Look to the future

Tune Talk CEO Jason Lo shares his thoughts on transformation and cloud computing with Amalina Kamal

01

HOW HAS TECHNOLOGY CHANGED OUR LIVES TODAY?

New technologies keep building on old ones and there will always be changes in the field every year. Right now, we are at a point in time where information is readily available and easily accessed, thanks to our mobile devices — everything is practically at our fingertips.

You can’t predict when or what the next trend will be. There may be many applications available these days but many of them gets less popular pretty fast.

American computer scientist Ray Kurzweil believes that there is a singularity that is coming in the future — biology will seamlessly meld with technology. I find this thought interesting because in a way, we can already see it happening.

02

HOW HAS THIS INFLUENCED THE WAY TUNE TALK GROWS?

A while ago, we recognised that we have to be futurists; that is, to be prepared for transformation — and not analysts looking at past data and following trends. We have to anticipate what’s coming.

One of the things we did was to create Crap. TV, a full cloud-based television station where we have the entire play-out and library over the Internet. This kind of initiative allows us to run a full channel innovatively, for instance, on highway billboards, without restricted runtime. We have also expanded our work by working closely with Malaysia’s early stage start-up influencer Cradle Fund. I personally mentor two individuals who I consider geniuses to create SWAG (super WiFi anywhere you go).

03

CAN YOU SHARE MORE ABOUT THE TECHNOLOGY BEHIND SWAG?

SWAG is a device that captures/combines the entire bandwidth (strength and reliability) of whatever Internet connectivity that is available to create one huge broadband pipe so you don’t have to worry about getting scarce connection wherever or whenever.

It’s really going to be groundbreaking when we launch it because the current state of Internet connectivity is fragmented by service providers that do not allow users to cross over.

04

WHAT DOES TUNE TALK HOPE TO ACHIEVE WITH ALL ITS TECH-DRIVEN INITIATIVES?

Changes are happening fast. Tune Talk is just one of a few companies that is trying to move forward from the legacy system. One challenge with new technologies is denial and I feel that we should start changing the way we look at things. Last year, we added 80 million new Internet users in Asean. However, there are still a huge number who are still not able to experience the connectivity we enjoy. Fifty per cent of the world revenue will come from Asia by 2020 so we have to continue creating the right steps to become more digitally empowered.

When we look at technology, there are two things we need to observe — revolution and evolution.

The Zuckerbergs or revolutionists will come along and initiate lifestyle changes like Facebook. Then come the evolutionists who will creatively improve the model that was introduced to diversify the landscape, hence Twitter, Instagram and Snapchat.

05

WHAT IS THE STRENGTH OF CLOUD COMPUTING?

When it comes to satellite technology, I hope the big players realise that launching a physical satellite is not really necessary in this age because you can build a satellite framework through cloud technology.

06

WHEN ONE TRIES TO INNOVATE, WHAT IS THE MOST IMPORTANT FACTOR TO KEEP IN MIND?

That technology is a human thing so you have to take into account the habitual side of things. Keep your eye on the ground and look four to five years into the future to ensure that your innovation remains relevant.