Video Archive – The Conference by Media Evolution

Jonas Hedman – Out of cash

Wed, 28 Aug 2019 17:22:43 GMT

“What is money? In my meaning it’s the best innovation ever. It’s a trust system, we put more trust in money than we do in religion.”

Jonas Hedman is Professor at the Department of Digitalization at Copenhagen Business School. His research interest concerns the digital transformation in the finance sector and includes topics such as cashless society, fintech revolution, payment ecosystems, payment innovations, open API and central bank digital currency.

Money – such as coins, banknotes and account money – are global, general purpose mediums of exchange with an unrestricted usage. In the future, however, experts like Jonas foresee a new type money: one that is intelligent or smart, money that we can program for specific uses. In essence, “smart money” is a value exchange instrument that is based on computer protocols which can facilitate, verify or enforce present conditions for its appropriation as a means of payment.

Jacopo Pompilii – Out of cash

Wed, 28 Aug 2019 17:22:43 GMT

Jacopo is an interaction designer at frog, a global design and strategy firm. He works on design research and product definition for a range of digital channels, from consumer applications to corporate websites. He’s fascinated by complex systems and how they can be optimized for usability and delight through design.

His experience spans into different industries like financial services, telco, automotive and consumer electronics and at The Conference he shared some design opportunities risen from the dawn of the cashless society.

Brett Scott – The war on cash

Wed, 28 Aug 2019 17:22:43 GMT

“Cash allows everybody to use it, it doesn’t care who you are.”

At The Conference 2019, author and economic hacker Brett Scott made the case for keeping cash. He talked about – not a “cashless society” – but a “bankful society”, referring to institutions and states that all are pushing for a more digitized money system.

Claire L. Evans – The pioneering grandmothers of the internet

Wed, 28 Aug 2019 17:22:43 GMT

Anyone who’s seen AMC’s series Halt and Catch Fire knows the importance of representation. Two out of four main characters are female tech pioneers in the early 80s. Claire L. Evans’ book Broadband traces the real story of women behind the solitary geniuses of history, who tend to be men. What if unique solutions and social networks like Microcosm or Echo (both created by women) had received the same attention and capital that e.g. the WWW got in the early 90s? In her talk Evans explores the untravelled paths of history to balance the narrative and to show us the radically different now we could have lived in. Outreach, representation and care – what if all those things were taken into account when designing and coding solutions? Care, especially is a word we don’t hear a lot anymore. But if we’re going to survive the future and its challenges, we need all the help we can get. Which means we need to see more non-males represented in the tech industry.

Andrea Jones-Rooy – Under measure – measuring what matters

Wed, 28 Aug 2019 17:22:43 GMT

"Measurement is the beautiful act when humans get involved and take facts to data"

At The Conference 2019, Data science professor Dr. Andrea Jones-Rooy (NYU), talked about the pitfalls to be mindful of when working with data. Andrea explained the dangers of just scratching the surface of the data and how important it is to look beyond. We should look at the data as subjective because if we look at the data with an expectation of answers, we will find them and miss out on everything else. Instead, Dr. Andra Jones-Rooy wants us to start with the question. E.g. Why are women leaving the company? Why are they more unlikely to have higher positions? By asking questions, maybe we someday can point out a good measurement for diversity. What are the inputs and outputs and how do you create diversity?

Anna Åhnberg – Under measure – measuring what matters

Wed, 28 Aug 2019 17:22:43 GMT

"We’re all going to fucking die"

Green house emission, climate change. Big words with a scary tone. At The Conference 2019, Sustainability specialist Anna Åhnberg from Oatly told us that we SHOULD be scared but she also encouraged us not to freeze in panic. Everyone should, and could, act and that includes the food companies too. The food industry accounts for 25% of the worlds global gas emissions which is more than all the transport industries together. Anna Åhnberg has one strong message – the food industry should talk more about their environmental impact. By acknowledging the impact every product has, the consumers finally have the opportunity to be aware and compare different food. How much impact on the environment had your breakfast today?

