Connectivity Week - Takeaways so far and Photo Highlights

Am tweeting and blogging as time allows here at Connectivity Week. Sessions are well underway here, and so far, the program has been great. Yesterday we had a full day with Judith Schwartz's Consumer Symposium, followed later by a very engaging keynote from Geoffrey Moore (Crossing the Chasm), and provided broader context around how difficult it is for utilities to make the transformational moves related to smart grid.

This morning has been more of the same with an interactive panel focused on a major theme of the conference - defining the value proposition for smart grid. Lots of different views here, especially with speakers from India and Japan.

This was followed by a keynote from Mickey McManus of MAYA Design. His point of view was far more organic and was as thought-provoking as anything I've seen at eComm. In short, he posed the question for utilities regarding how they would manage all the information that would flood into their networks if smart grid was wildly successful. Phew. For guidance, he turned to nature, and gave a fascinating perspective as to how information is collected and managed for all life forms, including humans. You had to be here to connect the dots - I'm still trying to get my head around this.

Enough for now. I'm currently sitting in on the V2G - vehicle-to-grid panel. This is the kind of stuff that leads people like me to agree with the idea that EVs are the killer app for smart grid. Potentially, it has the biggest impact on home energy use, and is something most of us think about and use every day. As gas prices keep climbing, the EV storyline gets stronger. This session, however, is a good example of the practical challenges - storage, battery life, driving range, charging stations, reverse energy flows, regulations, auto maker priorities, etc. - that need to be coordinated and addressed before EV's can be mainstream. Bottom line - we need more pilots, and don't worry if some of them fail.



Judith's symposium and after panel




Mr. Clasma, Anto Budiardjo


Geoffrey Moore


Day 2 opening panel - the smart grid value proposition


Mickey McManus


Vehicle-to-grid session