The big players are dominating the field

The startup community in Silicon Valley and cities around the world is still vibrant and full of new hits, but the big players are regularly flooding our collective consciousness with new products and innovations that are dazzling, but not necessarily industry-changing. Among the establishment innovators are likes of Mark Zuckerberg (Facebook, Oculus) and Jeff Bezos(Amazon, Blue Origin), both dutifully shepherding us into the future. But the kind of fiery trailblazing we came to expect from Jobs is absent in their well-produced and shareholder-sensitive advances. 

Yes, there's always Mars-obsessed Elon Musk (Tesla, SpaceX), but his self-driving, robotic spacecraft ambitions are decades-long bets, rather than the more immediate disruptions Jobs often delivered. 

2. Cynicism is clogging the wheels of tech optimism

For a sense of where our pop culture sensibilities are regarding the tech world, we need only look to the popularity of HBO's Silicon Valley, a celebration of the ineptitude present in the real Silicon Valley, versus the relatively tepid reception enjoyed by AMC's Halt and Catch Fire, a series that captures the early optimism of Jobs' rise to fame. For some, talking blue sky tech futures as Kim Kardashian banks millions on apps and venture capitalists target esports franchises simply doesn't resonate in the same way it did before. 

3. We haven't found him or her yet 

Despite being inured to never-ending cycle of the next big tech thing, the truth is that many stilldo want to see the rise of a new Steve Jobs-style innovator. Such figures are intrinsic to the spirit of tech entrepreneurialism. 

So while institutional players push forward and the public settles into a state of tech-cynicism, somewhere, perhaps in an incubator in Los Angeles, or in a warehouse in Berlin, the next Steve Jobs already exists, and just hasn't had the spotlight directed her way yet. But that person is coming, sooner or later. 

4. Some have tried, but they haven't measured up 

The last time I heard the name Steve Jobs attached to a new, supposed innovator it was in reference to Elizabeth Holmes, the embattled founder of biotech startup Theranos who is now fighting for her business life in the wake of controversy. Similarly, Time magazine featured 24-year-old Palmer Luckey on a now infamous cover photo indicating that he would lead us to our VR future. But that was before the recent Reddit/Trump dustup that has some developers swearing off Oculus and led to Luckey taking to Facebook to explain himself.  

5. We're still mourning 

But even in the face of the aforementioned elements that impact the rise of a new Steve Jobs, the fact is that we're still trying to get over the loss of the original. 

In a Twitter post on Wednesday, Cook marked the anniversary of the passing of his friend and colleague with a heartfelt post, which included a quote from Jobs: 

This is no idiot box from the days of yore. Finding something to watch is simpler with a feature called the Smart Hub. 

 The new interface represents a shift away from multiple content sources and devices, to one integrated content and services platform. Consumers will now be able to switch seamlessly between OTT content, live TV as well as other connected devices including video game consoles, Blu-ray players and set-top-boxes. 

Also, with the new Smart Hub interface, apps and content tiles can be customized to individual preferences, making it faster to navigate from app to app. Users can easily re-arrange apps the way they want them making it easier and faster to navigate between most used apps. 

The new Samsung Smart TV eliminates the need to juggle multiple remote controls and it will automatically recognize the type of Home theatre system, game console or set top box connected to the TV. This allows users to control all of the detected external devices with the Smart Control Remote – with no set up required. 

With the new range of Smart TVs users can seamlessly share their favourite content instantly on the big screen. The upgraded Smart View app offers convergence across platforms and is available on Galaxy, Android and iOS devices as well as Window PCs, allowing users to share photos, video and music with family and friends. Also multiple users can simultaneously connect all their phones and share photos or videos making their experience more interactive and fun. 

The new range of Smart TV gives you an option to pair your Smartphone via Bluetooth and play your favourite songs saved on your phone from the TV even while the TV is on standby mode. Also users can wirelessly pair their TV with their Home Theatre and Bluetooth Speaker and carry the TV audio with them to any other part of the home. 

