The future of the way we live is set to be one thing: Smart and Gitex Global is showing that — living up to its name as one of the world’s biggest technology shows, whether it is to showcase cloud offerings, state-of-the-art servers, first connected smartwatch for children or electric flying race car.
The global tech show kicked off on 17 October and features over 700 startups from more than 60 countries and some tech giants such as Amazon Web Services, Microsoft, Huawei and Dell Technologies, Intel and Cisco.
We’ve collated some interesting tech innovations displayed at Gitex Global so far:
Electric flying race car
The electric car revolution is taking to the sky. Airspeeder, the first electric flying racing car series, made its debut at the Etisalat pavilion. Alauda Aeronautics is the brain behind Airspeeder, billed as the world’s first electric flying racing car.
The Airspeeder takes off and lands vertically, using electric powered- multicopters. The flying racing car is 4.1 metres long and designed for performance racing. At the moment, the cars can travel up to a speed of 120kmph. The next-generation flying car, which will be released by the end of the year, is expected to hit 160km.
It joins a growing list of “electric vertical take-off and landing” (or eVTOL) flying concepts that expect to take to the skies soon enough.
Retail spaces of tomorrow
Etisalat is showcasing the futuristic solutions that will set the pace for digital retail and enable a digital experience for consumers.The smart retail focus on grocery smart checkout solutions, food and beverages, lifestyle and connected fashion and retail dashboard. Etisalat’s payment’s functionality is integrated to demonstrate the capability of providing complete end-to-end solutions, with wearables and facial recognition for payments.
Visitors can begin their shopping experience with a Caper smart cart enabled by artificial intelligence (AI) technology moving to an augmented shopping experience from Innovent (Mojix) with a backend dashboard simulating all transactions, biometrics from Fujitsu’s Fulcrum adds to the contactless experience and a smart check out from Bizerba.
Other retail solutions include advanced delivery solutions from Kiwibot; an automated store technology called Vicki with automated vending machines; and Pickey’s smart wearable captures all actions made by the user. SuperHii highlights a seamless checkout solution, an example of how Etisalat’s eWallet and Smiles can be integrated.
Portable immersive glasses
HTC isn’t launching new smartphones these days, but still keeping its Vive line-up of VR hardware alive. The company is showcasing the latest VR headset Vive Flow. It’s a lightweight headset, a pair of immersive glasses that transports its wearers wherever they want or need to be.
“With VIVE Flow, HTC is taking technology to a new direction, focusing not only on what we do, but on how we feel as maintaining our wellness has come to the forefront in the last few years, with millions of people feeling stressed every day, so it has never been more important to take time out to calm our minds,” said Cher Wang, chairwoman and CEO, HTC.
VIVE Flow is exclusively available for pre-order at Etisalat in the UAE, starting from the first week of November. Designed with comfort and portability in mind, VIVE Flow’s features include:
- Meditation 2.0 with apps like TRIPP, or taking a scenic, immersive drive down Route 66 with MyndVR’s original series: A Road to Remember
- Watching TV or movies on their own personal, cinema-sized VR screen
- Exercising their minds with brain training apps
- Collaborating and socialising with colleagues and friends on VIVE Sync
Smart mobile applications
UAE University (UAEU) students have developed two apps to help improve healthcare services. One of the apps will help patients book medical appointments, while the second one can be used to observe social distancing and ensure community safety in crowded areas. The mobile apps are among the university’s latest innovations in AI and smart applications presented at Gitex Global. The “Smart Healthcare Appointment System” app, is designed to manage the patient experience of booking medical treatment, to save time, prevent congestion at healthcare facilities and improve the efficiency of services.
The app that helps people observe physical distance and ensure community safety is a network-based system that uses low-resolution infrared sensors to facilitate daily routines, such as travel to school or the workplace.
Super apps are the next big thing considering that customers are tired of searching hundreds of apps to look for their solutions. Hundred, a smart app, gives users easy access to available offers from local and international brands and bank cards at their fingertips, is being showcased at the Gitex Global. Hundred eliminates the hassle of going through multiple apps for finding out the relevant offers. Hundred claims it includes 24 banks, around 400 cards and over 100,000 offers across 20,000 outlets in various categories. The Hundred app is meant for all stakeholders — helping the companies reach out to the most relevant target market using analytics, and for merchants, it offers the SaaS platform, which gives them real-time access to post offers on the platform without restrictions on offer value.
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AI-led security system
Sharp rise in brand impersonation attacks is a cause of concern globally. Mimecast threat intelligence detected a 44 per cent rise in brand impersonation emails directed at its customers in 2020, reaching an average of 27 million such emails every month.
To counter it, the email security and cyber resilience company is showcasing its new artificial intelligence offering, Mimecast CyberGraph. It is engineered to use AI to help detect sophisticated phishing and impersonation attacks. CyberGraph creates an identity graph that is built to store information about relationships between all senders and recipients. The graph is designed to detect anomalies and leverages machine learning technology to help organisations stay one step ahead of threat actors by alerting employees to potential cyber threats.
Connected smartwatch
Let’s not forget the fun. Trackimo, a US-based Internet of Things (IoT) solutions provider, is presenting the ‘NickWatch by Nickelodeon’, the first connected smartwatch featuring characters, games, and content from Nickelodeon. The NickWatch harnesses Trackimo’s advanced IoT technology centred on real-time location tracking and motions sensors via a dedicated mobile application. NickWatch’s features promote a healthy lifestyle by encouraging physical and social activities through various games and content that engage children’s creativity. It will be available in early 2022.
