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This week in IoT, Dublin and Sydney are to share a Connected Restaurant concept, while ESB reveals a new study with IBM Research in AI.
In a bid to tap into the Irish diaspora in Sydney, Australia, Three and Samsung have announced the launch of the Connected Restaurant. The companies claim it is the first restaurant of its kind to allow a table to be shared between family based in Dublin and relatives based in Sydney.
At a distance of 17,000km from one another, patrons of the restaurant based on Clarendon Street in Dublin will be ushered to their table for a three-course festive menu and then connected with its counterpart in Holt Street, Surry Hills, Sydney, via the internet.
The offer will be running from Thursday 29 November until Sunday 2 December, with everyone booked into the meal getting it for free.
Speaking of the initiative, Three’s head of brand and marketing communications, Aislinn O’Connor, said: “Christmas in particular is the time of year we all want to take time to catch up with family and friends but, for many reasons, not everyone can make it home for Christmas in Ireland.”
ESB teams up with IBM Research on IoT and AI project
ESB sees its future in the internet of things (IoT) and artificial intelligence (AI) following the announcement of a study that looked into how the technologies could benefit society.
The proof-of-concept research study focused on the high energy consumption of refrigeration units in the retail sector, using IoT and AI-based analytics to identify and validate savings potential for large energy users.
Conducting a series of projects with Tesco Ireland, the team found IoT and AI saved on 10pc of its refrigeration costs, avoiding 10GW in wastage.
“With energy being one of the most significant costs faced by business, it makes sense for businesses to closely monitor their energy usage to minimise costs,” said Michael Mahon, head of ESB’s smart energy services.
“Through this study with Tesco, we’ve seen how large financial and carbon emission savings can be identified through IoT and AI-based energy data analytics, highlighting on-the-spot changes and longer-term projects which can deliver even bigger savings.”
Alphabet halts development of diabetes contact lens
Google’s parent company Alphabet doesn’t seem to have the best of luck when it comes to eyewear, following news that its smart contact lens programme for those with diabetes has been stopped.
In a blogpost, Verily – Alphabet’s life sciences arm – announced the news, saying that after four years of development, the ability to create a lens that could detect blood sugar levels from tears was beyond them at this stage.
“Our clinical work on the glucose-sensing lens demonstrated that there was insufficient consistency in our measurements of the correlation between tear glucose and blood glucose concentrations to support the requirements of a medical device,” it said.
Despite this, it said it plans on continuing smart lens development and noted its various partnerships. “We are working closely with Dexcom to develop miniaturised continuous glucose monitors, and with Onduo, our joint venture with Sanofi, to integrate continuous sensing into the care paradigm for people living with type 2 diabetes.”
Volkswagen to spend €44bn on future mobility by 2023
Volkswagen has promised that within the next five years, it will spend €44bn on electric and autonomous cars as well as expanding digitalisation and mobility services.
According to CNBC, this will see it increase productivity at its factories by 30pc by 2025, by building a number of different brands on the same production line.
“One aim of the Volkswagen Group’s strategy is to speed up the pace of innovation,” said Herbert Diess, CEO of Volkswagen.
“We are focusing our investments on the future fields of mobility, and systematically implementing our strategy.”
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