Alina Bliumis – Most of us are

Wed, 28 Aug 2019 17:22:43 GMT

Who is the every day person? What is your identity? And more importantly, is there such a thing? A while ago, Alina Bliumis went out on a mission to find the answer. She searched the web and after diving into big chunks of data she found out that most of us are 28 years old, have black hair and brown eyes. She also found out that most people don't believe in global warming and that most of us owns a bed and a smartphone. By analyzing the numbers, we would now believe that we have the answer to the question of how a every day person looks and act like, but be aware. Alina Bliumis warns us that in reality this might look a bit different. “It seems unlikely that all metrics reflects the true reality” she says.

Meghan O'Gieblyn – God in the machine

Wed, 28 Aug 2019 17:22:43 GMT

Sci-fi and religion alike, have always been concerned with dilemmas we now associate with transhumanism. What does resurrection or immortal life feel like? Will you still be ”you”? The idea of mind uploading has been a prevalent feature in wildly imaginative series like Altered Carbon, but now we seem to be on the verge of realisation of similar technologies with Elon Musk’s Neuralink project. Essayist Meghan O’Gieblyn shares her story that begin as a devout Christian, later to become fascinated by the seemingly secular narratives of Kurzweil. From Dante to 20th century transhumanists via the alchemists, O’Gieblyn shows how ”existential questions are always going to rely on metaphors”. We need to be wary of the metaphors we use, because they shape our consciousness and have had a history of leading to fundamentalism, religious or secular. Who knows that the right answers are, but at least we need to look beyond our Cartesian dualism of body and mind.

Nicole He – Say my name, say my name

Wed, 28 Aug 2019 17:22:43 GMT

"Voice technology is the gap between what AI actually is and what people believe it is"

Nicole He is an artist and programmer who use technology for creative work, combined with an interest in current technology of AI and the character of AI. Voice technology could be seen as the gap between the real AI and the AI character in our imagination. The cutting edge tech is created for things that can make money, but that shouldn’t stop us from using them to make art. In different creative projects Nicole has incorporated voice technology, such as the” True Love Tinder Robot”, the “Secret Dunny Box” and “Garden Friends”. They all have in common that we can interact with the technology in different ways and it creates different feelings and experiences. However - according to Nicole voice technology is not perfect yet. There’s a difference in how we think it should work and how it actually works. It’s interesting now and we don’t have to wait for the AI to be perfect to use it, there’s room to make great things with it.

Anthony Onumonu – Say my name, say my name

Wed, 28 Aug 2019 17:22:43 GMT

With help from Amazon’s Alexa, Anthony Onumonu, Principal software engineer from BBC R&D, talks about designing and developing interactive experiences on smart speakers. Anthony shared research from BBC’s ”Talking with machines!” project, combining cutting edge technology and storytelling. Skipping to the million dollar question: Have we solved interactive voice technology? No, this is just the beginning.

Daniel Padgett – Say my name, say my name

Wed, 28 Aug 2019 17:22:43 GMT

We’re entering the beginning of a technological shift where machines get more and more humanized. Daniel Padgett, Conversational Design Lead at Google, works to put people in the centre and optimize technology for the future, and in this talk from The Conference 2019, Daniel draws from from his vast experience within voice technology and teach us about the complexities and opportunities of working with voice as an interface.

Kris De Decker - Look back, move forward

Wed, 28 Aug 2019 17:22:43 GMT

Journalist Kris De Decker writes about low tech solutions to high tech problems. At The Conference 2019, Kris walked us through his solar powered website Low tech magazine and the design decisions required to make it work. Internet, and with it, the digital industries consumes enormous amounts of energy and as such, has a huge impact on the climate. To create a more sustainable online magazine, Kris and his team revisited old school techniques in web design.

Zara Rahman - Look back, move forward

Wed, 28 Aug 2019 17:22:43 GMT

At The Conference 2019, Zara Rahman, Director of Programs at The Engine Room spoke about the unintended impact of technology in relation to identity. How do identification technologies shape our own identities? And how did we come about to decide how to measure this? The talk examines who gets to decide the borders that tell you who you are and how the ability to self-identify is what makes us human. Does more data and tech automatically mean progress? What is progress and how does human power affect humans?