< Previous40 CEO MIDDLE EAST MARCH 2023 Availability. “Smart food” is defined as food that is good and sustainable for consumers sustainability across the food value chain, from upstream to downstream. Such pos- sibilities are a revelation in MEA, where a lack of “dispatchability” remains a key roadblock to achieving food security in remote, rural areas. Achieving sustainability across the food value chain needs visibility About 90 percent of all disclosed carbon emissions in the F&B industry are attrib- uted to supply chains. So, the industry’s sustainability hinges on optimising every function along this track. That can only be made possible with digitalisation. IoT adoption takes precedence at this particular juncture when stakeholders, hoping to increase “dispatchability”, are expanding the food systems. The end-to- end traceability is what becomes critical, especially when cold-chains are part of the system. While cold-chain capabilities can potentially address food shortage and scarcity in remote areas by extending product shelf life, any inefficiencies can result in health hazards. IoT-enabled transparency, accountability, and insight-led F&B operations will not only ensure food safety but also enable the delivery of the right product at the right time to any location within the operational purview. Real-time insights also translate to greater readiness and resilience against market disruptions. It is such agility that the regional F&B industry should aspire for. End-to-end traceability helps comply with safety and sustainability regulations, which are increasingly being mandated in the region. Such demonstrable sustain- ability outcomes allow stakeholders to attract investors, who now tend to be largely geared toward impact investing. Digitalisation of the F&B industry spells opportunities in MEA Aggregate demand aside, the growth also extends to the increased awareness of health and eco-conscious consumer- ism in the region. While there is a visible uptake of unconventional channels such as e-commerce for food disbursement, consumers also expect more transpar- ency in the labelling of organic and halal certifications. Digitalisation can bring more integ- rity into these segments by dissuading fraudulent certifications. In doing so, industry stakeholders can tap into new opportunities such as the plant-based F&B, which is expected to grow at a CAGR of 8.35 percent till 2028, according to Triton Market Research. The demand is already pronounced in economies like South Africa, Turkey, the UAE, and KSA, where consumers — particularly the younger generation — are adopting a holistic approach to diet. If the pandemic taught us one thing, it is that we can never be more ready. That certainly means that there is a strong business case for sustainability transformations in the industry today. If pursued methodically and at scale, F&B industries can contribute to MEA’s net- zero goals while ensuring “smart food” for billions of people. TECHNOLOGYAN ITP MEDIA GROUP EVENT May 2023 | Dubai, UAE Unpacking the biggest opportunities and challenges facing working women in the region COMMERCIAL ENQUIRIES Saraswati Agarwal Group Commercial Director Tel: +971 4 444 3352 GSM: +971 52 895 2214 E-mail: saraswati.agarwal@itp.com EVENT ENQUIRIES Anthony Chandran Marketing & Events Manager Tel: +971 4 444 3685 GSM: +971 58 971 5077 E-mail: anthony.chandran@itp.com Women in Business Conference 202342 CEO MIDDLE EAST MARCH 2023 okia believes it is in a “unique position” to capture op- portunities in the indus- trial metaverse by developing network systems that can sense, think and act, rather than just connect. Ahead of MWC23, Nokia’s chief strategy and technology officer (CSTO), Nishant Batra, shares the company’s vision for the coming seven years in the run up to 2030 and the era of the im- mersive metaverse. “This is the new age of digitalisa- tion – and in this age, there will be digitally augmented worlds, there will be solutions to different challenges and, equally importantly, there will be new business opportunities for players like ourselves,” Batra states. Nishant Batra, Nokia’s chief strategy and technology offi cer (CSTO), shares how the industry giant is pioneering digital transformation and technology innovation NOKIA: DRIVING THE EVOLUTION OF NETWORKS Headquarters. The modern Nokia Campus in Espoo, Finland BRAND VIEW NMARCH 2023 CEO MIDDLE EAST 43 NOKIA “OUR BELIEF IS THAT THE NETWORKS OF THE FUTURE WILL SENSE, THINK AND ACT” Having played a foundational role in building the connectivity infrastruc- ture, Nokia, he believes, is now in a unique position to grow its presence in other areas, such as edge computing, and prove it is not “just an infrastruc- ture player” but that it can also serve as “the platform for transformation” for several industries. Batra points out that there are three different types of metaverse: The consumer domain, with offerings for social interactions, entertainment and gaming; the enterprise domain, which is set to bring immersive collaboration, remote working, extended reality (XR) training and digital co-design; and the industrial metaverse, where “physi- cal industries get digitalised through immersion”. And it is the industrial metaverse that Nokia, its CSTO claims, is “most excited about”, as data from research company ABI Research has suggested that this is growing “much faster” than the consumer domain. According to Nokia’s own analysis, current enterprise data traffic is domi- nated by smartphone video streams and files, “but our estimate is that after 2027, the network traffic will