WT | Wearable Technologies Conference 2015 CANADA

September 10, 2015
MaRS Centre, Toronto

WT | Wearable Technologies finally came to Canada with the WT | Wearable Technologies Conference Series. The event was held in Toronto – one of the most vibrant cities for wearables right now.

For this event, WT | Wearable Technologies has partnered with MaRS Center to provide a wearable space for engineers, manufacturers, and start-ups. During the conference attendees created intelligent dialogue about innovative wearable solutions and the exhibitors showcased their latest developments.

HOTELS CLOSE TO THE VENUE – do not forget to ask for the MaRS District Discovery Rate.

Address of the venue:
MaRS Discovery District
101 College St
Toronto, ON M5G 1L7

Some impressions from WT | Wearable Technologies Conference 2015 CANADA

  • Zayn Zaffer, Best Buy Canada - Copyright: WTcdn15_billy lee @makingsenses

 

Speakers

  • Christian Stammel, Wearable Technologies

    Christian Stammel, Wearable Technologies

    Biography

    Christian Stammel is the founder and CEO of the – first of its kind – innovation and business development platform for Wearable Technologies (WT). As serial entrepreneur, Christian founded his first two companies during university. Since the mid-90s he has founded more than 10 companies in the fields of geo data, navigation, internet, open innovation and technology consulting with a proven success record.
    Currently he operates as CEO of Wearable Technologies AG and is a frequent keynote speaker on topics like IoT and beyond. His work enables multinationals and entrepreneurs alike to connect with forward thinkers, investors and most influential people within disruptive and converging industries. He developed the renowned open innovation platform Innovation World Cup Series through which he and his team support thousands of companies every year. As well-known supporter of companies of all sizes his brainchild Wearable Technologies is acting as a business accelerator for the entire WT ecosystem. As keen as he is about technology as passionate he is about surfing and snowboarding – always riding the biggest waves first.

  • Colin McCarthy, WiTricity

    Colin McCarthy, WiTricity

    Biography

    Colin joined WiTricity in 2012 and is a sales engineer with a focus on medical and industrial applications. He has worked within WiTricity to identify new markets and develop applications for its groundbreaking technology. Prior to joining WiTricity, Mr. McCarthy worked as an Electrical and Embedded Systems Engineer for a number of small companies and startups. Mr. McCarthy holds a Masters of Business Administration and a Bachelor of Science, with a major in Electrical and Computer Engineering, both from Worcester Polytechnic Institute.

  • Ashlyn Bird, Biosensive Technologies

    Ashlyn Bird, Biosensive Technologies

    Biography

    As a Co-Founder of Biosensive Technologies Inc., Ashlyn is an entrepreneur with a strong business background and a passion for fashion and fitness. She holds her Honours Bachelor of Commerce as well as her Masters of Business Administration (MBA) and also works as an Advisor to several innovation and technology-based startups. Ashlyn's expertise include entrepreneurial strategy, entrepreneurial resource management, business development, commercialization, marketing, communications, and leadership.

  • Chris MacDonald, TUV SUD

    Chris MacDonald, TUV SUD

    Biography

    Chris has worked for more than a decade in regulatory compliance and served globally diverse corporations including PTI Integrity (MKS Software) and Ingram Micro. He earned a BASc from the University of Guelph. Currently based in the Toronto area, Chris has spent time working abroad for TUV SUD in Europe (Munich, Germany) and Asia (Singapore, Shanghai). At TÜV SÜD, Chris MacDonald is part of the Canadian Regulatory services team, working primarily with companies headquartered in Canada.

  • Ben S. Cooper, VF Corporation’s Global Innovation Center

    Ben S. Cooper, VF Corporation’s Global Innovation Center

    Biography

    Ben is a product developer driven by the need to find practical solutions to real world problems. He is currently a member of VF Corp's Global Innovation Center, and co-leads the wearable tech exploratory group. Previously, Ben co-founded the "smart" infant monitoring start-up, Sensible Baby.

  • Dylan Horvath, Cloud DX

    Dylan Horvath, Cloud DX

    Biography

    Dylan runs Cortex Design, a product design firm and strategic partner with Cloud DX. Together we created Vitaliti, a medical-grade wearable competing in the $10M Qualcomm Tricorder XPRIZE competition. Dylan holds a BASc from Waterloo's System Design Engineering program (97), and has focused his career on forming the relationship between engineered technology and the end-user who benefits from it.

  • Mark Tanner, Movo

    Mark Tanner, Movo

    Biography

    Mark Tanner is the Co-founder and CEO of the consumer technology start-up, Movo. Mark received his B.A. from Princeton University where he majored in English. Before founding Movo, Mark worked at Google where he coordinated major sports partnerships for Google+ and YouTube.

