Pictured above: ANGOKA Executive Chairman Steve Berry with The Rt. Hon. Conor Burns, Minister of State for Northern Ireland.

ANGOKA were very pleased to participate in Digital DNA 2021 this year, a flagship Belfast event. Held in the historic St. George’s Market, the two-day event was well-attended and featured a plethora of innovative and exciting Northern Irish companies.

As a Belfast-based company, we were pleased to be among the businesses highlighted by this event, and were honoured to be able to share our expertise across two highly successful panels and an informative breakfast workshop.

The first of the panels, titled ‘Four perspectives on connectivity: data, mobility, society and the economy: how can we unlock the potential of all four together?’, was moderated by Daniel Ruiz (Director, Smart Cities & Mobility, ANGOKA). The panel was comprised of speakers from across sectors in Northern Ireland: Adrian Johnston (Digital Catapult), Mike Dawson (Belfast Harbour), Mark Gillan (Belfast Digital Innovation Commissioner), Mark Gibson (BT) and Dan West (Department of Health NI). The conversation focused on how Belfast, and Northern Ireland generally, has great potential to work as a test-bed, or living lab, to innovate and trial various Smart City solutions. Great emphasis was put on the need for collaboration across businesses, government and universities and other research institutions. Furthermore, the panellists stressed that by focusing on one or two initial key use cases, Belfast could really make a global mark as a Smart City living lab.

The second panel, hosted by Shadi A. Razak (CTO, ANGOKA), focused on ‘Building a Smart Belfast We Can Trust’ by harnessing the power of IoT and 5G, and making sure these emerging technologies are secured. This panel was comprised of industry and legal experts: Hugh Kirk (Allstate NI), Peter McToal (Northern Ireland Technology Centre), Joe Dolan (Northern Ireland Cyber Security Centre) and Paul Eastwood (Tughans). Key themes that emerged from this panel were the need for collaboration across businesses, which is complicated by the proprietary nature of most cybersecurity solutions, as well as cooperation and buy-in from government and regulatory bodies both in Northern Ireland and across the United Kingdom. Especially as IoT and 5G technology is growing and changing more quickly than regulations and security solutions can keep up, it is necessary to implement security-by-design principles now – otherwise, businesses, industries and governments and regulators will always be trying to catch up to cyberattackers. 

Pictured above, from left to right: Steve Berry, Executive Chairman, ANGOKA; Kate Nicholl, Lord Mayor of Belfast; Shadi A. Razak, CTO, ANGOKA; Daniela Menzky, COO, ANGOKA

Finally, ANGOKA hosted a highly successful Breakfast Workshop, inviting guests from industry, government and other Northern Irish institutions to discuss the potential benefits and challenges in creating a living lab in Belfast. The extremely productive session sparked several interesting conversations, and participants agreed that Belfast is a city with unique characteristics that make any living lab trials possible and, eventually, transferable and scalable to other geographical settings.

Our stand was also well-attended, with a live demonstration of our technology drawing in many visitors. We also hosted a challenge, the results of which will be announced next week, so watch out for our announcements on our LinkedIn and Twitter!

The ANGOKA team are pleased to have made the most of Digital DNA 2021, and are looking forward to further engaging with the vibrant Belfast ecosystem in the future.