be domi- nated by XR – and that’s the network we will need to build,” says Batra. The network of the future To support the changing needs of its consumer, especially in the industrial Industry leader. Nokia is a B2B innovation leader pioneering the exponential potential of networks Strategic planner. Nokia wants to work with customers in their journey towards digitalisation, Batra says44 CEO MIDDLE EAST MARCH 2023 Technology hub. The Nokia Foyer in Munich, Germany domain, Nokia envisions that networks of the future “don’t just connect”, Batra notes. “What I believe is that networks will be equally used for sensing and that will then create a need for thinking and acting. So our belief is that the networks of the future will sense, think and act.” Additionally, the vendor needs to build networks not only for per- formance but to make them “equally consumable” and open for innovation, so that developers are able to tap into and build on their potential. “This allows every other industry to consume these networks to potentially transform themselves” and eventually harness the power of 6G, he argues. “When we are building for this world of immersive metaverse, it’s far more complex than the world of connectivity we have today. Trust and identity will be very crucial – and not just for social and entertainment purposes,” but also for addressing three of the biggest requirements for enterprises – productivity, efficiency and safety. Batra insists that the time is now “for those businesses, enterprises and industries to start envisioning their metaverse-driven strategies,” and he adds that Nokia wants to work with those customers in their journey to- wards digitalisation. Other ingredients of the future network, according to Nokia’s CSTO, include a “real-time digital twin” that can help in settings such as a power plant, where no intervention will be required as potential issues will be resolved automatically. In another example, engineers working on gas tur- $26.25BN Nokia’s annual revenue for 2022 BRAND VIEWMARCH 2023 CEO MIDDLE EAST 45 NOKIA bines will not have to test physical parts to figure out power efficiencies, as they will be able to rely on a digital twin for such insights. And this future will require much greater location accuracy, with net- works able to identify the source of a connection to within 1 centimetre rather than a few metres. “That creates a lot of innovation, but also a lot of good business opportunities. This is where the industry truly uses the value of future networks”, he explains. But, of course, none of this will be enabled by one company alone. Nokia will need partners. “It is going to be an extremely important characteristic of successful metaverse companies to be able to collaborate,” says Batra, adding that the company is already collaborat- ing at the developer level and is inviting other partners to collaborate too. Pekka Lundmark, president and CEO of Nokia, said that in order for industries to transform as quickly as possible, “the qualities of traditional networking need to integrate the flexibility and scalability of the cloud. When networks meet cloud, this will unleash the full promise of the industrial, enterprise and consumer metaverses.” Nokia’s network vision was an- nounced alongside an enterprise-fo- cused business strategy update and the unveiling of a logo refresh that aims to distance the company from its con- sumer handset past. Expertise. Nokia is in a unique position to grow its presence in other areas, such as edge computing At the helm. Pekka Lundmark, president and CEO of Nokia46 CEO MIDDLE EAST MARCH 2023 he development of new technologies and their ever- increasing integration in all our activities, from the simplest to the most complex ones, has posed the issue of their impact on the hu- man activities which are linked to the social and economic structure and to the possibility that entire categories of workers and professionals, or even entire industries, might be partially or highly regulated environment with very complex barriers to entry, is as well being impacted by the new technologies, which as an example has started to take on basic support tasks via simple auto- mated chats able to operate via multiple channels and direct the client towards standardised answers or documentation, and then moved to impact on much more complex services, like those provided by the Robo Advisors, able to provide per- sonalised investment portfolio based on the clients data regarding their income, wealth, age, their family composition and financial goals. Robo advisors now man- age well over a Trillion dollar. As ChatGPT crashed all records of users’ growth, reaching one million users within a week and 100 million users in under a month, its disruptive poten- tial on a number of human-dominated activities is evident. Being able to produce reports in a human nuance, but based on an enor- mous amount of data, we are will beyond the technology driving the basic support which I described above. This new tool is able to create new contents based on the question being asked, providing details and context. If we consider that it is still in its final test phase, its accuracy is astonish- ing to say the least. There is no way to sugar-coat the impact of this technology on anything that entails research and content creation: it will be relevant and in some industries it will be massive. Just imag- ine the impact it will have on content creation for marketing activities, for the press, for online publications. As for the financial industry, in my opinion it will change the way the