From poles and wires to AI and VR

This session focused on how Google and Microsoft are thinking about the energy industry and offered predictions about how their companies are poised to change the utility sector.

 

After this session, we asked Hannah Bascom from Google and Vikram Singh from Microsoft a few questions about their presentations. Check out their video responses below.

Hannah Bascom, head of energy partnerships, Google

Our questions for Bascom:

• How can utilities create a digital-first experience and treat their customers as an asset? (0:11)
• Utilities tend to “start small” with pilots projects. How can they increase the speed of decision-making? (1:15)
• How can utilities serve large customers like Google who have aggressive energy goals? (2:15)

Vikram Singh, head of utility partnerships, Microsoft

Our questions for Singh:

• Is technology divisive or inclusive? What can technology enable within a utility? (0:11)
• Should utilities be working with adjacent partners? (1:10)
• What’s the value of being trustworthy with cloud-based technologies? (1:52)