Friday, July 14, 2023

Takeaways from Collision 2023

By Michael Dorr, Associate Vice-President, Marketing and Brand Strategy.

Last month, many of my colleagues and I represented the University of Waterloo at the Collision Conference. Dubbed “the Olympics of tech” and a “carnival for entrepreneurs,” Collision’s goal is to redefine the tech industry and provide a venue for start-ups to exhibit their work, connect with investors and learn from industry leaders. With 36,000+ attendees from over 100 countries, it has emerged as one of the fastest growing tech conferences in North America.

Waterloo x Collision

The University of Waterloo and Collision share a focus on game-changing innovation, entrepreneurship, and technology. It’s no surprise that many of our alumni, partners, co-op employers, and peers attend or exhibit each year. Last month, we decided to join them with Waterloo thought leadership and an interactive display:

• Over 40 Waterloo Region start-ups exhibiting including Cobionix, Geomate, Metacycler Bioinnovations, Alora, VueReal (and many more inspiring Velocity alumni companies) spanning the fields of Robotics, AI and Machine Learning, Sustainability, Agriculture, Cleantech and more.
• University of Waterloo Masterclasses offered attendees insight on topics spanning generative AI, navigating the start-up landscape, and designing responsible / ethnical technologies – all designed and delivered by esteemed researchers and practitioners in their respective fields. These masterclasses drew hundreds of leaders from tech, finance, health, government, creative services, and higher education for explorations of the why, what now, and how best to leverage of today’s most exciting technology and startup opportunities. 
• Interactive Survey Wall: With 36,000+ tech leaders and entrepreneurs in attendance, we took the opportunity to gather some of our own intelligence on the floor of the Collision Conference. Waterloo’s survey wall asked attendees about talent, technology and the future AI. We were assured to learn that employers are investing in people/talent and placing great value on “an entrepreneurial mindset” (above and beyond technical OR ‘hard’ skills). Learn more about these results.

Top three takeaways

• Opportunities abound: in WatSPEED’s masterclass “How to disrupt your industry using Generative AI”, the University of Waterloo’s Joël Blit noted, “AI is a once in a generation opportunity to transform your business,” with sectors like health, law, and education being particularly ripe for disruption. And while some skills/jobs may become obsolete, new ones such as “Prompt Engineers” are emerging.
• Beware the robots: the last presentation of Wednesday’s busy day was a sobering conversation with Geoffrey Hinton, “the godfather of AI.” Earlier this year, Hinton resigned from Google, alarmed at the escalating sophistication of AI and the broader dangers that AI presents to society. At Collision (in a standing-room only presentation), Hinton suggested that we are entering a time of “immense uncertainty.” He further warned of the risks of AI, especially if in the hands of bad actors. Hinton did, however, provide some fleeting optimism, noting that “physical skill” (e.g., manual dexterity) will take some time to replicate, implying that if you are a plumber, your job is safe (for now).   
• Looking forward with ethics in mind: thankfully there are talented engineers like Jennifer Boger (adjunct professor at Waterloo’s Faculty of Engineering) who are building ethics into the design process for new technologies as outlined in her masterclass, “Generating a new responsible tech development paradigm.” Boger has observed that developers “want to do the right thing, but often feel like ethics is someone else’s job.” Aiming to empower developers, Boger advises that we simply, and consistently, ask ourselves not “how” but rather, “why am I doing this?”

As Collision extends its stay in Toronto for another year I look forward to returning in 2024 to see if the uncertainty surrounding AI has grown or diminished. Despite the understandable calls for concern, I personally feel quite optimistic about our technological and societal futures. After all, our survey wall indicates that organizations continue to value human talent above all else and are looking to invest in the skills and technology needed to help their organizations thrive.

Keep innovating!

United College celebrates 60th anniversary with BBQ

United College welcomed its first cohort of students in September 1963. Nearly sixty years later, they're inviting you back to the college to celebrate 60 years of academic excellence and community.  

The institution will celebrate with a free outdoor summer BBQ (indoor if raining) on Saturday, July 15 from 11:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. featuring a bouncy castle, face painting, a live alumni band, self-guided walking tours, cotton candy, and delicious summer BBQ food. Organizers emphasize that the event will be taking place rain or shine.

Students, alumni, staff, faculty, friends and their families and children are all welcome.

Register for the community forums and other notes

There's still time to register for the UWaterloo community forums, which will be held in the Theatre of the Arts on Monday, July 17. The employee forum will take place from 9:30 a.m. to 11 a.m., and the student forum will take place from 2:30 p.m. to 4:00 p.m.

Register now. Registration will close at 5 p.m. on Friday, July 14.

On June 27, the Sustainability Office hosted Bike Fair, an annual celebration of all things cycling and active transport. Several hundred students, staff, and faculty gathered in the Arts Quad to get free bike tune-ups, Four All ice cream, and chat with campus and community partners. "Despite the rain, we had a great turnout," says a note from the Sustainability Office. "See you next year!" 

This is a reminder that flags will be lowered on campus to mark the Celebration of Life for IST staff member Cassie Bechard. The memorial will be held this Saturday, July 15 from 1:00 p.m. to 3:00 p.m. at Notre Dame Chapel in St. Jerome's University. Parking is available in St. Jerome's Parking Lot B.

Tim Hortons Camp Day is on Wednesday, July 19, and the Tim Hortons SLC, DC and SCH locations will be participating. "You can help open doors for young people in your community by buying a camp bracelet, hot coffee or iced coffee with 100 per cent of the proceeds of your coffee purchase going directly to camp," says a note from Food Services.