Podcast: The Computer Weekly Downtime Upload – Episode 21

In this week’s episode of the Computer Weekly Downtime Upload podcast, Brian McKenna, Clare McDonald and Caroline Donnelly are joined by Computer Weekly’s acting management editor, Angelica Mari, to discuss new plans for government technology, the Connected Britain conference, Asos’s dive into augmented reality (AR) technology and Tableau’s annual European conference.

• Angelica starts off the podcast by filling the team in on the launch of the London Office of Technology Innovation (LOTI), a group of “willing and able” London boroughs which are working together to develop better ways to deliver technology across local public services. She also talks about her interview with Hackney Council CIO Rob Miller, on how Hackney is taking part in the LOTI.
• Caroline shares her efforts to cover networking editor Alex Scroxton’s beat at the Connected Britain conference, where experts shared their views on 5G, the deployment of superfast broadband and the increasingly complex skills needed by the digitally excluded.
• Brian fills the team in on his trip to Berlin for Tableau’s conference, including a live data visualisation competition, the company’s culture and the firm’s acquisition by Salesforce.
• The team also talks about a £150m investment Oxford University has received for the purpose of researching artificial intelligence (AI).
• Clare discusses Asos’s most recent trial functionality in its shopping app, Virtual Catwalk, which uses AR to allow shoppers to see how clothes look on moving models.
• Angelica fills the team in on technology innovation in Brazil, how far along in digitisation the country is in comparison with the UK, and how the political climate may be affecting technology adoption.

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