Philip Moynagh, VP of IoT, Intel, delivers his keynote address at the Innovation Ireland Forum in Dublin. Photo by Robbie Reynolds
The internet of things (IoT) is more than just an idea, and Ireland needs to be ahead of the game, said Intel’s vice-president of IoT Philip Moynagh at the Innovation Ireland Forum in Dublin this morning.
During his keynote speech, in which he discussed what the future holds for IoT and the inter-connectedness of devices, Moynagh emphasised the part Ireland can play in not just contributing to its future, but leading from the front.
As a speaker at last year’s Silicon Republic Innovation Ireland Forum, Moynagh had impressed attendees with his vision of the next few years and the movement away from the ‘internet of screens’. Now he spoke of the need for Ireland to act.
At today’s event, Moynagh dismissed the idea that Ireland can’t be a major player in the future of the internet, using the US west coast as a prime example of what can be achieved.
“What can we do here in the Ireland collective and how can we be part of this revolution in the way that California led the charge in the ‘internet of screens’?
“A 100-kilometre stretch of coastline paved the way for the internet; it’s not the big that beats the small, it’s the fast that beats the slow.”
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Philip Moynagh, VP of IoT, Intel, address the audience at the Innovation Ireland Forum in Dublin. Photo by Robbie Reynolds
The barriers to innovation have been greatly reduced
Moynagh emphasised over and over again that the energy barriers between taking an idea and making it into a viable project has reduced dramatically in the past 10 years.
One example he highlighted was a woman named Kim who developed a cat door for her pet Gus. For little more than US$100, she built a cat door that would be programmed to not only allow Gus in but to tweet Kim when Gus entered the house and when he was leaving.
Drawing a comparison with a newly built plumbing system ready for use, Moynagh said that with projects such as Intel’s Galileo board encouraging anybody to develop an IoT endeavour: “The winds (of change) are putting the plumbing in place so the smart people with ideas can deliver these transformational changes.
“This plumbing allows us to drop the energy barrier between the idea and implementation. It’s a concept with a pile of reality and we could choose to wait for someone else on the planet to turn that into reality, or else we can be a part of it.”
Referencing Prof Stephen Hawking talking about the importance of innovation in the individual, Moynagh said he believed this placement of emphasis on ‘you’ is key to the future of IoT.
“(Hawking) was talking to all of us and it’s in our hands to make a difference. We just need to get off our a– and do it.”
Watch Philip Moynagh deliver his keynote address at the Innovation Ireland Forum here:
Part 1 of 2:
Part 2 of 2:
