WORLD ECONOMIC FORUM TECHNOLOGY PIONEERS DISRUPTING HEALTH, ENERGY, AND MORE

Sep 15, 2014Written by  Jordan Ernstsen, Editorial Intern

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Technological innovation has a transformative potential for society and the global economy. In acknowledgement of the revolutionary power of such innovations, the World Economic Forum (WEF) annually recognizes 24 companies from around the globe as Technology Pioneers—companies at the forefront of their respective industries and trailblazers in cutting-edge products, processes, and business models. Collectively, the 2015 Technology Pioneers have pioneered innovation in healthcare, diagnostics, data analytics, sustainable energy solutions, unemployment abatement, and servicing off-grid communities with affordable and dependable electricity. These developments improve developed societies and facilitate rapid social, economic, and political change in developing societies.

The World Economic Forum has annually recognized Technology Pioneers since 2000, selecting them from a field of hundreds of notable candidates in an open nominations process. To facilitate the selection process, the WEF appoints an 82-member selection committee constituted of distinguished industry experts, academics, and venture capitalists. Committee members evaluate the innovative nature of the company, investigating for innovation in business model, process, or product. The potential impact of the innovation to pioneer or disrupt markets and improve society is also carefully considered. In their review, the selection committee further analyzes the growth and sustainability of the company, whether it is truly a viable long-term market competitor and leader. Although a number of the candidate companies are relatively young, only started a few years before, their concept must also already be market-proven and demonstrate practical application. Finally, potential recipients are examined for leadership, and the ability to drive the company and respective industry forward.

The World Economic Forum has proclaimed its commitment to global improvement and has a proclivity for global citizenship. As a nonprofit international institution headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland, the WEF is also dedicated to impartiality and nonpartisanship. From this position of neutrality and an objective to improving the world’s condition, the WEF intimately collaborates with leading institutions, governments, academics and leaders to influence global, regional and industry agendas. The Technology Pioneers selection committee of the WEF recently finalized its decision for 2015’s recipients, having evaluated each and determining parity with the highest standards of innovation. Following are 24 World Economic Forum Technology Pioneers:

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AutoGrid Systems (Redwood Shores, California, USA)

In recent years, billions have been invested into modernizing the infrastructure through which electricity is generated, distributed and consumed. The development and implementation of smart meters—digital replacements for conventional electricity meters which display real-time energy consumption levels and accurate costs—together with other innovative grid technologies, remove inefficiencies in the electricity supply chain and reduce costs for providers and consumers. Yet, these new technologies produce an overwhelming deluge of information regarding energy usage patterns that remains unanalyzed.

AutoGrid Systems, founded by Dr. Amit Narayan, seeks to exploit this high volume of valuable energy data. Through their innovative and scalable software system, AutoGrid Systems organizes the increasing amount of data produced by a modernizing grid and leverages this information to promote power efficiency. This analytical process captures consumption patterns from various sources (e.g. lighting, air conditioning, appliances, etc.), enabling providers and consumers to accurately track energy usage. Real-time, analyzed information on power consumption optimizes the electricity grid by forecasting demand patterns, allowing generators and providers to properly distribute power during peak periods; leveraging this granular information facilitates the balancing of supply and demand. Utilizing big data improves energy related decision making and reduces capital, generation, distribution, and consumption costs for all participants in the electricity supply chain. Accordingly, this breakthrough technology has internationally recognized potential, given its capacity to facilitate the expansion of the electrical grid and make power accessible in previously off-grid regions.

Avegant (San Francisco, California, USA)

The prevalence of digital media and entertainment in today’s society is readily apparent. Whether on college campuses, waiting for the bus, or in the workplace, individuals increasingly engage with digital devices to enjoy music, play games or watch videos. Avegant seeks to augment those experiences through its marquee product, Glyph. Glyph is a revolutionary audio and visual technology that can act as headphones and, through a simple adjustment, specs that enhance visual perception of digitized screens, including television, phone, or laptop screens. Glyph affords users a vivid life-like quality in audio and visual experiences. Glyph is changing the way in which we experience, enjoy, and interact with movies, games, music, and digital media in general.

BlaBlaCar (Paris, France)

Despite its ostensible convenience, automotive transportation can often be financially unviable and environmentally harmful. From gasoline expenses and road congestion to concerns over the deleterious effects of carbon emissions, innovative and environmentally friendly solutions are needed to make road transport more efficient. Such was the thought of French entrepreneurs when they founded BlaBlaCar—an online, pan-European community marketplace designed to connect people who need a ride with drivers who have available seats. Passengers agree to divide the cost of gas, thus reducing the out of pocket motoring costs shouldered by the driver. BlaBlaCar seeks to exploit excess seating capacity to not only reduce the financial costs associated with driving, but more importantly, to abate the environmental consequences of it. By facilitating shared transportation, BlaBlaCar hopes to diminish the amount of vehicles on the road—particularly those characterized by sole drivers and excess seating—and reduce carbon emissions. This rapidly growing online network of transportation offers a sustainable approach to more cost efficient and environmentally favorable road transport.

Cambrian Innovation (Boston, Massachusetts, USA)

Cambrian Innovation has rapidly ascended to the forefront of international efforts to develop environmental solutions using biotechnology. Cambrian believes that “because the biological world is by definition sustainable, creative application of biological engineering is the best way to solve our most pressing environmental challenges,” such as clean water and energy. Through a collaborative approach and relying upon expertise in electrochemistry and bioelectrochemical systems, Cambrian Innovation focuses its efforts on recovering energy and clean water from wastewater systems. To this end the company developed Ecovolt, an innovative technology that extracts valuable energy and resources from what is perceived as waste. Through treatment and re-use of wastewater streams, Ecovolt technology generates clean water and energy; it propels society forward “towards a cyclical and therefore sustainable approach to fundamental resources.” Ecovolt is replacing traditionally expensive treatment systems and making waste-to-energy conversion economically viable. The technology is extrapolative and has been applied across disparate industrial sectors, reflecting Cambrian Innovation’s commitment to environmental stewardship without incurring a heavy economic burden.

Canonical (London, United Kingdom)

The Canonical team believes in the power of innovation to transform the world around us. To support and facilitate transformative technology, Canonical developed alongside Ubuntu—an open source Linux operating system that runs on smartphones, televisions, tablets, PCs, and in the cloud. By taking this open source software to global markets, Canonical hopes to fuel global innovation and social progress. Firm conviction in the power of open source software like Ubuntu rests at the crux of Canonical’s primary objective to disseminate and promote such technology; it makes transformative technology accessible at low entry costs to consumers who will use it to transform industries and communities.

Couchbase (Mountain View, California, USA)

Mobile applications have experienced a user revolution. Where 10,000 application users per day used to be an extreme case, the number of daily users now reaches well into the millions. This impressive number of users, together with the hours spent online and the spread of mobile technology, generates an overwhelming amount of data. Systems have adapted to support a vast base of concurrent users, yet the ability to efficiently accommodate rapidly increasing or decreasing usage patterns remains a technological need. Couchbase recognized this market gap and moved quickly to develop the appropriate database technology. The solution is NoSQL—an alternative to conventional relational databases that facilities storage, retrieval, and dynamic scalability. NoSQL differs significantly from relational data models in its flexibility, simplicity and innovative method of organizing big data. As mobile use continues to exponentially increase and perform divers functions, Couchbase has produced the technology necessary to handle and simplify the influx of data, and use it to make mobile applications more efficient.

Eta Devices (Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA)

Mobile phones have become an integral part of modern society—their usage is widespread and their presence pervasive. To enhance the mobile communications industry, Eta Devices seeks to produce power management technology that brings substantial benefits to manufacturers, mobile infrastructure, and consumers. The mobile technology generated by Eta Devices increases battery life in smartphones by 50 percent, making the internal software and hardware more efficient and reliable. Mobile infrastructure also benefits from Eta’s technology: power savings, infrequent equipment breakdown, and smaller base stations all contribute to the modernization of mobile communications. This modernization, in turn, is characterized by increased efficiency, reduced cost, and environmental responsibility. Eta’s technology abates carbon emissions associated with conventional mobile communications infrastructure and shifts to a sustainable non-toxic silicon used in manufacturing, creating cleaner mobile communications technology.

Genomatica (San Diego, California, USA)

Genomatica is recognized as the leading developer of transformative, sustainable technology for the chemical industry. The company focuses on creating and refining conversion processes that transform alternative feedstocks into widely-used chemicals. The result is an environmentally favorable, sustainable method of chemical production at reduced costs. Currently, Genomatica manufactures over 20 chemicals that meet industry standards in established markets. Their work is supplemented by collaboration with industry leaders “to accelerate broad and rapid commercial adoption” of the innovative process. By using biotechnology to create chemicals from feedstocks, Genomatica is at the forefront of the global undertaking to discover sustainable environmental solutions to chemical production.

Guardant Health (Redwood City, California, USA)

In one form or another, the pervasiveness of cancer leaves few unaffected; finding solutions and developing effective treatment options has become a global enterprise. In contribution, the scientists at Guardant Health have created a blood analysis technology that surveys a patient’s cancer genomics. After submitting just two tubes of blood, the innovative technology interrogates cancer related genes to identify the cancer’s progression, or lack thereof. The resulting analysis yields profound insight that is then leveraged to establish personalized treatment options. Guardant Health enables medical professionals to improve therapy decisions concerning a patient’s cancer; the prompt analytical report means that cancer developments and treatments are monitored in real-time. For patients, Guardant Health technology offers a cost effective and simple yet accurate method to track their cancer and whether treatments are working. Together, patients and medical professionals are equipped with in-depth information to understand the patient’s cancer and develop tailored treatment options.

Health Catalyst (Salt Lake City, Utah, USA)

Founded in 2008 and headquartered in Salt Lake City, Utah, Health Catalyst has worked to develop a data warehousing platform and analytics application to transform healthcare. Previously, quality patient care has suffered from a lack of accurate information, but now the healthcare industry is saturated in data. Organizing, unifying, and utilizing this data is the primary aim of the technology developed by Health Catalyst. Using the data warehouse platform and analytic application facilitates quality patient care and is improving healthcare systems across the country. The technology was developed by a team of veteran healthcare providers who identified inefficiencies and problematic features of traditional data warehousing systems. To resolve these issues and reform the nation’s healthcare infrastructure, Health Catalyst created their pioneering data warehousing architecture and combined it with sophisticated analytics. The result is the present platform being implemented in hospitals today and quickly generating valuable and measurable improvements.

HiBot Corporation (Tokyo, Japan)

As an international leader, HiBot Corporation has a distinguished and reputable commitment to providing the latest technologies in “automation, industrial applications, robotics research, search and rescue missions, remote inspection, surveillance, and more.” Created in Japan, HiBot recognizes the endless possibilities in the field of robotics, a discipline that is constantly in revolution as new technologies steadily emerge. Yet, HiBot asserts that the most trailblazing technology remains confined to ideas and prototypes in university classrooms and laboratories. To remedy this, HiBot seeks to make these technologically revolutionary ideas reality. The corporation prides itself on not only improving upon existing ideas, but on its ability to generate new concepts. Because it is a global leader in robotics, HiBot also acknowledges its responsibility to make a difference in the world. Innovative technology emerging from HiBot—be it miniaturized components or full-scale tele operated systems—endeavors to make hazardous jobs more safe and the world a better place.

Ionic Security (Atlanta, Georgia, USA)

Ted Schlein, Managing Partner of Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers, once observed that, “Security needs to change with the times.” This quotation is featured on Ionic Security’s website and serves as a reminder the company’s dedication to offering a digital security platform on par with today’s security needs. With cloud computing services and the steady increase of digital information, the need to control the access to and use of that data has never been greater. Ionic Security’s platform resolves cloud related security problems, “[protecting] data while providing IT with full access control, intellectual property monitoring, data encryption” and policy management. Given the sense of urgency to address data control and information security in the cloud, Ionic Security has garnered the support and investment of preeminent venture capital firms to solve the data security problem. Since its founding in 2011, Ionic Security has developed a highly capable security platform, prompting the team of innovators and programs to declare that they have “[delivered] where others have failed.”

Jasper Technologies (Mountain View, California, USA)

Jasper Technologies has pioneered cloud-based technology for the Internet of Things (IoT)—a digital aspiration where everyday objects are connected to the internet and other devices, and the physical world becomes a unified information system. But for Jasper Technologies, IoT is more about service than it is about things. Their innovative technology supports over 1500 business worldwide, which rely on Jasper’s cloud services to connect and run their enterprises. These businesses benefit from the Control Center, which acts as the cloud hub for all connected devices on a particular network. The Control Center can be easily configured to meet business-specific needs, processes, and models. Given this feature, Jasper’s services are highly transferable and applicable to a variety of industries.

Kakao Corporation (South Korea, Seongnam)

Never before has global communication been so easy, nor has the need for it been so imperative. South Korea’s Kakao Corporation dedicates itself to helping people stay close and connected wherever they may be. To achieve this goal, the corporation developed KakaoTalk, a mobile messaging service “leading the way in innovating how people communicate” and “transforming the way we talk, share and live on this planet.” KakaoTalk offers users the ability to chat, call, share photos, contact information, and voice notes. These gratis services emerged to help satisfy increasing communication needs, ultimately endeavoring to balance supply with demand through a viable, sustainable and transformative communication system. Although KakaoTalk is still establishing a firm global presence, it is driving communications technology forward and keeping people’s public and private lives connected. As the undisputed leading social networking platform in South Korea, KakaoTalk signals Korea’s leadership in technological innovation and demonstrates the country’s ability to compete internationally in the evolution of global communication.

Labcyte (Sunnyvale, California, USA)

Research and experimentation in life sciences, molecular medicine, drug discovery, and diagnostic testing includes varying degrees of human interaction with liquid. Rethinking this process, the innovators at Labcyte designed a transformative approach to liquid handling: using sound to transfer precise amounts of fluid without having to touch them. Implementing this technology in the fields of genomics, proteomics, cell based assays, and drug discovery has yielded several significant results. Among the benefits of Labcyte’s sound-based liquid handling technology are improved data and precision delivery, and reduction in handling costs and waste disposal. Furthermore, the technology preserves sample integrity through eliminating cross-contamination. This precise and efficient delivery method using acoustic droplet ejection is proving itself as a viable and sustainable alternative to traditional methods of liquid handling. It is simple to operate and can handle high volume workloads while reliably generating fast and accurate results. Increasingly, Labcyte’s sound driven technology is removing traditional limitations on liquid handling and helping scientists across the world do more with less.

LearnUp (San Francisco, California, USA)

To remedy the disjuncture between specialized qualifications and employment opportunities that contribute to a growing skills gap, LearnUp seeks to train potential workers and assist them in entering the labor market. Through the innovative education-to-employment model, the free online training platform offers fundamental job training and a personal employment coach. The training programs were developed in conjunction with potential employers, thus enabling job seekers to practice real life situations and hone certain skills for specific jobs. After preparing people for employment, LearnUp works with hiring managers to reserve interviews for its candidates. In this way, job seekers increase their chances of being hired and employers hire qualified talent. LearnUp is actively helping the unemployed connect with employment opportunities in a competitive and rapidly evolving labor market.

Mera Gao Power (New Delhi, India)

Uttar Pradesh, India’s most populous state situated in the north-central part of the country, is comprised largely of rural villages which consequently suffer from unreliable access to power. Many hamlets in Uttar Pradesh are off-grid, isolated and excluded from any access to electricity. Acknowledging the dissonance between supply and demand for power in north-central India, Mera Gao Power (MGP) designed an affordable micro grid system to power these detached communities. The micro grid can be installed in a single day and sustainably services village residents with quality, dependable lighting. The system is fully automated: it automatically generates, stores, and distributes power, and turns itself on and off. This innovative technology has provided over 100,000 previously off-grid Uttar Pradesh inhabitants with affordable lighting. The implications for extrapolating this energy infrastructure model to other off-grid, underprivileged communities is readily apparent.

Newlight Technologies (Irvine, California, USA)

Newlight Technologies is working to address growing concern over greenhouse gases through a nature-inspired process where carbon emissions present in the air are captured and converted into an otherwise-oil based resource. Essentially, the technology introduces a sustainable carbon reduction process founded on reversing the flow of carbon—that would otherwise become part of the air we breathe—and using it to produce materials that are conventionally made from oil. The material produced by this cost-effective process is known as AirCarbon, a carbon-negative thermoplastic that parities the performance, and out-competes the price, of oil-based plastics. Furthermore, Newlight is currently working on a project to adapt its bioconversion technology to also target methane, a high heat trapping gas.

Organovo (San Diego, California, USA)

Organovo is pioneering groundbreaking technology designed to significantly improve medical science and disease treatment. The company uses a three-dimensional bioprinting technology to create functional human tissues. These manufactured tissues accurately represent human biology and are engineered to mimic and function as native tissue. Such technological innovation has a number of implications: the Organovo team employs the bioprinting technology to facilitate medical research and therapeutic applications, using great science to achieve greater advances in health. In collaboration with academic medical institutions and biopharmaceutical companies, Organovo creates human tissue for disease modeling. By giving researchers functional human tissue, they have the opportunity to test drugs before their administration to human subjects. This enables researchers to more fully understand the impact of experimental drugs and bridge the disparity between preclinical tests and clinical trials. Additionally, the capacity to create healthy, three dimensional tissue yields the possibility of repairing or replacing damaged and diseased tissues in the human body. Certainly, Organovo’s bioprinting technology lends itself to improving medical research, drug development, and disease treatment.

