Weekend Reading returns with stories from the very first Microsoft Envision event, including a look at the supermarket of the future, a strategic partnership with R3 and a collaboration with Ecolab to find solutions to water shortages.
Microsoft’s new flagship event for business leaders, Envision, began Monday in New Orleans with more than 6,000 leaders from 70 countries attending. It featured a keynote from CEO Satya Nadella and a guest appearance from astronaut Captain Scott Kelly. The “red thread” that connected the keynote, the drill-down sessions and conversations on and off the expo floor was digital transformation, writes Chris Capossela, executive vice president and chief marketing officer.
Envision attendees saw how Italy’s biggest grocery cooperative is using futuristic technology to help shoppers return to the sociable days of open-air markets, where there were shopkeepers at every stall, ready to answer any question a customer might have about their wares. Coop Italia’s “supermarket of the future” concept replaces the tall shelves of a typical grocery with an airy layout, including easy-to-reach, tilted displays and informative screens at eye level. Motion sensors detect which product a shopper is pointing or looking at, triggering visual displays of information such as ingredients, potential allergens and the origin of the food. The design uses Kinect sensors, Microsoft Azure and other Microsoft technologies. Read more on the Transform blog.
Also Monday, Peggy Johnson, executive vice president for Business Development at Microsoft, announced a strategic partnership with R3, a consortium of leading banking institutions, to help turn the backbone of bitcoin, blockchain, into a revolutionary way for financial institutions to conduct transactions and track asset ownership securely and transparently.
Envision also shined a light on Ecolab, a $14 billion company that is a leading global provider of water, hygiene and energy technologies and services. It has partnered with Microsoft to use recent and future developments in cloud computing, applying cutting-edge technology to speed up how worldwide industries tackle water scarcity.
The Windows 10 Anniversary Update introduces Windows Ink – a family of end-to-end user experiences, platform advances and hardware capabilities. Windows Ink starts with the Windows Ink Workspace, coming this summer. Within it, Sticky Notes turns your handwriting into a powerful digital tool. You’ll also see a curated list of suggested apps in the Windows Ink Workspace to bring you the latest pen apps from the Windows Store, plus a dedicated link to all pen apps. Microsoft has also been working with third-party app developers to integrate simultaneous pen and touch, an example of which is shown in the video above with Adobe Illustrator. Head over to Building Apps for Windows to find out more about Windows Ink.
https://youtu.be/eU17_kd-e4w
The App of the Week, “Quantum Break,” isn’t just a video game, it’s also a live action show featuring Shawn Ashmore as the hero, Jack Joyce; Aidan Gillen as his nemesis Paul Serene; and Dominic Monaghan as Jack’s genius brother William. In the aftermath of a split second of destruction that fractures time, two people have gained extraordinary abilities. One of them travels through time and becomes fixated on controlling this power. The other uses these new abilities to try to correct the timeline. Read more about it on the Windows Experience Blog.
Also check out the newest Red Stripe Deals for sales on six Windows 10 apps and games.
https://youtu.be/5aNeW5fHFjY
This week on the Microsoft Facebook and Instagram channels, we discovered how Temenos has transformed cloud-based banking by providing millions access to microfinance. With the Microsoft cloud, Temenos can reach clients from any location and empower them with opportunities for business growth and professional development.
That’s it for this edition. See you next Friday for another Weekend Reading!
Posted by Athima Chansanchai
Microsoft News Center Staff