  • Andreas Freitag, COBI of America

    Andreas Freitag, COBI of America

    Biography

    With a background as a digital concept developer and strategist Andreas Freitag held leadership positions at Germany’s most creative and innovative agencies, including Neue Digitale (now Razorfish), Jung von Matt and Heimat Hamburg. He earned Executive MBA degrees from the Universities of St. Gallen and Toronto and is an author, serial entrepreneur and the founder of PLOT, a leadership consultancy based in Palo Alto, California. Andreas joined COBI as President/CEO of COBI of America Inc. and is currently building a team in San Francisco to connect with North American users and partners in the bike and tech industries. As a former bike messenger and lifelong road cyclist Andreas is excited about the role COBI will play in bringing about a more bike-friendly America.

  • Michael Kravshik, GestureLogic

    Michael Kravshik, GestureLogic

    Biography

    Michael joined the GestureLogic team in 2013 after completing his masters in international affairs. He is a graduate of the Richard Ivey School of Business and is also a Chartered Accountant. Michael has worked in several industries through his roles as an auditor at EY, a risk management consultant at Protiviti, and an analyst at Scotiabank. As CFO at GestureLogic, Michael’s role is more expansive than finance alone. Michael is responsible for daily operations of the company, marketing and voice of the customer, business development, and more.

  • Jocelyn Dunn, HI-SEAS Mission III

    Jocelyn Dunn, HI-SEAS Mission III

    Biography

    Jocelyn Dunn recently served as Chief Scientist during an 8-month simulated Mars mission, namely the Hawaii Space Exploration Analog and Simulation (HI-SEAS), which is a series of NASA-funded missions studying crew cohesion and biopsychosocial adaptations to Mars-like, isolated and confined living conditions. During the recently concluded HI-SEAS mission III, Dunn utilized wearable technologies to collect data about the health and stress states of the simulated astronaut crew. In 2009, Dunn received the bachelor’s degree in aerospace engineering from Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, Daytona Beach, Florida, minoring in human factors and mathematics. In 2011, Dunn completed the master's degree in biomedical engineering from Purdue University with thesis on a patented biomaterial for tissue repair and replacement. Currently, Dunn is a PhD candidate in the School of Industrial Engineering at Purdue University, her doctoral research is focused on data-driven health monitoring and stress management.

  • Lyssa Neel, Linkitz Systems

    Lyssa Neel, Linkitz Systems

    Biography

    Dr. Lyssa Neel founded Linkitz in 2012 with the goal of inspiring young girls to explore tech and STEM careers. Her career spans AI research, healthcare IT, education technology, logistics, and investment. Neel earned her S.B. in Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, and her S.M. and Ph.D. in Computer Science, from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

  • John D. Ralston, X2 Biosystems

    John D. Ralston, X2 Biosystems

    Biography

    John joined X2 as CEO in November 2014, bringing 25+ years of experience spanning R&D, sales, marketing, and CEO (1 IPO, 5 M&A exits) in a diverse set of industries, including system-on-chip technologies, wireless communications, enterprise and consumer mobile applications, software-as-a-service (SaaS) platforms, and big data/analytics for the medical and smart grid industries.

  • Tom Emrich, We Are Wearables

    Tom Emrich, We Are Wearables

    Biography

    As a writer, consultant and community builder, Tom Emrich uses his passion for emerging technologies to act as a catalyst to bring on the future. He founded We Are Wearables, an organization that rallies the tech community together to discover, discuss and demo wearable tech in order to foster adoption and facilitate innovation in this space. We Are Wearables currently has chapters in Toronto, Ottawa and Chicago and is the largest community of its kind in the world. Tom writes regularly about wearables and other emerging technologies for MobileSyrup, BetaKit, Design News and Designers of Things. He also works with startups, and large organizations as an advisor and consultant offering assistance on product development, marketing and organizational strategy.

  • Vlad Dascalu, Pinch VR

    Vlad Dascalu, Pinch VR

    Biography

    By night, Vlad Dascalu is a futurist, perpetually pondering the implications of how technology will affect human behaviour, business and culture. By day, he is the Director of Marketing for Pinch VR - a smartphone case that transforms your mobile into a Virtual Reality headset. Along with the case is an app that lets you to experience content in an immersive space, allowing the user to basically 'step inside their phone'.

  • Lew Lim, Vielight

    Lew Lim, Vielight

    Biography

    Dr. Lew Lim translates photobiomodulation (PBM) or “low level light therapy” science into wearable devices under the Vielight brand. They are embraced by many practitioners to improve health and mental acuity. The products are subject to a placebo-controlled pilot study on Alzheimer’s disease - the early data are promising. He collaborates closely with Harvard and Boston Universities in research.

