Will the Internet of Things Force Faster Corporate Innovation?

techonomy.com

“The next phase of all this stuff is increasingly viewed to be the Internet of Things.” That’s how Techonomy’s David Kirkpatrick introduced his discussion with Flextronics CMO Michael Mendenhall on the final day of the DLD (Digital-Life-Design) conference in Munich. Kirkpatrick didn’t feel compelled to define what he meant by “all this stuff” because it implicitly refers to the accelerating progress of tech innovation and its impact on society—a central topic of conversation at the DLD conference. Flextronics, the world’s second-largest manufacturer, helps companies develop intelligent devices, and aims to drive the next phase of business innovation via the Internet of Things. In fact, Flextronics envisions a step beyond Internet connectivity, which may be why the company, according to Mendenhall, prefers to talk about the “Intelligence of Things.” “The Internet is really just about connecting people and things,” says Mendenhall. “What truly is going to revolutionize business … and redefine industries and create new ones is this idea of smart, connected devices.”