Here are three companies to watch. Companies that may change the way you compute and interact with the digital world. Two are in the Boston area and one is a bit further away.
One. Boston Power. Boston Power is making a rechargeable lithium ion battery which will hold a charge longer, last as long as your laptop three year life and contains far less toxic chemicals than existing batteries. The company is indeed located in the Boston area and is headed by a Swede (no relation though) Dr. Lampe-Onnerud who holds 15 patents and is proof that technical innovation is not a male preserve. Now that the FAA has banned spare lithium ion batteries from your airline carry-ons, a company with a new way of providing computing battery power is worth a look.
Two. This company is also headed by a woman and doesn’t yet have a name but is worth watching. Mary Lou Jepsen, the Chief Technology Officer of the MIT spawned One Laptop Per Child program and the developer of the laptop’s innovative screen display technology has left the organization to take her screen savvy to the commercial marketplace. Low power, high visibility and low cost are the hallmarks of the OLPC computer. Stay tuned.
Three. Russia. Okay, Russia is not a company. But in one of the more overlooked stories, Russia has now nearly completed orbiting a GPS satellite system which compares, competes and offers a non-U.S. alternative to the current GPS networks. With lots of oil money, lots of technology talent and lots of government incentive to be a world tech leader, Russia is now intent on being a leader in the deployment of IPV6, Internet 2 deployment. The U.S. better get serious about funding Internet 2 or it will be left one generation behind.