Every Monday morning we fire five questions at a C-suite technology industry interviewee. Today we’re pleased to be joined by digi.me CEO Julian Ranger
Biggest Challenge for your Clients?
We try to show both consumers and businesses that there is far more to be gained by returning all personal data into the hands of the individual. This is an easy discussion with individuals who are concerned about their personal data security, but businesses often fail to immediately grasp the potential.
For many businesses, it is hard to shake the belief that the choice is either poor data without privacy, or no/little data with privacy – but that is not so when there is a shift to personal data ownership. Once clients realise that there is an opportunity to access more customer data, with privacy, security and consent built in, the challenge then becomes how to integrate that potential into their existing business.
Technology that Excites you Most?
All technologies related to decentralised data ownership where the individual owns their data; and technology that brings processing to the data, rather than always sending data to processing at each company. This includes federated AI and other edge technologies. This is truly the next step in personalisation of the internet, otherwise known as the Internet of Me. I’ve even gone so far as to have a microchip installed into my hand which holds my identification details and home address – when the technology advances I will be first in line for an upgrade.
Greatest Success?
Being able to achieve my three childhood dreams. I wanted to work in aviation; I got an Aeronautical Engineering degree and worked in military aviation for 20 years.
I wanted to travel the world; I travelled a lot with my first business, but was also able to take two years off in my early forties and travel all over the world with my youngest daughter and my wife.
I wanted to go to space; I bought my Virgin Galactic ticket in 2007 and am 12-18 months away from going up … I think.
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Worst Failure?
I had an idea for a business that would produce my life catalogue, index it and enable me to message and share it with anybody. Development cost me a lot of time and effort, and we found that the idea was way ahead of the technology available.
The concept was also far too expansive an idea to easily sell. Even though we eventually managed to produce working versions to show to potential investors, I had to close the business – a hard lesson.
In another life I’d Be…
An astronaut exploring the reaches of space – or inventing wormhole technology.
See also: 5 questions with Caroline McGuckian, CEO at Meshh
