MWC Day 2 Recap

What’s happening in Hall 2? 4YFN for a start. Many, many startups to check out and that’s what I did today.

Let’s start with Freemindtronic, think password manager but in a physical form. You can keep up to 100 passwords, bank details or other sensitive information on a credit card-sized EviCypher along with a backup card. With everything stored in the cloud these days, it was interesting to see a product going down an offline route.

Speaking of interesting, Dreamwaves are disrupting the way we navigate. No need to look at your phone or watch to check directions, instead, you will hear sounds coming from the direction of where you need to be. It was described to me as when you can’t find your phone, you (or someone else) calls it and when you hear the ringtone you know where to go and look.

Using headphones to guide you could be interesting but we’ll see. One area where this has brought a more immersive experience to us is in museums. Dreamwaves’ technology has been used to enhance the museum experience for visitors so that they are part of the journey of the art or exhibition.

Startup resources

Wayra is Telefonica’s startup accelerator, headed up by Chema Alonso, whose talk I saw early in the afternoon. This talk was more of a personal journey of how computing captured his attention (Tron and Quake II) from hacking for good and creating technology to his position now working with startups, it was a fascinating insight into pieces of his life.

Chema Alonso on stage at 4YFN

Tech Barcelona (formerly Tech City) is also at 4YFN, they’re a private non-profit association that promotes connections between all agents of the startup ecosystem. They’ve recently rebranded, so be aware that not all services are listed on their website yet but you can get all the info from their stand or send them a message.

Not forgetting AWS, which have a wealth of resources to help startups not only build on AWS but also you’ll find help with fundraising, training and more, from inception to IPO.

Overview of the 4YFN area

All about the cloud

At the other end of Hall 2, you’ll find Cloud City, TelcoDR’s innovation space. Cloud providers and smaller cloud vendors are exhibiting here with TelcoDR elevating the conversation around the public cloud.

Entrance to the exhibitor part of TelcoDR’s Cloud City

I wasn’t there for DR’s keynote but I did catch her interview with John Furrier over at the CUBE stage where she spoke about the future of the cloud and ripping up the old way of being network-centric and making the public cloud people-centric.

A lot is happening over at the 65,000 square foot space of Cloud City. You’re surrounded by trees and foliage, setting it apart from the other spaces. And, if you’re attending virtually, you can reserve a robot and cruise around speaking and visiting the spaces and people that interest you the most.

You’ll also find comfy workspaces, art installations, free food and drinks, immersive experiences and even entertainment. 

Inside Cloud City with the cube stage and interview area

Inside the immersive experience room

One of the free food and drink stands inside Cloud City

I can’t end this post without mentioning Jon Bon Jovi. He did an unplugged set! Completing challenges around Cloud City earns you rewards and the main one for day 2 was admittance to the Jon Bon Jovi unplugged set. I was very fortunate to be in attendance of this intimate setting and it was incredible to hear the hits and also the premiere performance of American reckoning. What a way to end day 2!

Jon Bon Jovi on stage at the end of day 2 at Cloud City