With the Cric-o-mania application made by Samsung Research Institute Delhi, users can get update of their favourite live cricket match even when they are watching another channel. With the live ticker that can be seen across channels viewers can be updated with every run. Users can also choose their cheer buddy who will cheer for their favourite cricket team. The application has been developed especially for Indian consumers and their love for the game of cricket. 

The new Touchpad remote control is an innovation built into the Smart View app that gives users an intuitive experience with the ease of a touchpad. Now use your Smartphone as the remote and seamlessly scroll through your favourite content.

The Walking Dead 

is all over NYCC, including panels with creator and graphic novelist Robert Kirkman, but the ultimate event for fans is right here. Kirkman and the cast discuss Seasons 6 and their characters' futures ... as well as throwing in a little teaser for Season 7.

Black Mirror

Saturday, 12:30 p.m. to 1:30 p.m., Room 1A10

Little information has been released about this panel, which is entirely fitting for the dystopic miniseries created by Charlie Brooker and Annabel Jones. Expect new footage from Season 3(due on Netflix Oct. 21) and deep, troubling discussions about what technology says about the human race.

24: Legacy 

Saturday, 3 p.m. to 4 p.m., Main Stage

What exactly is Jack Bauer's legacy? That's the tough question to answer in this clip screening and Q&A with executive producers Manny Coto, Evan Katz and Howard Gordon. The discussion will also include cast members Corey Hawkins, Miranda Otto and Jimmy Smits.

Marvel’s Iron Fist 

Saturday, 6:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m., Main Stage

In case you hadn't realized, Netflix is killing it with the Marvel properties. Marvel's television head Joseph Loeb leads the panel and will screen new original footage of Iron Fist, due out on March 17, 2017.

Curious about the glitching AI hosts on Westworld, or the futuristic theme park built on voyeurism and catharsis? Showrunners Jonathan Nolan and Lisa Joy will screen episode 2 with cast members Thandie Newton, Jeffrey Wright and Jimmi Simpson, as well as participate in a discussion and Q&A. And when it's all over and the post-NYCC slump begins, you can head home to watch episode 2 live.

The AI was able to grapple with complex demands on-stage, and Kittlaus explained "dynamic program generation" was the engine behind its abilities. To put it simply, as Mashable explained, Viv could write itself new code in "less than a second," meaning it was able to grow and learn quickly. 

"Unlike other existing AI-based services, Viv has a sophisticated natural language understanding, machine learning capabilities and strategic partnerships that will enrich a broader service ecosystem," Rhee said Wednesday.

Facebook and Google were rumoured to be interested in the technology, but it looks like Samsung won out.

Most major technology companies are hoping to strengthen their voice assistant technologies, even bringing them from mobile to the desktop, as Microsoft did with Cortana and Apple with Siri. Google Assistant, which powers the new Google Home, is another major competitor.

No job is immune to stress, and some maybe more stressful than others. Of those, the job of the Indian Cricket Team captain occupies the top ranks. So what can entrepreneurs learn from an Indian team captain who handles so much stress and adulation, highs and lows, criticism, success and failures? Quite a few lessons for sure.

While the movie on M.S. Dhoni has just released, I thought of exploring the topic on how the life and trails of Dhoni can be good entrepreneurship lessons.

Plan the work, work the plan

Dhoni has a mind for strategy. He plans for competition and playing conditions and plays to the strengths of the team. But he doesn’t just stop at planning. He executes plans perfectly and keeps a 20 percent contingency flexibility for on-field tactics – in other words, last minute changes in strategy.

Similarly, an entrepreneur needs to plan well, have effective strategies in place and go with full force in executing those strategies.

Don’t give up

Dhoni’s life is an excellent underdog story. He is someone who worked hard to succeed against all odds – odds of coming from a small town, odds of education, odds of being weighed down by family pressure and odds of performance. He could’ve given up at any point, but instead he held on and blew away all the odds that weighed against him through sheer hard work and perseverance.