  • Zayn Jaffer, Best Buy Canada

    Zayn Jaffer, Best Buy Canada

    Biography

    As the Director of Merchandising for Emerging Business at Best Buy Canada, Zayn is responsible for developing the growth strategy for the categories of Wearable Technology, Smart Home Control, and Musical Instruments. Leading a team of merchants and product managers, Zayn is focused on driving key product launches, diversifying the product mix, optimizing the in-store experience and creating strong vendor partnerships.
    Zayn started his career at Best Buy Canada as the Senior Merchant of Laptops in 2005 and quickly grew through the ranks to become the Director of Merchandising in the business categories of Digital Imaging, Computing Solutions, Home Theatre, Home Audio and most currently Emerging Business. Most recently, Zayn’s strategic direction and steadfast leadership were integral in the successful execution of two of the biggest new category launches this year for Smart Home and Wearable technology. An avid sports fan, when he’s not hard at work, Zayn can be found playing or watching sports and cheering on his favourite Vancouver team – Go Canucks Go!

  • Paweł Karczewski, uBirds

    Paweł Karczewski, uBirds

    Biography

    I am a Biomedical Engineer, Extreme Sports Enthusiast and Traveler. As opportunist I am creating a new product that can connect tradition and innovation. As optimist I don’t see problems I see only challenges and as regular guy I want to do something cool that brings me a lot of satisfaction. For me Wearable Technology gives tons of possibilities to create products that will help everyone on a daily basis, increase their life standard and in the future even save life’s. This is how I see a future of Wearable Technology which I would like to co-create.

  • Brian Wynne, SharkStopper

    Brian Wynne, SharkStopper

    Biography

    Since early childhood, Brian was always fascinated with Sharks, the genetic marvels of the ocean. After reading about a series of shark attacks one day, Brian set out on a mission to find a way to repel sharks, without harming them. Mr. Wynne’s background in computer hardware technology assisted in developing his acoustic technology. His early career brought him employment at Standard Telephone, Inc. based in Deer Park, NY. At the age of 23 and because of his good interpersonal skills, Brian was given a management position. He was in charge of 15 electrical engineers and technicians. Brian eventually wanted to go to a larger company, so he applied to Wang Laboratories, Inc. Wang Labs hired Brian and he was given the title of Systems Analyst Manager. Mr. Wynne's job was to integrate Wang's software and hardware systems within the banking sector of New York City. Brian's group consisted of 7 system's analysts. Brian received an associate’s degree in data processing from the State University at Farmingdale, NY. After his associate’s degree, he attended the New York Institute of Technology at Old Westbury, NY. He majored in computer science. Brian Wynne currently holds 3 patents for his SharkStopper® technology and currently has a 4th patent pending for that same technology. In addition, there is a registered trademark for the name SharkStopper®.

  • Kibaya Njenga, Sulon Technologies

    Kibaya Njenga, Sulon Technologies

    Biography

    Kibaya Njenga is the Project Manager at Sulon Technologies, a tech start-up redefining the world of augmented and virtual reality. As Sulon’s first employee he has been integral to the development of Sulon’s flagship device, the Cortex. He holds a degree in electrical engineering from the University of Ottawa and a master’s in microelectronics engineering from Swinburne University of Technology.

  • Hani Abidi, Ollinfit

    Hani Abidi, Ollinfit

    Biography

    Hani Abidi is an inventor and co-founder of Ollinfit, a live fitness coach. He is motivated to help fitness enthusiasts stay fit through his entrepreneurial ventures. Hani received his Bachelor of Engineering degree in Electrical and Biomedical from McMaster University. He has over four years of engineering experience handling technical projects for a dental electronics company.

  • Tom Fowler, Recon Instruments

    Tom Fowler, Recon Instruments

    Biography

    Tom joined Recon in July 2012 and oversees our marketing and sales strategy. Before joining the team, Tom stewarded Cervelo Cycles’ explosive development as its corporate development officer and director of sales and marketing. Tom’s 25-year career has also seen him fill senior roles at Nike and Wilson Sporting Goods.
    Tom is a former professional triathlete, and he remains an avid rider, a passionate skier, and an accomplished mountaineer. He earned his BA in history from Middlebury College with a Dean’s List distinction.

  • Cindy Soo, Flex

    Cindy Soo, Flex

    Biography

    Cindy Soo has been consulting with Fortune 500 companies around the world, delivering world-class customer and user-centric XD strategies for boutique brands and multi-national corporations. As a visionary, Cindy defines new segments and sectors, identifying disruptive opportunities that drive brand loyalty and new product portfolio adoption. Employing a design-thinking approach, she leads multi-disciplinary teams in the Connected Living space, consulting on consumer and user research, trends research and analysis, and designing brand innovation strategies in areas that associate Wearable Technology with the ecosystems we live in.

