Author: Olivier Blanchard

April 12, 2021

Olivier Blanchard

Research Note

Why Microsoft’s $21 Billion IVAS XR Contract With The U.S. Army Is A Much Bigger Deal Than Meets The Eye

Futurum’s Olivier Blanchard covers by Microsoft’s $21 billion IVAS XR contract with the U.S. Army is a much bigger deal than meets the eye.

Digital Transformation

March 27, 2021

Olivier Blanchard

Research Note

AWS’s Amazon Lookout for Metrics Solution Uses Machine Learning to Automate Business KPI Monitoring

Futurum’s Olivier Blanchard covers news of general availability of AWS’s Amazon Lookout for Metrics solution, which uses machine learning to automate business KPI monitoring and real-time BI insights — which could translate into an attractive value proposition for AWS customers.

Cloud, Hybrid Cloud, Infrastructure, and Operations, Machine Learning

March 23, 2021

Olivier Blanchard

Research Note

Sevis Systems’ Trusted Caller ID Solution Aims to Restore Enterprise Control Over Broken Mobile Caller ID Experiences

Sevis Systems’ Trusted Caller ID solution aims to restore enterprise control over broken mobile caller ID experiences. Futurum’s Olivier Blanchard walks through Sevis’ Systems new offering and its value proposition of helping enterprises not only achieve significant operating cost savings within their contact centers, but also potentially deliver better customer experiences. “90% of unrecognized calls go unanswered, which is a serious operational problem for businesses (and especially enterprise-sized businesses) that need to get in touch with their customers. At best, the public’s reluctance to answer unidentified calls causes the number of call attempts made by enterprises to increase considerably, along with customer service costs. At worst, enterprises end up failing to contact their customers in a timely manner, resulting in poor brand experiences and lower customer satisfaction.”

5G, Communications Networks, Customer Experience

March 23, 2021

Olivier Blanchard

Research Note

Qualcomm, AMD and Gigabyte Break the PetaOperations Per Second Barrier for AI Inferencing

Qualcomm, AMD, and Gigabyte break the PetaOperations per second barrier for AI inference — which is a lot of AI muscle. With AI increasingly becoming the driving force behind the next generation of consumer experiences, this is exciting news.

5G, AI, Communications Networks, Processors, Semiconductors and Components

March 16, 2021

Olivier Blanchard

Research Note

The U.S. Tightens Restrictions on 5G-related Technology Sales to Huawei

The Biden administration’s tightening of restrictions on 5G related technology sales to Huawei could be seen as a move toward a more uniform application of prohibitions, rather than the prior administration’s more inconsistent application and management of restrictions against Huawei. For technology companies, there are pros and cons to this, which are covered here by Futurum’s Olivier Blanchard, along with what is likely ahead.

5G, Communications Networks

March 15, 2021

Olivier Blanchard

Research Note

Gogo’s Plan to Bring 5G Connectivity to Air Travel Scheduled For 2022

Futurum’s Olivier Blanchard discusses Gogo’s plan to bring 5G connectivity to air travel, scheduled for 2022. The promise of faster internet and more bandwidth in flight opens up a solid opportunity for Gogo to reframe the value of in-flight connectivity.

5G, Communications Networks

March 15, 2021

Olivier Blanchard

Research Note

$100 Billion High-Speed Broadband Bill Reintroduced by Rep James Clyburn Aimed at Closing the Digital Divide

The $100 billion high speed broadband bill reintroduced by Rep James Clyburn is aimed at closing the digital divide. This is both timely and significant, as the FCC estimates at least 21 million Americans currently may not have access to high speed internet, including as many as 1 in 4 rural households and 1 in 3 households on tribal lands. This puts students and workers in those areas at a severe disadvantage through no fault of their own. That is the digital divide that H.R.1783 aims to correct over the next five years.

5G, Communications Networks

March 10, 2021

Olivier Blanchard

Research Note

T-Mobile WFX Unlimited 5G Plans Take on Verizon and AT&T in The Enterprise

With the launch of T-Mobile WFX unlimited 5G plans, it’s clear that T-Mobile is taking on Verizon and AT&T in the enterprise. Futurum’s Olivier Blanchard walks through the T-Mobile offering and T-Mobile’s clear move to take this opportunity to reduce friction and provide businesses with a relatively pain-free alternative and an enterprise-grade unlimited data plan.

5G, Communications Networks

March 8, 2021

Olivier Blanchard

Research Note

Qualcomm’s Snapdragon Insiders Program Launch Puts Snapdragon Brand Front-and-Center

Qualcomm’s Snapdragon Insiders Program puts the Snapdragon brand front and center in a clever initiative that might well make the Snapdragon brand a household name among the hundreds of millions of technology enthusiasts whose devices are already powered by the Snapdragon platform.

5G, Processors

March 5, 2021

Olivier Blanchard

Research Note

European Smartphone Market Down 14% YoY in 2020, Xiaomi and Oppo Appear To be Gaining on Samsung

The European smartphone market is down 14% year over year in 2020, and Xiaomi and Oppo appear to be gaining on Samsung. Futurum’s Olivier Blanchard takes a look at the numbers, the market, and what’s ahead.

5G, Communications Networks

March 4, 2021

Olivier Blanchard

Research Note

What Voice Assistants Trained to Understand Atypical Speech Mean to The Future of Work

As remote collaboration continues to become the new bedrock of digital collaboration, voice-processing technologies are increasingly embedding themselves in the very platforms that organizations depend on for those types of communications. Improving the accuracy of voice-processing technologies by applying lessons learned from adapting to atypical speech will have significant impact across the board. Futurum’s Olivier Blanchard takes a look at what voice assistants trained to understand atypical speech mean to the future of work as well as a dive into some of the projects currently underway.