Tag: portfolio

AI is enhancing diverse computer vision technologies [Byline]

/ Gary Hilson

Autonomous vehicles have been driving advances in vision technology, but vendors are targeting other practical applications because broad adoption of self-driving vehicles appears to be taking longer than expected.

Virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR) both have need of improved cameras and sensors for practical use cases, while the trend toward “uncaging robots” for industrial applications such as warehouse fulfillment and manufacturing requires smarter vision technology, which spans 2D cameras to 4D LiDAR.

Layering artificial intelligence (AI), machine learning, and neural networks onto computer vision technologies further expands the many applications for a wide range of sensors and cameras.

Read my full story at Fierce Electronics.

Gary Hilson is a freelance writer with a focus on B2B technology, including information technology, cybersecurity, and semiconductors.

Demands from the cloud fuel hard drive innovation [Byline]

/ Gary Hilson

The hard drive is dead. Long live the hard drive!

The cost of NAND flash has dropped precipitously in the last decade, and tape still wins in cost per bit, but hard disk drives (HDDs) continue to rule the data center.

The focus has moved from the individual PCs to scaling the data center with purpose-built hard drives that have their own attributes and with more consideration being given to total cost of ownership (TCO). Energy consumption measured by watt per terabyte is also an important attribute as it plays into TCO and trends toward sustainability.

Read my full story for Fierce Electronics.

Gary Hilson is a freelance writer with a focus on B2B technology, including information technology, cybersecurity, and semiconductors.

Smaller LEDs are scaling up for uses such as lighter AR glasses, automotive [Byline]

/ Gary Hilson

Light-emitting diodes (LEDs) are getting smaller, but the process to make them small isn’t easy – at least not yet.

Not unlike many semiconductor technologies, including emerging memory devices, making LEDs smaller is possible, but not always cost effective. The LEDs found in your average flatscreen TV are a mature technology, but manufacturing microLEDs still has its growing pains.

The potential for microLEDs is broad and goes beyond flat panel televisions and smaller displays for smartphones and automotive – there are some interesting medical applications, too.

Read my full story for Fierce Electronics

Gary Hilson is a freelance writer with a focus on B2B technology, including information technology, cybersecurity, and semiconductors.

AI boosts optical connectivity demand [Byline]

/ Gary Hilson

Cloud computing raised expectations for data speeds, but artificial intelligence (AI) workloads are placing even more pressures on bandwidth to move data faster and reliably.

While protocols like the Compute Express Link (CXL) are helping to optimize where data is stored so it is closer to where it needs to be, connectivity remains crucial to moving it as fast as possible. After a dip in adoption, optical transceiver technology is seeing an uptick to scale AI in the data center by companies like Amazon and Google, while connectivity is getting baked into full-stack systems along with hardware and software.

Read my full story for Fierce Electronics

Gary Hilson is a freelance writer with a focus on B2B technology, including information technology, cybersecurity, and semiconductors.

4 Reasons Retailers Love NaaS [Portfolio]

/ Gary Hilson

Just as Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) has made inroads into retail as a means of shifting IT responsibilities for applications to a third party, a similar model for networking is gaining popularity. The Network-as-a-Service (NaaS) paradigm reflects the reality that deploying a network in a store, regardless of size, adds complexity to IT — both in terms of installation and ongoing management.

Not only does NaaS support scalability and flexibility for businesses prone to seasonal fluctuations, but it also provides a platform to capture customer insights that drive revenue growth.

Read my blog post for Cincinnati Bell Technology Solutions.

Gary Hilson is a freelance writer with a focus on B2B technology, including information technology, cybersecurity, and semiconductors.

5 ways to prepare for PIPEDA’s updates [Byline]

/ Gary Hilson

If getting your IT systems to support privacy legislation is your jam, you’re going to love the latest update to the Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act (PIPEDA). Better yet, you can apply your experience meeting the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) to your PIPEDA compliance efforts.

Changes to PIPEDA regulations

Like GDPR, Canada’s new privacy breach notification rules were in the works for some time, thanks to amendments to PIPEDA by the Digital Privacy Act. Taking effect November 1, the new rules mean organizations must to notify individuals and Canada’s Privacy Commissioner of all security breaches that could result in a “real risk of significant harm” to an individual. They apply to any organization, except in Quebec, Alberta and British Columbia, which all have their own privacy legislation.

Another pending change to PIPEDA the finalized consent guidelines, released by Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada in May. This update also has similarities to GDPR, as it provides guidance on the collection, use, or disclosure—collectively, processing—of the data subject’s personal information. PIPEDA’s “Guidelines for obtaining meaningful consent,” set out both mandatory and suggested steps for organizations. These updates take effect in January 2019.

