Google Day Asia: How to make it Big in the World Wide Web and discover why the “Philippines” is an opportunity

Makati became the convergence zone of top tech company Google and IT professionals in Asia last Friday, 3^rd August 2012. G-day happened first in the Philippines with Google’s Loren Shuster delivering the keynote for the event. Working in the country since 1995, he said that the “Philippines” has always been marked as the next big thing. “The reality is: the internet is here and the drivers are here. The Philippines is going to be one of, if not, the fastest growing market from a GDP perspective across Asia Pacific. The Philippines is an opportunity here and now for all collectively. That's why we're holding our 1st G-day in Southeast Asia particularly, in the Philippines” said Shuster.

He also gave a round of Trivia to engage with the crowd.

• What is the nickname of Google's search engine during the initial days of Larry and Sergey working on their Stanford engineering project (back in 1996)? 

       Answer: Backrub (Not to be mistaken as a massage parlor which it sounds like. 

     The name was changed in 1998 when the company was founded. With 14 years on 

     its track, Google is very young yet; it has changed Technology to better the lives of many).

• What is the meaning of Google?

        Answer: It's a number with a hundred zeros.

• What is the Informal corporate slogan of Google?

         Answer: Don't be Evil.

• What inspired the multi-colored Google logo?

       Answer: When the founders were working in the garage, they built a computer chassis out 

       of Lego. The multi-colored Lego inspired the Google Logo.

 Google Executive Loren Shuster delivers the Keynote

The talk narrated the big G’s timeline beginning from its birth on a rented Garage of Susan Wojcickis in Menlo Park, California. Established in 1998, the organization’s mission is to organize the world's information and make it universally accessible and useful.  Shuster moved to discuss Google Glass (GG), a man-machine interface which makes information accessible right in front of your eyes.  Classified as the Google I/O extension in Asia, the event could have been more exciting if he did a demo of the GG in action.  “It is an incredible innovation. It sounds futuristic. It is here and now. In the next 24-36 months, I wouldn't be surprised if many people in this room started wearing Google glass.” said Shuster as he discussed about the product.

Shuster shifted to discuss about the current landscape in the region. He said that 2.3 Billion people are already online and over 1 Billion are across Asia Pacific representing over 29% market penetration.  “The numbers present huge opportunity for people to come online and engage online, to access info online and participate in their communities online “he added. Being one of the most exciting and dynamic region in the world, Google raises its flag and establishes its presence in the country. 

“The pace of Change is normal. It is something that we all need to adapt to in order to stay abreast of the latest technology opportunities that provide us the chance to enhance our businesses and our personal lives.” Shuster said.

What the future holds

Mobile is the Future. Photo Credit: Ohio State University

Shuster went on to discuss the figures in 2012 showing that there are over 5 Billion mobile devices globally.  Looking forward, Google expects this number to double. This means that a huge change is about to happen creating enormous opportunities and value.  The internet is at the heart of everything we do in our daily lives. It’s all about these 3 core areas: Information, Entertainment and Community.

Information sourcing today

Android Explosion

In retrospect 20 years ago, Shuster reminisced how we relied on local libraries, morning papers and encyclopedias. But, today, the vast majority of the information we use are sourced online.

“There are more Android activations happening compared to the number of babies born.  Every day, 4.7 Billion Google searches are made.” These are the reasons why mobile is perceived as a change agent in sourcing information.  The Tech stalwart expects to have more mobile and desktop searches in the next 24 months.  Shuster believes that importance should be given to mobility and business.

YouTube defines entertainment

YouTube

Back in 2006, Google acquired YouTube for $1.65 Billion. At present, more than 72 hours of video content is uploaded per minute. People YouTube videos having more control as to when, where and what to download.  People are now empowered to define entertainment at their own will.

Community Basics online

Apart from retrieving information, people are getting more connected online.  “There is a lot of sharing happening and there is also an explosion of content. As a result, consumers are starting to demand” Shuster said. These times are interesting since different platforms are accessible and available. The spotlight is lit towards content creators and businesses to take advantage of these opportunities and make something useful for people.

Why Google loves the Philippines

Internet penetration in the country is at 33%. Shuster emphasized the need for businesses to go beyond traditional media and consider online presence. In Southeast Asia, the “Philippines” has the highest usage of videos and the second biggest in the world to upload videos online.  Also, the number of searches made via mobile is outstanding. Shuster emphasized “Mobile has to be the center of all activities.”

How to make it Big in the Web

Charice Pempengco and Arnel Pineda. YouTube Star Sensation.

