INTERNET OF THINGS

Technology trends dont come more dazzling or daunting than

the Internet of Things. In simple terms, it involves virtually every
object around you, whether an alarm clock or a mid-sized family
sedan, being hooked up to the Internet via sensors. This endless
array of things can then communicate with one another with
little or no human input.
The applications for this are almost limitless. Some are mundane,
like your fridge informing your smartphone when youve run
out of eggs. Others could be life saving, like your pacemaker
independently relaying details of a dangerous fault to your
cardiologist before you even sense theres a problem.
According to Cisco, the number of objects connected to the
Internet exceeded the number of people on Earth in 2008, and
this number is expected to grow exponentially to 50 billion by
2020. While Gartner predicts the Internet of things will generate
$1.9 trillion in global economic value-add through sales into
diverse end markets.
An infrastructure capable of supporting the Internet of Things is
already being built. The latest Internet communications protocol
IPv6 is already being implemented to accommodate for the large
amount of storage space required for the unique identication
numbers of objects. In June, HP revealed that it is working on
a new computing system, dubbed The Machine, capable of
managing 160 petabytes of data in 250 nanoseconds, which will
come in handy in coping with the massive amount of data from
the Internet of Things.
The technology used to connect everything to the Internet, be
it RFID, Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, or NFC, will not just allow objects to
communicate with humans, but with each other as well. Imagine
a scenario in which trafc information, train schedules, and work
data all communicate with your alarm clock, coffee maker, and car
engine to start your day exactly on time, all while youre asleep.
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CHEAT
SHEET
he Jordan chapter of the Google-
backed Startup Grind program,
which aims to create communities of
entrepreneurs beyond tech hubs like
Silicon Valley, has attracted a healthy
deal of interest since its April launch.
The Jordan chapter has so far hosted
two speaker events, where some of
the Kingdoms savviest entrepreneurs
were on hand to offer help and advice
for aspiring startups. The frst event
featured Ahmed Alkhatib, founder
and CEO of MarkaVIP, while the
second featured Wael Attili, founder
of Kharabeesh, the fastest growing
Youtube network for Arabic content in
the world.
The events also included an
opportunity for selected startups to
set up booths and pitch their ideas to
attendees, as well as the opportunity
to network before a Q&A style
presentation where attendees learned
from the speakers experiences.
Chapter founder Robert Carroll, who
works for business accelerator Oasis
500, established Startup Grind in Jordan
because he was inspired by the startup
community in the Middle East. I think
startups are doing really good things
for the region and are having a really
positive impact, he said. Theres a
lot of talent in Jordan and especially
in Amman. What were trying to do is
engage that talent and help people do
the startup grind.
So far the idea has been received well
by the startup community, with between
60 and 90 people attending each of the
frst two events. But through social
media, especially the live Twitter feed,
its estimated that the events reached
up to 300,000 people, as measured by
Startup Grinds social media expert.
Carroll observed that a lot of great
connections have already been made
through the events and hopes that this
will continue in the future. Id love
to see a startup or partnership come
out of Startup Grind, he said. I think
it happens all the time throughout the
world in different chapters, and I think
it could happen here. JH
ENTREPRENEURS
STARTUP GRIND COMES
TO AMMAN
T
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VENTURE MAGAZINE
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JULY 2014