Latest PIPEDA principles follow in GDPR’s footsteps

If you recall your GDPR prep, you’ll also recall PIPEDA compliance wasn’t enough to meet the demands of the European Union’s legislation that was designed to protect privacy of their citizens regardless of geography. But a culture of privacy protection works in your favour. Just as your PIPEDA compliance was good prep for GDPR, the PIPEDA amendments should be easier to wrap your head around now that you’re GDPR compliant.

These updates impact your IT team, but you’ll need to collaborate across the organization for effective PIPEDA compliance. Security, legal and communications staff all need to be on board. Protecting privacy isn’t just about technology, it’s a mindset, so you’ll need a executive champion to lead and maintain the necessary culture shift in the organization.

But if you want to boil down the latest PIPEDA compliance requirements into a plan of action, here are five things you should do:

  • Know your data: PIPEDA and GDPR both require that you understand how a person’s person data flows through the organization—how it’s collected, how it’s moved, how it’s stored, and most of all, what it’s being used for. You need to map all personal and sensitive data, and you might want to consider not collecting unnecessary data—once you have it, you’re responsible for safeguarding it.
  • Revise policies and procedures and create new ones: GDPR required new ways of thinking, and the PIPEDA update specifically requires a process to notify data subjects of a breach—again, just like the European legislation. Beyond that, you need to think about how it affects your business processes that involve data collection, such as marketing and customer onboarding.
  • Automate where possible: Privacy protection is dependent on good information security practices, which today can no longer depend on people alone. Just as good security takes advantage of artificial intelligence, machine learning, the embedded features of a modern operating system, and smart devices that can help protect against threats, you need be proactive and not reactive, and embrace privacy by design. You should have an information management system that can track breaches, just as you would with any other IT issue.
  • Run fire drills: Like any disaster recovery and data protection plans, you should periodically test your breach response plans to make sure everyone plays their part should a breach occur because it’s not a matter of if, but when. You want your breach response process to be by the book, so you can minimize risk and potential litigation.

Privacy has been the new normal since the initial inception of PIPEDA, but it’s a landscape that continues to evolve—the legislation was intended to be reviewed every five years since being introduced more than 15 years ago. What’s most important to remember with these latest updates is that PIPEDA compliance is a mindset and protecting sensitive data needs to be part of your organization’s culture. Thinking about privacy intentionally will help you stay compliant in the long run, no matter how regulatory frameworks or legislation evolve.

Gary Hilson is a freelance writer with a focus on B2B technology, including information technology, cybersecurity, and semiconductors. A revised version of this article was published on Tektonika Canada.

DRAM Boom and Bust is Business as Usual [Byline]

/ Gary Hilson

Boom or bust. It’s long been the cycle for established memory technologies. As 3D NAND pricing softens, DRAM still appears to be going strong. But for how long? And will these ups and downs always be the norm despite diversified demand and emerging vendors from China?

One key characteristic of the DRAM market is that there are currently only three major suppliers — Micron Technology, SK Hynix and Samsung Electronics.

“They’re keeping a pretty tight rein on their capacity,” said Brian Matas, vice president of market research at IC Insights, said in a telephone interview with EE Times. “And at the same time, there’s also pretty strong demand for higher performance and higher-density parts, particularly from the data center and server applications.”

Read my EE Times story.

Gary Hilson is a freelance writer with a focus on B2B technology, including information technology, cybersecurity, and semiconductors.

Adesto Touts ReRAM for Automotive [Byline]

/ Gary Hilson

With the automotive market presenting potential opportunities of ever-emerging memories such as ferroelectric RAM (FRAM), magnetoresistive RAM (MRAM), and resistive RAM (ReRAM), Adesto Technologies is working hard to make sure that the latter makes the grade.

It recently unveiled new research demonstrating the potential of ReRAM for high-reliability applications such as automotive. The research was led by Adesto Fellow Dr. John Jameson, who shared the results at the ESSCIRC-ESSDERC 48th European Solid-State Device Research Conference earlier this month, and indicates that ReRAM could become a widely used, low-cost, and simple embedded non-volatile memory (eNVM) because it uses simple cell structures and materials that can be integrated into existing manufacturing flows with as little as one additional mask.

Read my latest for EE Times.

Gary Hilson is a freelance writer with a focus on B2B technology, including information technology, cybersecurity, and semiconductors.

New Uses Vie for GDDR6 Supply [Byline]

/ Gary Hilson

TORONTO — The “G” still stands for “graphics,” but new use cases driving the need for GDDR memory technology have nothing to do with pixels.

