Blake Dowling
Have you checked out the latest version of the digital personal assistant, Alexa, that is specially designed for Senior Citizens? It’s called Alexa Silver.
It’s super loud and you can only order it by check.
It also has an “uh huh” function that it says when you are telling rambling stories.
Fake news alert, it’s actually from an SNL skit. Awesome to see Lorne Michaels and his team still cranking out gold after all these years, watch it here. (Shoutout to Normie for sharing this with me.)
Speaking of new ideas and innovation, in business and politics, the past decade has been piled with new ways of doing things. How we campaign, work, lobby, organize, motivate, influence all has a digital twist to it.
So many devices; all working together seamlessly, most days.
I now have reached device overload with my tech: Desktop PC (multiple monitors), iPad, 2-in-1 tablet/laptop, and phone. Plus keyboard, speaker, and lots and lots of wires.
The functionality and mobility of all of this makes me extremely productive (on a good day) but, man, I could use some innovation in lowering my device count.
Speaking of innovation, I had an opportunity this week to judge a regional SharkTank-like competition in North Florida. The competition is called the Innovation Park Tech Grant Program,
Applicants brought amazing ideas to the table regarding weather forecasting, video production, engine management and health care.
The local community really rallied around the event and the everyone got a chance to engage with the innovators before the actual judging began. This specific program has been around since 2005 and they have given out over $400,000 in grants to date benefiting the entrepreneurial ecosystem in Leon County.
I first met the Leon County Research & Development Authority when I spoke to one of their events on artificial intelligence.
They read one of my columns on this badass, award-winning political website called, FloridaPolitics.com (perhaps you have heard of it?)
When they mentioned the competition and asked me to judge, I agreed as they said the magic words: “Free beer.”
In all seriousness, though, it was an honor to review these companies (check them out here).
I asked the Director of Programs and Communications about her thoughts on the event; she said: “The Innovation Park TechGrant Program is open to all Leon County residents and offers a change to help local startups and early stage companies transform their ideas and hard work into commercialized products. Funding is one of the largest battles these companies face and we enjoy helping companies in our community move forward.”
Pretty cool.
Where would we be without the innovators of today and yesterday, no Lobby Tools, no iPad, no Alexa Silver, no cloud, no WatchESPN app on my phone?
The world has certainly changed since I kicked off my career in the rock ‘n’ roll business — back in the Dark Ages of the pre-smartphone world of 1998.
Who knows what this local and global community of innovators will bring us next.
I can’t wait to find out, and hopefully, I won’t need the Alexa Silver any time soon.
Enjoy the weekend.
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Blake Dowling is CEO of Aegis Business Technologies and can be reached at [email protected].