Create your own brand identity

“Dhoni koi Tendulkar nahi hai, Dhoni, Dhoni hai.” The famous lines in the movie describe Dhoni’s ascent in the cricket world where he worked hard in creating a niche for himself and established his own brand. He didn’t try to be Sachin, he showed the world who Dhoni is.

As an entrepreneur, there is no point trying to be a Steve Jobs, Mark Zuckerberg or a Sachin Bansal. Go create your own identity which will be unique only to you.

Get your priorities right 

When playing in South Africa, Dhoni’s girlfriend passed away in a tragic accident, and when Dhoni was playing the 2015 world cup at Australia his wife gave birth to his first baby. During neither time did he abandon his job and leave. He silently stayed back and performed his duty as a team member and leader. This shows Dhoni’s capability to lead from the front and also his clarity of thought in living for the moment and setting his priorities right.

Share the success 

In all the post-win celebrations involving Dhoni in the team, one aspect stands the same — he gives the credit to his team and lets the team take the limelight. How Dhoni shares his success is a huge lesson for entrepreneurs leading teams. Take the brickbats but share the bouquets with your team.

This year, the Nobel Prize in Physics has been awarded collectively to three British scientists, who with their groundbreaking research on exotic states of matter may have ushered in a new era in quantum computing and related technologies. The three winners — David Thouless, Duncan Haldane, and Michael Kosterlitz will collectively share the prize amount of SEK 8 million (approx Rs 6.2 crore) given away by the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences, Stockholm.

65-year-old Duncan, a professor at Princeton University, New Jersey, shared his story at a crowded press conference organised in the city. He told reporters how he woke up to a call from Sweden and felt “gratified” on winning the Nobel Prize in Physics this year. However, instead of doing anything unusual on the biggest day of his life, he got dressed and went to his class to teach his students electromagnetism.

“Well, of course. It’s a matter of duty or pride to go back and do one’s job,” Duncan told NJ. The Princeton professor was greeted with applause by his students when he walked into the classroom. Duncan felt that he owed it to his students, as the future will be paved by them. “Any one of them could discover something tremendous and new and win a Nobel Prize,” he added.

Accessing basic healthcare amenities is a real pain in rural India. One has to travel to a nearby town or city for even minor ailments and health assessments. “I retired from the army and settled in a remote village near Midnapore (West Bengal). I am suffering from chronic disease and require medical checkups at regular intervals,” says Subhodip Sarkar (62). Like Sarkar, many elderly citizens residing in villages have to deal with the ordeal of travelling for health checkups as existing facilities in rural areas are poor.

While technology has the ability to change the status quo of basic healthcare facilities in rural areas, it also has a limitation. Human touch is critical to delivering healthcare, and technology has to play the role of an enabler rather than that of  a replacement to doctors or hospitals. Exploring the mix of technology and manual facets, Dhilly Babu, Shreyans Gandhi and Arpit Mishra floated YOLO Health.

Dhilly and Shreyans are alumni of IIT Bombay, while Arpit graduated from IIIT Kharagpur. Earlier, Dhilly founded Beans & Intellect Financial Technology, which was later acquired by Miles Software in 2013. Shreyans worked with Fujitsu Labs of America and Samsung R&D, USA. He also holds five patents in the US. Arpit had stints at Nomura and Microsoft.

Why an ATM-based approach to delivering healthcare facilities?

Dhilly explains:

We thought that a similar concept (on the lines of bank ATMs) could work for healthcare, where all basic and primary healthcare services can be delivered in an ATM-like concept, targeting communities who don't have access to a hospital or doctor.

With the ability to screen patients, capture vital health parameters and provide access to quality healthcare within reasonable proximity, YOLO Health is able to deliver complete primary care.