In fact, applications such as artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning, which need ultra-fast memories, have shorted gamers of their GDDR supply, so it’s probably a good idea that makers of the technology are ramping up delivery. Micron Technology recently began volume production of its 8-Gb GDDR6 memory, which, of course, is aimed at the graphics market but also automotive and networking segments.

Some of the emerging uses cases for GDDR memory are still graphics-driven. In the growing automotive memory market, it’s to support increasingly visual dashboards and advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS) that must be responsive to a driver’s actions immediately, while autonomous vehicles need high-performance memory to process the vast amounts of real-time data. Other emerging applications include augmented reality (AR) and virtual reality (VR). Finally, video is always hungry for memory as 4K gets more widely adopted and 8K nips at its heels.

Read my full story on EE Times. 

Gary Hilson is a freelance writer with a focus on B2B technology, including information technology, cybersecurity, and semiconductors.

Ready to get on board with the Cybersecurity Tech Accord? [Byline]

/ Gary Hilson

So, you’ve got your organization all set to meet the requirements of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). You tell yourself you can relax. But have you heard about the Cybersecurity Tech Accord?

Generally, cybersecurity government regulation is exactly that—rules laid out by ruling authorities that generally end up adding to your to do list. But the Cybersecurity Tech Accord is driven by 34 of the world’s largest international companies—this time the private sector is taking on cyberwarfare by making a commitment to create stronger defenses against cyber attacks and to make sure they’re not unwittingly helping governments attack other countries.

The Cybersecurity Tech Accord is more than just a positioning statement. It’s going beyond cybersecurity government regulation in that the participating companies are pledging to empower their employees and clients to better protect themselves, while improving technical collaboration to make cyberspace safer. In most cases, cybersecurity government regulation lays out compliance obligations, but it’s generally up to companies and their IT staff to figure out how best to follow those rules.

Going beyond cybersecurity government regulation

While this so-called “Digital Geneva Accord” has private sector companies taking the initiative, it requires those in the trenches of IT to go the extra mile—the Cybersecurity Tech Accord puts the onus on everyone in the organization to make good cybersecurity part their culture. And while it’s not obligatory, your employer could soon decide it should follow this accord as a good corporate citizen.

The good news is that accord starts at the design level. It vows that the signers “will protect against tampering with and exploitation of technology products and services during their development, design, distribution and use.” This means you can expect more security by design in the software and hardware you deploy, although already intelligent devices such as modern multi-function printers come equipped with their own embedded security smarts to better defend your network at large.

But should your organization sign on to this new digital accord, you many find yourself getting out of your comfort zone for the greater good and better cybersecurity.

The Cybersecurity Tech Accord makes four commitments

So just what are you committed to if your employer decides to sign on to this Cybersecurity Tech Accord?

The early supporters of this initiative, including Cisco, Facebook, HP, HPE, Microsoft and Trend Micro, have outlined four key areas for adopters to focus on. The first is on building a stronger defense against online attacks and recognizes everyone deserves protection around the world, regardless of what motivated the cyberattack. Second, these companies will make sure they’re not part of the problem by making sure their products aren’t tampered with or exploited to help governments launch cyberattacks against innocent citizens and enterprises.

The third commitment is where creating a culture of good cybersecurity comes into play, as accord supports are will more do more capacity building by empowering developers as well as users of their technology to be to better protect themselves. It may include collaborative work on new cybersecurity practices as well as new features that customers can integrate into their own products and services.  Finally, the Cybersecurity Tech Accord calls for collective action by building existing relationships and creating new partnerships within industry and society at large to improve technical collaboration and minimize the potential for new online threats.

The new normal is always changing

The Cybersecurity Tech Accord reflects new normal of data privacy and security is multifaceted. Legislation such as GDPR and Canada’s own Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act (PIPEDA) are fostering the concept of privacy by design, while technology vendors have realized that exponential rise in cybersecurity threats require an automated response powered by artificial intelligence and machine.

But this new accord also reflects that reality cybersecurity must be not only be embedded in your IT infrastructure. It must also be weaved throughout the culture of the organization and also be a collaborative endeavor with other organizations. Having a modern operating system with a strong security foundation is a starting point. If your IT team develops apps either for internal employees or external customers, a DevOps culture could strengthen your security and is in spirt with the Cybersecurity Tech Accord.

What this new industry-led initiative is a heralding, however, is the embedding of data privacy and security into the culture of the organization, which means you may find yourself acting as cybersecurity evangelist and teacher for your fellow employees and your customers.

Gary Hilson is a freelance writer with a focus on B2B technology, including information technology, cybersecurity, and semiconductors. A revised version of this article was published on Tektonika Canada.