus in Eindhoven: an outstanding ecosystem brought together through the collaboration of the corporates, academia, government and visionaries. A hardware slant was a nice change too.

To get the visit off to a (very) warm start we were welcomed to traditional Dutch hospitality a De LeemerHoef with a roaring fire and some great food. One of my treats at these events is the opportunity to connect and hear from local delegates who can give a different perspective to our normal bubbles.

After dinner we were treated to a talk by Jolan Hulscher and Prof Georges Romme - introducing the Eindhoven ecosystems and the differences in mindset between Eindhoven, Cambridge and Munich. Importantly how areas without an innovative / entrepreneurial mindset will find it increasingly difficult to compete

Next day we had an early start on the HighTech Campus itself. To settle us into our seats overlooking the lake (skateable the previous week.) we were given a historical perspective on the area and how it grew up into the place that it was today. It is amazing to see the impact of history on today’s ecosystems.

Our first case study was from Benno (Philips). He shared how they manage their intrapreneurship and external accelerator programmes and how this fits in with their Corporate Investment funds. Echoing previous meetings, he highlighted the importance of strategic focus in the areas you wanted to encourage innovations. In addition, he highlighted the importance of having a timetable for events - having a drip feed of non-focussed ideas is no good.

A key takeaway was they look for more than one founder in any start-up they work with. This tallies with previous research work I have done, highlighting the importance of more than one (ideally in different age groups) in high growth companies, but it is the first time I have seen it implemented as a hard rule.

This was followed by the energetic Guus (Hightech XL), the on-site accelerator who spoke about how they work with local corporates to build accelerators and increasingly work with internal accelerators. Key messages included:

• Time - it has taken 5 years to get to the success they now are, the first 2 years were fairly flat and it was touch and go, a lot of lessons were learned. 
• Success rate is running at an impressive 75% of starting companies: being very careful about who you pick means you save money overall
• They have a strategic plan - it’s called DOING THINGS!

Mark (Abbvie) then spoke about how he had managed a change in culture at Abbvie to make it a more innovative culture. The impact and change really kicked in after 3 years.

After all that excitement we were glad to stretch our legs and walk to NXP labs for lunch and the afternoon session.  We kicked-off by launching our joint member project based on Prof. Erkko’s previous suggestions to help members understand how to get more generativity.

Clara (NXP) then gave us a wonderful insight into the ever changing world of semiconductors, updating her definition of Moore's law to computational power. We also looked at cost and time of innovation in an expensive hardware environment. As well as the importance of Understanding Systems / Ecosystems.

A quick quiz on % R&D spend being purely disruptive was also enlightening!! How much do you do?

Another young talent led our final session, Lulu (NXP) demonstrating some of the latest developments including kissing chameleons, drones communications and automatic truck platooning - the importance of timing in this case was in milliseconds not years!….

NEXT STOP BARCELONA - 17th - 18th May 2018 - A few places left contact Adam for info

Image by Steven Lek (Own work) [CC BY-SA 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0)], via Wikimedia Commons

Thoughts from London - CVLF 1.3

Another fantastic event - the Biggest Surprise was how many people in the room were Estonian e-residents!  What a cutting edge group of geeks we are ;-)

It was a dual centre format and this allowed us to see some new faces - and two amazing venues

Thoughts from Geovation

We were treated to a number of short (in most cases) presentations at Geovation interspersing some insights into the latest innovations with some lighter stories about London.

Key take-outs for me were:

• The scale of the prize in Fintech disintermediation Chris Sier’s. I also really liked the way he presented this as a benefit to the consumer  
• The power of a fully functioning ecosystem in the two examples presented by Alex (Geovation) and Amy (Level 39) - and the use of a cookie bell..
• The particularly enjoyed the counterpoint from Marc at MXC Capital with a more financially driven approach. 

I very much enjoyed so many intense conversations continuing over drinks and food - though I am not sure security was so happy with the time we left

Thoughts from Belron

My first take-away from this event was that I needed to play more chess - someone is trying to tell you something when every keynote mentions it!

Four great sessions - starting with an inspirational presentation from Nick (Belron) who really demonstrated how he is using innovation programmes to face digitisation and disruption head-on.

Key points:

• ‘strategically important’ is not necessarily your core business
• IBM Watson hackathon shows what is possible when people are empowered. 

Nick’s presentation highlighted that while it is imperative that these activities have a strategic imperative it might not be the core company deliverable,  Andy (Schneider Electric) took this to the next stage and spoke about how activities can be aligned with sustainability e.g the Global Sustainable Goals. The message: there are many parts of the corporate that do not necessarily touch each other but through collaboration both areas can be strengthened.

Staying with the theme of using collaboration to solve societal problems (and generally very big problems) Marc (Telefonica) spoke very eloquently about how corporate partnerships with XXXXX have helped them innovate and connect disadvantaged communities. Some amazing thoughts:

• Think about who should be in the start-up team (Queen - well connected all rounder, Knight - able to jump over obstacles and make things happen, Rook/Bishop - deep subject knowledge)
• The old Sun-Tzu expression - keep your friends close but your enemies closer... taking the CTO to every meeting!

However, what was really resonating with me at this point is that it is all about value alignment..If you can line up the value drivers of everyone in the ecosystem (other corporates, start-ups and end consumers) then BIG things will happen.

Which brings me nicely to Prof Erkko’s amazing trip through ecosystems...the good, the bad and the ugly. It is impossible to talk about this presentation without mentioning the fact he cemented his academic credentials early on with his calculation of the exact amount of rice on the last square and used a word that no-one else had heard of.

Microfluidics Consortium in Cookham (UK) Dec 8 & 9

The Microfluidics Consortium is entering its eighth year!

We meet next on December 8th and 9th at Moor Hall, Cookham near Heathrow.

On this occasion we will be working with:

•  EIPC (the European Electronics Trade Association) to find synergies between electronics and microfluidics in areas like manufacturing technology and embedding functionality.

• Big Pharma to find common ground supporting the need for fluidic infrastructure for the new generation of cell, tissue, organ on a chip assays which will be needed for the upcoming revolution in precision medicine.

For details contact Peter Hewkin on ceo@cfbi.com

The next meeting of the consortium will be in San Francisco on Jan 26/27 hosted by Stanford University.

Rescuing #BREXIT with Robots?

“Migration causes wage pressure in low skilled jobs 'Taking back control' of immigration [so the logic goes] will reduce supply of labour and increase local wages.” - a (disputed) claim of the Brexiteers in the UK referendum.

My recent projects looking at the disruptive impact of of automation and AI in various client markets show different trends. It is automation such as: robot clothing manufacturing and autonomous farming and picking that are the long term drivers impacting these low-skill industries.

As migration curbs bite, is the solution for the UK’s innovative businesses to use large-scale automation to fill any shortage of workers. Is #Brexit actually an opportunity to lead the world in advances in automation or will the UK’s new industrial policy prioritise employment over GVA?

Whatever the outcome, one thing is for sure: any global or pan-european companies looking at cross-border R&D and innovation are going to need to quickly plan for a variety of #Brexit scenarios. The Centre for Business Innovation is holding a facilitated symposium to map out the most likely scenarios and potential responses to keep corporate innovation flowing.

A few places are still available - contact adam.swash@cfbi.com or ceo@cfbi.com for more details.