    Cindy shares her experience and expertise at Wearable Technology and Design Conferences, Hardware Workshops, and at Fashion-Tech / Techno-Luxury events. She is a regular panelist at San Francisco Fashion Week, has been featured in a global UX Webinar, is a guest lecturer at The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, and leads seminars on Trends in this emerging space.

  • Sonia Strimban, Mars Discovery District

    Sonia Strimban, Mars Discovery District

    Biography

    Sonia is passionate about supporting the startup community in Toronto and enabling Canadian entrepreneurs to build and grow their disruptive, IT-focused ventures.
    Sonia has a strong background in client relations, project coordination, communications, and research and professional writing. Her work experience in a boutique consulting firm has exposed her to diverse industry sectors, including financial services, telecommunications, retail and professional Services.
    A long-time art enthusiast, Sonia is a dedicated volunteer with the Art Gallery of Ontario, where she is a Chair on the Volunteer Executive Board. Sonia is completing a post-graduate Certificate in Business Innovation Management at the University of Toronto, and holds an MA in English and Professional Writing, and BA from York University.

  • Wolf Richter, Epic Semiconductors

    Wolf Richter, Epic Semiconductors

    Biography

    Wolf is an inventor (150+ patents), serial entrepreneur, mentor and investor for disruptive technologies. In the business since 35 years, he is a frequent speaker in flexible and wearable electronic conferences around the globe. As a representative for EPIC Semiconductors, he will demonstrate a disruptive technology for wearable IoT: tiniest battery-free sensing chips, which harvest energy from the human body and communicate RF-free!

Contributors

Agenda

Thursday, 10th September 2015
09:30 Welcome and Introduction
  Keynote: Insights from a WT | Innovation World Cup Veteran Tom Fowler, Chief Marketing Officer, Recon Instruments
10:15 Enabling Wearables
  Wireless Power: Enabling the next-generation of wearable devices Colin McCarthy, Sales Engineer , WiTricity
  IoT-Dot as Implants Wolf Richter, CEO, Epic Semiconductors
  Path to a Quick Death: Design Lessons Cindy Soo, XD Director & Strategist, Flex Interactive Consumer Technologies Group, Flex
11:20 Coffee Break
11:40 Canada Special - elevator pitches from Canadian companies, moderated by Sonia Strimban
  Ear-O-Smart: The World's First Smart Earring Ashlyn Bird, Co-Founder, Biosensive Technologies Inc.
  Multi-Function Virtual Medical Device and Cloud Diagnostics Dylan Horvath, Product Design and Engineering Lead, Cloud DX
  Meet LEO: Fitness Intelligence Michael Kravshik, CFO, GestureLogic
  Wearables for Kids Lyssa Neel, Ph.D. Founder and CEO , Linkitz Systems
  Optimizing Mental Acuity with Light Energy Dr. Lew Lim, President & CEO, Vielight
  Mobile VR - The Key to Virtual Reality for the Masses Vlad Dascalu - Director of Marketing , Pinch VR
  Live Fitness Coach Hani Abidi, Co-Founder, Ollinfit
  Enhancing the Human Experience with Augmented and Virtual Reality Kibaya Njenga, Project Manager and Founding Team Member, Sulon Technologies
12:40 Lunch Break
02:00 Keynote
  Monitor Real Stress on Fake Mars Jocelyn Dunn, Chief Scientist, HI-SEAS Mission III
02:30 Best in Class Products and New Areas of Application moderated by Tom Emrich
  Making Wearables Wearable Mark Tanner, CEO & Founder, Movo
  World’s First and Only Acoustic Shark Repellent Brian Wynne, Founder , SharkStopper
  Connecting Tradition and Innovation, Fashionable Intelligence Paweł Karczewski, Co-Founder & CEO, uBirds
  Advances in Wearables Sensors for Head Impact Monitoring and Concussion Risk Assessment in Athletic, Military, and Industrial Environments John D. Ralston, CEO, X2 Biosystems
03:45 Coffee Break
04:05 The Greater Wearable Ecosystem and Beyond
  Smart and Connected Andreas Freitag, President / CEO, Cobi of America / iCradle
  Fashion and Tech: When worlds collide, great things happen Ben S. Cooper, Senior Manager, Research & Testing, VF Corporation’s Global Innovation Center
  Distributing an entirely new product group Zayn Jaffer, Director of Merchandising & Emerging Business, Best Buy Canada
  Making Your Life Easier and Your Products Safer Chris MacDonald, Sales Manager, TÜV SÜD
05:30 Get-Together