TechFirst with John Koetsier

Are WiFi, Bluetooth, massage, adjustable positions, and built-in speakers essential for a good night’s sleep? For the past few weeks, I've been sleeping in a adjustable position bed with more tech than my whole bedroom used to have. In this episode of TechFirst, we talk to Intellibed CEO Colin House about the $70 billion sleep industry, what technology matters (and what doesn't) and what works best for sleeping. Hint: According to House, it's different for men and women.

Today we're stuck at home. Wouldn't it be great to virtually wander the world in virtual reality? (At least until we can go out for real again!) In this episode of TechFirst we chat with Simon Che de Boer from New Zealand’s Reality Virtual, who took 4,000 photos in Queen Nefertiti's tomb and digitally reconstructed King Tut's mask.  They're working on technology to virtually re-create real physical locations, make them available to all, create ways for people and organizations to contribute to sort of a Wikipedia of virtual places, and tele-present us in more real ways than ever before. How? A ton of machine learning, generative adversarial networks, and a lot of computer. Graphics processing tech from Invidia helps, as did a big grant from Epic Games.

Just one health-care startup had 139,000 new doctors join and 1.35 million patients use telemedicine last week. Is this temporary or the evolution of a trend with staying power?   In this edition of TechFirst with John Koetsier, I chat with the CEO of Vonage, Alan Masarek.   Some of the increases he's seen:   - Total video traffic up 6.5x in last six months   - Total video traffic up just over 2x in the last 3 weeks of March   - Healthcare is specifically up more than 20x

Jeff Pulver created VOIP and founded the $3B Vonage. Now he's reinventing video, voice, and text communications online to fix security issues with Zoom and other platforms.   Is secure, private communication a complete pipe dream?   Jeff Pulver literally created VOIP. He also got the US government to issue the Pulver Order, which ensured that voice over IP was not restricted. Now he's working on a blockchain-based communications platform that could reinvent video, voice, and text communications online ... and make it much more secure.   We dive into the details ... along with what's happening with Coronavirus and COVID-19.

Mobile app spend in Q1 2020 was the highest in history. And mobile app use was up 20%. In this episode of TechFirst with John Koetsier, I talk about a story I just published at Forbes based on a new App Annie report. Lots of apps, especially social, education, business, and fitness, are up and to the right. But will this last?

Coronavirus is leaving our elders alone, lonely, and frightened. In this episode of TechFirst, we dive into the tech you need to stay connected.   I talk to photographer and technologist George Krieger about the tech he's set up for his dad, who built the Iomega Zip drive. It includes a remotely controllable PC, a camera, a TV that shows who he's talking to on a large screen, a wearable device called Tempo from Care Predict, an Echo Show from Amazon, and smart plugs to control lighting.   The result: much more peace of mind. Less stress for seniors, and much more connection and safe socialization, even when you're shut out of the care home thanks to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Instacart is getting record downloads. Uber and Lyft are seeing record lows. How is Coronavirus impacting the app economy? Will Coronavirus be the death -- or the savior -- of our digital economy? Welcome to TechFirst with John Koetsier.   COVID-19 is changing everything. When it comes to mobile apps, some industries are way up, and some are way down. With us today to discuss which is which is Adam Blacker from Apptopia.   Airlines are in tough. So are hotels, but the drops are not completely consistent. And Uber and Lyft are experiencing record lows for app installs and usage.  Delivery apps like Instacart, however, are way up, breaking download records every day for about four days straight. But ready-to-eat food delivery apps are down, Blacker says.

Is technology making us lonely, stressed out, insecure, and narcissistic? In this TechFirst with John Koetsier we dive into a 2,000-person study on the impact of technology and mobile devices on:   - mental health   - loneliness   - narcissism   - social isolation The news is not great ... I chat with futurist Nikolas Badminton and researcher Nick Black to go through their study.

Coronavirus is changing how we work ... most tech companies are now telling their employees to work from home.   Well, if you work from home, you need tools to do that.   One company says it’s going to offer a free productivity suite to everyone. Zoho created a product literally this week called Remotely, which it is offering for free for all.   We’re chatting with Raju Vegesna, the Chief Evangelist at Zoho.

What is it like to be living and working in China right now, during the coronavirus epidemic? What's different?   We chat with James Ren, who’s currently living and working in Beijing, China. He leaves his home every three days for food and hasn't seen his family for weeks, but he's trying to do business, meet clients virtually, and keep working through the crisis. What we talk about:  What’s the status in Beijing right now?  Are there any conferences that you’re planning to go to? Or, have they been canceled?  Are you restricting your movement? Meetings?  What information are you getting from medical authorities on what to do and what not to do?  How are you continuing with business?  What’s the impact on your business?  How long do you anticipate this continuing?