Digital Optimist – a side on game

From cartophargy and a desire to build maps during the 80’s recession lead Gary to teach soccer and learning Cobol. Learning early on that programming wasn’t his forte, yet being an excellent communicator was imperative has helped him excel in his career. It is not always talent that makes one the MVP; it is collaboration and teamwork. One doesn’t have to be silky silk; being the backbone of your team is the most critical task in bringing the best out of others, which brings the best out of you.

“For decades, we’ve been discussing a “connected planet.” We can now finally say that it’s within our sights. Today, 51% of the world’s population has Internet access; and although some may still only have dial-up or modem access to broadband, we’re making great strides.”

A connected planet means a lot more than being able to connect with loved ones or business associates; it involves changes to business processes and the very models they are built on, bridging cultures and bringing economic prosperity to under-served regions, applying technology to agriculture to end world hunger, advances in medicine to cure incurable diseases, and so much more. The implementation of 5G and the automation of vehicles, not to mention AI and deep learning technologies, make them available to anyone who has a browser and a smart device. This means that the lack of formal education and available capital is becoming less important for developers, dreamers and innovators no matter where they live or call home.

We’re in a state where we are always on, always available, and always accessible data across a wide range of devices. Gary believes the crux of this is standardization on IP and the provisioning of highly resilient and available storage and computing services. Talking about what you can do with the data, that’s exciting – that’s real disruption.