financial advisory is provided and how it is conveyed towards the clients. One of the element to consider is the fact that the financial industry is based on an structural “information asymmetry”, with the financial profes- sional possessing the knowledge which is specific to the industry, having access to data and information which is difficult The disruptive technology of ChatGPT is coming for all industries CHATGPT IMPACT: BOON OR BANE FOR THE FINANCE INDUSTRY? AI application. There is no way to sugar-coat the impact of ChatGPT on anything that entails research and content creation, says d’Ambrosio TECHNOLOGY BY ROBERTO D’AMBROSIO, CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER AT AXIORY GLOBAL T entirely made redundant and replaces by automatized processes. This might seem a bit of an over- statement, but in reality, it is not, as human activities will be aided (so reduc- ing the amount of individuals needed to run a process) or outright replaced, and such a process, which started from the automation of simple tasks, will affect increasingly complex tasks. The financial industry, while being a MARCH 2023 CEO MIDDLE EAST 47 TECHNOLOGY Chatbot. Tools like ChatGPT will allow everyone to get articulate information and reports, in the same way a human could prepare and deliver to access from the public, and the ability to interpret such data and use them to tailor their product and advises to the clients’ needs. Tools like ChatGPT will allow eve- ryone to get articulate information and reports, in the same way a human could prepare and deliver, to either directly follow or to be used to challenge the industry professional on their advises. So, shall the financial industry professional start looking into a career change right away? The answer is definitely no. New technologies will continue to shape and change the way the business is conducted, but looking at what Chat- GPT is capable of doing, we have to look at its limitation too. First of all, while based on an enormous amount of data and created through a sophisticated, dedicated algorithm, there is no absolute certainty on the relevance and accuracy of the output. The intervention of the financial professional is and will be still needed. It will be actually required that the profes- sional grows an amount of knowledge and experience which will allow deep insightfulness and originality in their approach. A second element to consider is that as we go up in the level of sophistica- tion of the client in terms the size of his wealth and consequent complexity his needs, the more direct relationship and personalised service is required, which will continue to be human dominated for quite a long time. This is confirmed also if we look at the data regarding the use of Robo Advisor and that of the private banking industry, which targets HNWI (High Net Worth Individuals). Lastly, as mentioned, the finan- cial industry is a heavy regulated environment, and the delivery of any product or advise, especially if personalised to a specific recipient, needs to be created and delivered following all the rules and regula- tions that have been created in order to protect investors. The risk of data corruption or inaccessibility is a serious matter to consider, whose impact increases as the dependability from the automated process rises. As for the risk of manipulation, the contents are created utilising a software infrastructure constituting the envi- ronment in which data are classified and then selected using AI algorithm to structure and deliver the contents. The risk is here that the code itself is created or manipulated to direct the flow in a way in which some data might be given more relevance that other, thus leading to certain kind of results, based on the believes or needs of who controls the environment. This last point is crucial when linked to the financial services and its regula- tory constraints, which requires an audit of the technological environment in which it operates and a thorough control of any output in terms of product and/ or advise. To summarise, ChatGPT will impact in a relevant way on the financial service industry, but is unlikely to disrupt its structure, especially when it comes to the more sophisticated services it provides. And, as I asked ChatGPT its “opinion”, it agreed. 1 MILLION The number of ChatGPT users during its first five days of launch in November of last year “CHATGPT WILL IMPACT IN A RELEVANT WAY ON THE FINANCIAL SERVICE INDUSTRY” There are a couple of point which are not specific to the financial industry, but may definitely affect any instance in which a toll such as ChatGPT will be used: the risk of corruption of the data or the AI source code, due to hardware fail- ure or malicious attacks by hackers, and the risk of native manipulation, which I sensed immediately after knowing about this technology and that is common to all the highly automated processes.or anyone born after 1963, there is the sun, the moon. And the Rolling Stones.” Keith Richards was right. The heart beat guitarist of the “greatest Rock’n’Roll band of all time”, as the saying goes, perfectly measures the magnitude of the Stones phenomenon: planetary and immortal. In terms of fame as well as longevity, Jaquet Droz also knows music quite well. And like the Stones, the Maison also has a history of touring the world. Created in 1738, Jaquet Droz was the fi rst watchmaker to travel the globe exhibiting his creations to the kings and emperors of Europe and East Asia. 48 CEO MIDDLE EAST MARCH 2023 Inspired by legends . The Rolling Stones Automaton is framed by