The second edition of the Disruptive Africa Expo was held this year from the 25th – 27th of August, 2016 at Four Points by Sheraton Hotel Lekki, Lagos Nigeria. The Disruptive Africa Expo is an annual programme organized by Wiretooth Technologies and aimed at preparing African businesses for the digital disruption that is already reshaping value chains and economies in the developed world. This year’s event was aimed at maximizing disruptive technologies like IoT, BigData, Robotics, Artificial Intelligence and 3D printing for development. Interested attendees and companies also had the opportunity of receiving first-hand knowledge on the various disruptive technologies like IoT, BigData, Robotics, and so on.
The event commenced with a keynote from one of the conveners, Mr. David Alozie. He gave a brief introduction of digital disruption and disruptive technology. He highlighted the prospects of digital disruption in today’s economy and how disruptive technologies will revolutionalize how we do the basic day to day things of life.
The next session continued shortly afterwards with a lecture on Understanding IoT/BigData and Its Implication to The Nation by Philip Moynagh, the past Vice President of IoT at Intel Corporation. At the event, Moynagh dismissed the idea that the IoT is the next big thing, stating that IoT is the big thing now and economies and businesses that adopt IoT now will be key leaders of the society in a few years. Moynagh emphasized over and over again that the energy barriers between taking an idea and making it into a viable project have reduced dramatically in the past 10 years. One example he highlighted amidst others was a woman named Kim who developed a cat door for her pet Gus. For little more than US$100, she built a cat door that would be programmed to not only allow Gus in but to tweet Kim when Gus entered the house and when he was leaving. Philip inspired all the listeners to be innovative and disruptive and he took time to answer questions from the attendees.
The next speaker was Michael Ipinyomi, a Robotics Engineer and Product Developer. He spoke on the prospects of Robotics in Africa, and how it can help move the economy and the society forward. He cited examples of how robots can be used to fight crime and terrorism. He also demoed some robots he brought to the event.
The next session commenced after a short break and it was handled by Chukenku Ivan Chukenku, an expert in broadcasting with DigiAfrik Ltd. He outlined various disruptive technologies used in modern television broadcasting and how they have helped make broadcasting both efficient and cheap. He spoke on the advantage of cloud storage and broadcasting, and how automation has made TV broadcasting easier with fewer hassles and interruption.
The last session was led by a panel of experts including Prince Akinwale Ojomo, the Chief Engagement Officer at the Diaspora Innovation Institute, and two other facilitators. They taught on the legal aspects of owning a startup or a business, and also how to source for funds from investors and venture capitalists. There was also an interesting discussion on the value of an idea, a question posed by one of the facilitators, Opata Chibueze.
The event continued with masterclasses that held the next day and the day after. A key takeaway from Friday’s event is that disruptive technologies have already gained traction in most developed countries, and with no doubt, Africa is set up for a tech revolution and businesses within the continent need to either be disruptive or be disrupted. The attendees also had time enough to network with professionals and experts both locally and internationally. The conveners also promised that next year’s event will feature more hands-on experiences and other disruptive start-ups and businesses.
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