Digital platforms even the playing field for everyone to be successful online. So, what makes success online?  Google believes that the only limiting factor is creativity. There is a massive opportunity for businesses and individuals aspiring to make it big. A proven fact: Many became successful using the new media with the likes of Charice Pempengco and Arnel Pineda.

To illustrate where the trend is heading, Shuster said the Philippines is the first market in Asia where chrome is the number 1 browser.  President Aquino was the first world leader to be interviewed in YouTube. Google offers free SMS to Globe, Smart and Sun.  The big G’s big bets are: Android, YouTube, G+ and Google search.

Now, all the cards are down. What’s your online success story?

Programming the Future: What will the world be like in 2050?

The rat race in technological innovation is happening in a light speed. Various platforms are continuing to intertwine different fields of specialization to provide solutions from complex to mundane problems of everyday life. One of the pillars of such breakthroughs is computer programming. With all these changes happening, there are two questions relevant to ask today. How will computer programming impact the future? Where do we go from here?

Accenture held "Shaping the Future Forum 2012" last Thursday, 26th July 2012 at Edsa Shangri-La Hotel, Manila. In partnership with Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), Accenture invited Srini Devadas, MIT professor of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, to lecture about "Programming the Future" which aimed at keeping technology professionals abreast with the latest trends and developments in computing and programming. 

Top executives from Accenture gave an overview of the company's profile and mentioned how Asia, particularly the Philippines, is playing a key role in its global operations. Then, a brief introduction was given for the guest speaker. Srini started his talk by inviting the audience to imagine a world where everyone has avatars with the likes of Tom Cruise, a descriptive illustration on how the future could be like. His discussion went in-depth on the history of programming beginning from the Abacus age of computation. He then discussed about Plato together with the importance of calculation, Ada Byron being the first programmer and Harvard Mark 1 and 2 as the pioneer electro-mechanical computer. It was interesting to discover the robust background of programming and know where it all started.

MIT Professor Srini Devadas giving his Talk

There have been a lot of developments in programming. "What about the next 40 years?" asked Srini. Logically, it is appropriate to ask what the next chapter will be after the introduction of new programming languages and coding platforms which gave birth to new disruptive technologies. The next part of the talk centered on three computing paradigms playing a significant role in technology: Programming for Everyone, Big Data and Crowds to Clouds.

Programming for Everyone

According to Srini, in the near future, millions of programmers will need to write billions of lines of correct code. These require coding methodologies such as Graphical Programming, which allows element manipulation using graphical means instead of standard texts, and Programming in English, a method used in programming data structure codes.

Big Data

Financial Markets Causality Connections

New Age Technology gives access to big data which are relevant in understanding everyday problems and carving out solutions. Srini added that there are a lot of significant data that can be analyzed. However, this overwhelming volume presents the big data challenge: Too big, Too Fast and Too Hard. A solution to this is locality sensitive hashing where input items are hashed to group similar items and placed in the same categories with increased probability. An interesting example mentioned by Srini was about consumer credit risk analysis and forecasting. The goal was risk profiling of consumers based on their financial transactions. To achieve this, machine learning was utilized to detect potential defaults. The results were more accurate compared to the FICO score method. Machine learning applies sophisticated analytics to big chunks of data.

Crowds to Clouds (c2c)

Cloud Computing. Photo Credit: Aisha Hasan

Cloud computing is the future.Despite of its infancy stage, tech giants Amazon, Google, Microsoft and even Oracle, to name a few, have joined the cloud provider's club. The cloud's seamless accessibility, security and storage are a magnet to enterprises and startup companies. Srini perceives the future with billions of people using devices to connect to trillions of processors in the cloud. To illustrate this vision, project cartel, a pothole finding application, uses sensors from GPS, WIFI and cellular triangulation to measure and localize traffic delays allowing people to spend less time in traffic. Another example is Twit info which synthesizes interesting information based on raw twitter feeds.

More on Artificial Intelligence

The Future of Driving using Artificial Intelligence

Diving into more unconquered charters, Srini asked "What is the future of Artificial Intelligence?" According to him, combining the strengths of human and machine is the way to go to create synergy in Artificial Intelligence.

What will the world be like in 2050?

Personal Systems Genomics

In general, Srini's talk characterized the future with technology playing a big role to achieve its maturity. Its presence will be felt across major aspects of human life. Climate change will utilize Green software by means of using Big Data. The future will seek to predict unpredictable weather patterns. Autonomous driving will be seen in the field of transportation. In the health sciences, personalized system genomics will allow to track generations of ancestral origins and determine predispositions to diseases and determine preventive measures.

Srini concluded his talk by saying that programmers are in a great field since computer programming will be a major driver of growth and opportunities. No one really knows what the future will be. It will all depend on the present generation of IT professionals to lead the way in shaping the future.