Thought Leaders in Internet of Things: John McDonald, CEO of CloudOne (Part 4)

Sramana Mitra: If you were to point to some open problems that you see out there that you think entrepreneurs should be digging into, where would you point them?

John McDonald: To answer that question, I will first tell you what I wouldn’t look to do. What I would not look to do is form yet another company that is trying to, in some way, provide what I would call a widget to the marketplace. What do I mean by that? Perhaps a piece of software, perhaps a chip or component where the hope is that if we form a company or project around building or prototyping that component, we can sell millions of them and monetize our company through the creation of widgets. I would say to you right now that the marketplace is flooded with companies that are trying to do that.

Frankly during the time of this interview, two or three new ones have probably been launched. Ultimately, there will be some winners in that space but the vast majority of those companies are likely to have a very difficult struggle in the marketplace finding a market for that component. The companies we are working with are seeking to figure out how to leverage their existing systems to be able to monetize data that they believe is already falling through their fingertips.

Now, where would you look? Each piece of data may or may not have value in and of itself. For instance, one of our companies that we work with is a company called Chamberlain. Chamberlain makes garage door openers, which you wouldn’t immediately think of as an Internet of Things device. Yet, it is, because that piece of data that I open my garage door with is, in and of itself, may not be very valuable. Taken in context with other pieces of data, it becomes very important such as correlating that data with a security system or another home automation device, or using it to signal the delivery person for the place you ordered dinner from.

There are a number things that you might dream up of application of that piece of data. Chamberlain is focused, as many companies are, in capturing and monetizing that data. Ultimately, that data needs to be correlated with other pieces of data to make it more valuable. Let me give you one other example to tell you what I mean before I share my suggestions.

Let’s say you’re driving down the road in your car. It’s late at night. Your car notices that you’re not keeping your lane as well as you used to a few hours ago. It thinks that it’s 3AM and that maybe, you might be tired. It also knows that in a couple of legs is a 24-hour Starbucks where they’re ready to serve you up your favorite Chai Latte. It also knows your payment information so it puts on a heads up display, “Would you like a double Chai Latte? Yes, no?” If you say yes, it sends your payment information forward and it orders that coffee drink for you. So you can pick up the drink without stopping and drive on your merry way.

This segment is part 4 in the series : Thought Leaders in Internet of Things: John McDonald, CEO of CloudOne
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