Yesterday was National Inventors day in the US. Whilst I’m firmly on this side of the pond I must say, I like to think of myself as a bit of an inventor. Over the years I’ve been trying to think up great ideas to some of my modern day problems. Translator glasses were one of my first bright ideas, which came about from not being able to read signs in other countries. So I wrote it down in my notes on my phone in 2012, did nothing with it, and then realised it was already being developed in china in 2013.
However when 2013 came along (15th June to be precise – its in my notes) another spark of gold came
along when the idea of the double-ended phone charger was born. A simple cable that has two ends of the same port, which allows you to plug in to two mobile devices so you can essentially suck battery from one phone to another when it is running low. I haven’t done anything with this idea yet either, but watch this space!!
Today this got me thinking; it’s so amazing how many new products are developed every year. For example in 2014 around 2,100 patents were granted in the UK and about 65,000 were granted globally. These are big numbers, and it shows that the modern day inventor is out there and they are trying to make life easier for us, because that’s what its all about really isn’t it??
Whilst it’s well known that in the UK all the best inventions come from slightly mad people in their garden sheds, Cisco is also at the forefront of these new ideas. We help accelerate the growth of innovators and support start-ups through our innovation program, which consists of Cisco CREATE at the heart of research and development; Cisco BIG awards an IoE innovation competition and our post accelerator IDEALondon in Tech City.
We have had some great success stories from these businesses that have been given a kick-start from Cisco. For example our 2012 BIG award winner Jenny Griffith, CEO of Snap Fashion received investment from Time Inc. with her idea of a visual search engine for fashion. This just proves how you can have an idea, run with it and then turn it in to some successful.
Anything can be a good idea and it’s what you do with it that will determine if it’s a hit or not. Cisco is giving that opportunity to entrepreneurs and is helping to inject a depth of innovation into the UK, which is a success within itself.
Why not take a look here at the great things we’re doing to promote innovation at the edge and support the next generation of the UK’s finest entrepreneurs! or alternatively, if you’re a big time investor, feel free to direct message me…the double-ended charger idea is still up for grabs.
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