a 43mm red gold case However, the essential element is not the Rolling Stones, nor Jaquet Droz, but what brings them both to life: the ultimate fan, the collector, the afi cionado. Jaquet Droz’s new strategy is dedicated to this person with the creation of unique, very high-level timepieces, animated by unique, customisable automatons, that they will be the only one to own. The ultimate collector’s item, intimate and personal, imbued with priceless emotional value, such as a signed autograph by Mick Jagger or a beer shared with Ronnie Wood. Today, this timepiece exists: The Rolling Stones Automaton. Framed by a 43mm red PLANETARY AND IMMORTAL: THE ROLLING STONES AUTOMATON BY JAQUET DROZ BY CEO MIDDLE EAST STAFF TIMEPIECES The ultimate collector’s item that’s intimate and personal, imbued with priceless emotional value including a signed autograph by Mick Jagger FMARCH 2023CEOMIDDLE EAST49 TIMEPIECES Classic . The Zenith Defy A3690 was first launched in 1970 Retro piece. Defy Revival A3690 brings back all the details and design elements from the first-ever Defy wristwatch model including the tropical teal blue of the Defy A3690, as well as its warmer counterpart, the A3691 with its deep crimson red dial. Reproduced in stunningly accurate detail using the historical production plans, the Defy Revival A3690 brings back all the details and singular design elements that made the fi rst-ever Defy wristwatch model such an outstanding reference of its era; one which established the codes that continues to inspire the collection today. This includes a faceted octagonal case paired with a fourteen-sided bezel, a teal-blue dial with a prominent vignette effect that darkens towards the edges, unusual applied square hour markers feature horizontal grooves, and the now-iconic Gay Frères steel “ladder” bracelet, which has been updated with a more modern and ergonomic folding clasp. In fact, the only cosmetic differences between the Revival and the historical reference are the sapphire crystal, the display case back and the type of luminescent pigments. The water-resistance of 300 metres has also been maintained from the original, even with the addition of a display back. The other main difference beats away inside. Instead of the original’s solid case back emblazoned with a four-pointed star that became one of the brand’s logos and recurring design element for years, the Defy Revival A3690 features a sapphire display back showing the automatic Elite 670 manufacture movement, operating at a frequency of 4 Hz (28,800 VpH) and providing an autonomy of 50 hours. gold case, the Jaquet Droz craftsmen have reproduced the Stones stage set to perfection by hand. It notably features Ronnie Wood’s Fender Strat and double stack, the minimalist drums of the late Charlie Watts, and Keith Richard’s famous fi ve-string guitar, which has carved the most legendary grooves in rock and roll. These mythical grooves are also represented, with their original cover, in the form of six iconic albums from 1971 to present day. Each collector will be able to choose the covers of these albums. They will be reproduced by hand by the craftsmen of Jaquet Droz on a disc able to rotate, on demand, around the central stage. The rotation lasts about 30 seconds and can be operated eight consecutive times thanks to the push-piece inserted in the crown, at 3 o’clock. But that’s not all: the power reserve is indicated at 8 o’clock by a cam representing the articulated arm and the diamond tip of a vinyl record player. Just below, the iconic Stones logo moves up and down as the tongue simultaneously moves left and right. Faithful to its traditions, Jaquet Droz has devoted a wealth of creativity to bring this animated scene to life. The guitars and their amp are individually shaped by hand from a block of red gold, engraved then painted. The cymbals are made of a slightly curved gold disc in order to reproduce the precise curvature. Their stand is represented by a white gold wire. The various drum toms are also made of white and red gold wires, with a diameter from 1.2 to 2.3mm. The exact colour tone of each instrument, the tweed fi nish of the amp, the pickguard of the guitars, the tolex of the loudspeakers: every tiny detail, the slightest imperceptible refl ection, is painted by hand. Even Mick Jagger’s harmonica is reproduced, next to his microphone, in a block of gold measuring just a few 1/10ths of a millimetre. On the sapphire caseback, the red gold oscillating weight will be engraved with the name of the chosen by the collector from the 23 available to illustrate the image under the central stage – with its release date and the name of the studio where it was recorded, leading to a unique piece duly engraved “1/1”. THE ZENITH DEFY A3690 RETURNS Following last year’s return of the very fi rst Defy wristwatch model from 1969, the A3642, and the A3691 from 1971 during this year’s LVMH Watch Week, Zenith continues to bring back some of its most emblematically colourful references with the Defy Revival A3690. First launched in 1970, shortly after the introduction of the Defy wristwatch collection with its rugged “bank vault” case and daring dial design, the A3690 was among the earliest references to incorporate striking colours. Unheard of at the time, the brand was among the very fi rst brands to offer coloured dials with a marked gradient effect, from as early as the 1960s. In keeping with the evolving tastes of the time, the 1970s saw the Manufacture go a step further with more punchy colours, Information courtesy of the Federation of the Swiss Watch IndustryNext >