More than 200 leading figures from the technology and life sciences sectors came together to discuss a range of hot topics as leading national law firm Mills & Reeve hosted Question Cambridge Technology.
The main themes to emerge from the evening, which took place at the newly opened Granta Centre in Great Abingdon on Wednesday (9 September 2015), included threats and opportunities relating to big data; the increasing prevalence of technology in our day-to-day lives; how technology is challenging the norms of privacy; and the lack of resource in the sector due to the underselling of careers in technology and science.
The distinguished panel included Julian David, CEO of techUK; Harriet Fear, CEO of One Nucleus; Dr Sally Ann Forsyth, CEO of Norwich Research Park; Dr Andy Harter, CEO of RealVNC; William Reeve, Co-CEO of Hubbub and Sir Gregory Winter, Master of Trinity College.
Kevin Calder, head of technology at Mills & Reeve, said: “Cambridge is a huge success story, but still very much a work in progress. How do we ensure that the current growth can be supported and sustained? How do we attract and motivate the next generation of entrepreneurs and innovators? And critically, what does Cambridge need to do to ensure that our new developments take their rightful place on the world technology stage? Whilst we didn't come up with all the answers during our discussion, there was certainly plenty of food for thought.”
Ian Mather, head of the firm’s Cambridge office who chaired the conversation and is also Chairman of Cambridge Ahead, commented: “Twenty-three per cent of all Cambridge companies are technology businesses and their influence and responsibility to the city should not be underestimated. It was fascinating to have a number of the leading companies represented and discussing complex issues in an open and frank way.”
The event also included an exhibition featuring some of the top names from the Cambridge Cluster where guests could see for themselves some of the latest cutting-edge technology in action. The exhibitors included Aveillant, AVEVA Group, Cambridge Enterprise, Cranfield University, Darktrace, DisplayLink, Featurespace, Health Enterprise East, L2S2, MedImmune, Owlstone, Plextek Limited, Pragmatic Printing, Scientific Digital Imaging, Sentec Limited, Syndicate Room, The Institution of Engineering and Technology and TWI.