Proterra (Greenville, South Carolina, USA)

Public transportation is often viewed as a preferable and environmentally sustainable alternative to car ownership. Similar to cars, however, public transportation carries its own set of financial costs and environmental consequences. That is precisely why the American company Proterra invested its time and resources into the development of electric powered buses. Proterra’s predominance in designing and manufacturing zero-emissions vehicles is paving the way for more efficient and environmentally responsible public transportation. All of Proterra’s electric buses run on an innovative, durable, and reliable electric batteries. These batteries can charge while driving and operate indefinitely, ensuring that the bus is always passenger serviceable. Expectedly, the zero-emissions electric bus lowers maintenance and service costs and indicates a shift toward greater environmental consciousness.

Raspberry Pi Foundation (London, United Kingdom)

The importance of computing skills, ranging from basic to advanced in today’s job market cannot be overstated. The Raspberry Pi Foundation, an educational charity, understands this necessity, and the foundation promotes a credit-card sized computing device—known as a Raspberry Pi—that plugs into a television screen or computer monitor and uses a conventional keyboard and mouse. It is a low-cost, easy-to-use computer with all the capabilities of a standard PC: it can browse the internet, play high-definition videos and games, make spreadsheets, and do word-processing. The Raspberry Pi Foundation is motivated to see kids the world over engage with computers—learning how they work, how to take them apart and put them back together, and how to write programs for them. In advocating for the Raspberry Pi, the foundation is encouraged that world’s kids will acquire an understanding of how computers work and be equipped with the functional computer skills necessary to succeed in an electronic age.

Silicor Materials (San Jose, California, USA)

Efficiently and cost-effectively capturing sunlight and converting it into electrical power is the aim of Silicor Materials, the world’s leading manufacturer of solar silicon. With the development of a proprietary manufacturing process, Silicor successful produced a new class of raw materials now used for the advancement of the solar industry. This raw material, solar silicon, delivers quality and efficiency while simultaneously reducing costs for customers. Currently, the technology is used to power more than 20 million solar cells around the world. Silicor has improved upon the method of generating solar power, and making it more economically viable without a drop in product performance. With its innovative process optimizing solar silicon production (and its subsequent use in cost-effectively manufacturing quality solar cells), Silicor Materials is disrupting the solar industry and contributing to its evolution.

SmartThings (Washington, DC, USA)

Ensuring security is the core objective of SmartThings, the developer of the mobile application that enables homeowners to remotely monitor and control activity in their homes from smart devices. SmartThings has the capacity to link mobile devices with into long-distance remote controls. Users can control lights, locks, appliances, thermostats, and other connected electronics. SmartThings remembers users’s routines and can automatically perform various actions when the user falls asleep, wakes up, leaves home, or returns. But because routines vary, SmartThings easily adapts to user preferences with the capacity for customized settings. When unexpected events happen, the application notifies the user with alerts. SmartThings is a free application with no monthly fees; users pay a one-time cost for the hub which enables the various devices and application to communicate. SmartThings prides itself on developing technology that creates “a safer, smarter home in the palm of your hand” and offers users “home security, peace of mind, and limitless possibilities.”

Vaxxas (Sydney, Australia)

Vaxxas was nominated for its development of the Nanopatch, a revolutionary vaccine delivery system, in order to facilitate advancements in health care and disease treatment. The Nanopatch constitutes an amalgamation of thousands of “vaccine coated microprojections” that, when applied, penetrate the skin and release the vaccine to key immune cells immediately under the surface. In collaboration with vaccine companies, Vaxxas continues to develop safe and effective methods of vaccine delivery, targeting the performance of existing vaccines for diverse diseases and oncology. In addition to enhancing the “therapeutic and market potential of existing vaccines,” Vaxxas hopes to facilitate “unprecedented immunogenic response” to next generation therapeutics. These efforts demonstrate the Vaxxas commitment to enhanced health care, the mitigation and eradication of infectious diseases and the improvement of global health.