Big Data, Bigger Opportunities

What do you think of when you think about big data technology? A matchbox sized sensor may not look like much, but it can significantly improve the safety of key infrastructure; for example it can collect data on humidity, weather conditions, and traffic volume, analyse the effect of these on the structure of a bridge and notify the authorities when repairs are needed, and only needs to have its battery changed once every ten years. Likewise, public transport cards look quiet ordinary, but using the data about when and where people use public transport can help optimise road planning and emergency response, and can profile passengers to provide better service. These are both examples of technology developed by UK teams who came to China last month with SIN’s support.

The opportunity for big data collaboration with China is huge, and the UK delegation attracted a lot of attention and interest. Over 240 Chinese big data companies were engaged in the activities, including 88 business leaders, and over 700 Chinese industry practitioners gained a better understanding of UK capabilities and expertise.

The events also generated a lot of media coverage, reaching an audience size of over 60 million and generating £450,000 of PR value equivalent, facilitated by the GREAT campaign. Influential publications such as China Daily, China News, Xinhuanet.com, Caijing, and Sina published the story, interviewed delegates and featured it prominently in their websites.

The UK’s science and innovation strengths were demonstrated through six delegates from academic institutes and university spin-outs: SpaceTime Lab from UCL, the School of Informatics from University of Edinburgh, Nara Iyer Ressearch Fintech spin-out, Bowater specialized in holographic security, Utterberry sensor spin-out and Speechmatics speech recognition company.

The mission resulted in specific opportunities for research collaboration. Alibaba Group (the world’s largest retailer and one of the largest internet companies), China Electronic Technology Group (a state-owned high-tech company), and China Academy of Urban Planning and Design (a government think tank on urban planning) expressed interest in exploring joint science and research projects and talent exchange with the UK academic delegates. Right after the mission, Huawei and the University of Edinburgh announced the opening of a Joint Lab for Distributed Data Management and Processing.

I’m looking forward to supporting more and more new strategic partnerships built through the mission to achieve social impact through innovative big data technologies.