Advantages of an ATM-based approach in delivering healthcare facilities in rural areas

With a unique ATM-based approach and removing the dependency for high-skilled expertise (a model can be operated with an 8th or 10th standard pass trained paramedic/health worker), YOLO Health is able to deliver affordable care to the remote and rural communities for whom access to basic healthcare is a challenge. Dhilly points out,

Rural areas are our primary focus; we believe we are solving a large problem of ‘access’ here and will be able to deliver bigger impact targeting rural communities. Our strategy has been to closely work with hospitals, CSR foundations and state governments to deliver our health ATMs.

Delivering healthcare in rural India: Human touch is a critical component

Human touch is critical in delivering healthcare in remote locations. This includes understanding local culture, behaviour and languages. “Our health ATMs are primarily driven by local entrepreneurs/assistants. We are able to deliver care with a human touch,” says Dhilly.

YOLO Health’s first critical learning has been to understand the importance of the human touch in delivering healthcare aided with technology. The role of technology as an enabler rather than a replacement to doctors was an important lesson for them to build trust with the end-users. “We found that rural consumers demand and expect higher value to be delivered at affordable costs vis-a-vis their urban counterparts. Delivering healthcare that is accessible and affordable will always remain our critical challenge,” adds Dhilly.

Traction and major features

So far, the company has installed 17 health ATMs across Karnataka (Kolar District), Chattisgarh (Sukma and Dantewada Districts), Kolkata and Mumbai. It also plans to deploy ATMs in New Delhi and Bhopal.

Bhavin, who is also the Co-founder of Directi Group, believes that technology is the biggest enabler in driving innovation. Founded in 1998, Directi today has 11 business units, four of which were sold to Endurance International Group in January 2014. At present, Directi’s business units include Ringo, Flock, Zeta, Radix, and Codechef.

In a free-wheeling chat with YourStory on the sidelines of TechSparks2016, Bhavin, 36, said it was love at first sight for him when he first laid eyes on a computer. “This was before the internet. Before even Windows, when there was only MS Dos and GW Basic and stuff. I was programming since then,” he said. According to him,

“We couldn’t afford a computer at home so I used to spend three hours everyday after school skipping the school bus and taking the regular bus home. I did this for three to four years. I love maths and physics so programming was a natural extension.”

How to inculcate a mindset for innovation

On the question of why Indians lack a mindset for innovation, Bhavin feels that it is not as if a person is inherently innovative or not. “It is the environment you are brought up in that makes you that way,” he added.

Giving the example of the Indian mindset, he said parents often want their children to take up a job with an established large corporation or a government service. It is like, ‘Mera beta will join a big company, marry and settle down.’ Bhavin said, “Yes, there are inherent high risks in entrepreneurship. But the rewards are equally high, and at the end of the day you are making an impact.” He added,

“I fundamentally live by the credo that it is our moral obligation to make an impact that is directly proportional to our potential.”

Besides parents and families holding back an individual to take the path less travelled, Bhavin feels the second problem is our education system. “It guides us towards this process of learning and acquiring skills but not towards building and entrepreneurship,” he said.

However, things are changing fast. He said,

“Acceptance will come when we and media celebrate victories and do not criticise losses or failure. Think about it as pivoting instead of failure. A person who has failed has tried. He/she has put a life’s efforts and persevered but did not succeed. Let’s celebrate that.”

Calling out to the media, he said the more the media will celebrate failure, the less it is going to be a taboo as a subject. Consequently, it will become easier for people to acknowledge and say, ‘yes, you know, this is what is acceptable and this is what I want to do.’

Parental support important

Recalling his own childhood spent in Mumbai, Bhavin said that his parents were very supportive. “Our parents were amazing. My dad read a lot, and that influenced me too. Between the ages of 10 and 14, I must have read loads of biographies like IBM, Intel, Apple, Microsoft, Oracle, and Xerox. My dad always said you can achieve anything you set your mind to,” Bhavin said.

He added that though his father did not always agree to the route he took – he switched from science to commerce and dropped out and started his own company – but he was supportive and said ‘you should make your own mistakes and we’ll support you no matter what.’