Joe Babiec Speaks at EUCI Conference on Blockchain, Energy Sector

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In October, VIA’s Joe Babiec, VP, Strategic Initiatives, was invited to present at EUCI’s conference: “The Blockchain Technology Revolution: Implications for the Energy Sector”. Hosted in New Orleans, the event welcomed thought leaders and decision makers from leading utilities and energy providers, local government agencies, research organizations, and technology companies to discuss business use cases of blockchain in the energy industry.

In his session, “Valuation of Utility Data Through Blockchain and Artificial Intelligence”, Joe discussed the ways customers are using VIA’s TAC application to reduce costs and monetize operational data in secure and privacy-protected ways. He explained how TAC’s blockchain-enabled smart contracting capability allows data owners and analysts to reach agreements with one another much faster than by traditional methods, and with the confidence that the terms of their agreement will be observed by all parties.

Fellow presenter Kristen Brown, a principal of technology innovation at Exelon, touched on implications of the transformation taking place in the energy industry. Specifically, she called on energy companies to embrace the transition from business models that prioritize “pipelines” to new approaches that emphasize generating value from “platforms” that connect energy providers and consumers in new ways.

For information on upcoming EUCI conferences, visit their website.

VIA’s Joe Babiec Invited to Speak at Cleantech Group’s Executive Summit

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In October, Joe Babiec, VIA’s VP, Strategic Initiatives, was invited to speak at Cleantech Group’s Executive Summit, “Blockchain in Energy & Mobility”. The summit, hosted in New York, invited top leaders in energy and blockchain to discuss the technical, commercial, and regulatory challenges of scaling blockchain-based applications within the energy industry.

Joe spoke on the opening panel, which focused on the value propositions and business models being used by innovating companies like VIA. He explained how VIA’s Trusted Analytics Chain (TAC) application generates revenue by helping energy companies reduce operations and maintenance costs, and by providing secure, private data access to external analysts. Joe also noted that TAC has an important advantage as a new product: unlike some future-oriented blockchain applications, TAC helps energy companies address challenges and opportunities they already experience, so using TAC allows companies to realize substantial benefits right away.

VIA is now engaging in a series of proof of concept pilots to confirm TAC’s evolution from a prototype to a production-ready application. The company plans to officially launch TAC in 2019.

VIA CEO Colin Gounden Gives Keynote Speech at Siemens, Intelligent Energi Event

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Earlier this month, VIA CEO Colin Gounden gave the keynote speech during an event hosted at Siemens’ Denmark offices. The Danish Intelligent Energy Alliance, Intelligent Energi, organized the event for its members. Intelligent Energi’s goal was to encourage dialogue between network companies, suppliers, and academics about opportunities and challenges to adapt to variable and renewable generation in the electricity distribution network.

Colin shared VIA’s AI and blockchain expertise, with a particular focus on its AI results to improve operations and maintenance and its Trusted Analytics Chain (TAC) application. One major topic of discussion at the event was related to the massive transformation that electrification is having (e.g., changing consumption due to electric vehicles and electric heat pumps). In particular, participants agreed that to ensure the reliability of the grid under new stresses like electrification and renewables, improved sharing of digital information and AI are necessities.

Colin Gounden Shares Expertise on Panel at Elemental Excelerator’s Interactive Event

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VIA’s CEO Colin Gounden was handpicked to speak on a panel, moderated by California Energy Commissioner, Carla Peterman, at Elemental Excelerator’s (EEx) Interactive Event held in San Francisco last week. The panel, titled “Energy’s Digital Grid”, touched on the ways data is changing electrical grid operations in terms of predictability and visibility.

Over 200 people were in attendance, including some of the world’s largest utilities, as Colin talked about the ways VIA is applying artificial intelligence and blockchain technology to reduce risks associated with the aging electrical infrastructure. EEx captured a memorable quote from Colin, which was shared to Twitter:

For more information on VIA’s involvement in the EEx program, visit their website.

Iberdrola Innoday Recap: “We rely on power for everything”

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In late May, VIA was invited to Iberdrola’s Innoday at its international campus in Madrid, Spain. The invite-only event was attended by over 600 people, with 25 companies showcasing the latest technology innovations to hit the energy industry. There were a number of technologies like drones for wind turbine inspection and AI solutions for the electrical grid being exhibited at the event.

CEO Colin Gounden attended Innoday and was the only participant to both be invited to speak on stage and give an exclusive video interview with Iberdrola. In the interview, Colin talked about the current state of the energy industry, how it will change over time, and the critical role VIA will play in the future of the energy. Check out the full video interview below, featured on Iberdrola’s website:

 

Colin Gounden Presents at FERC Technical Conference

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Colin Gounden, CEO of VIA, gave a presentation last week at the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) conference, “Increasing Market and Planning Efficiency and Enhancing Resilience through Improved Software.” This is the second time Colin has been selected to present at this invitation-only conference.

During his presentation, titled “AI for forecasting and resiliency in energy” Colin discussed the issues that limit AI learning to improve grid resiliency. These include too little data / signal, too much data, physically distributed data, and information privacy. His presentation focused on how VIA’s application, Trusted Analytics Chain (TAC), addresses these four common AI training data issues.

The three-day conference culminated with a final session with multiple speakers focused on the importance of data access and data sharing. There was widespread consensus from participants that improved access to energy data and modeling frameworks would allow faster and better analytical solutions. In particular, widening the scope for expert collaboration would have a dramatic impact on the quality of technical solutions that could improve grid resiliency and day ahead forecasting.

View the presentation slides:

For a copy of Colin’s presentation, please visit the FERC event page.

VIA Accepted into Top European Accelerator Program, Accelerace

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Somerville, MA – June 12, 2018 – VIA, a leader in solving energy industry problems using artificial intelligence and blockchain, has been accepted into Accelerace, one of Europe’s top seed accelerators, as part of their Cleantech program.

“I was excited to be in Denmark a couple weeks ago to kick-off our participation in the Accelerace program. Accelerace is a well-respected and very well-connected clean energy program that is already helping us expand our presence with energy companies throughout Europe,” said Jeremy Taylor, Chief Scientific Officer at VIA.

Accelerace is a Danish accelerator that offers five unique programs tailored to the needs of startups. VIA will participate in the Cleantech program for six to eight months. Through this program, Accelerace will provide assistance in establishing a corporate presence in Denmark, introductions to leading European utilities (such as Enel), and mentorship from experienced Danish entrepreneurs, cleantech executives, and industry experts.

“The European energy industry is going through one of the biggest transformations in history. We are rapidly moving from fossil fuels and nuclear to renewable energy sources. At the same time, the recent implementation of GDPR in Europe is requiring both privacy and transparency of personal information,” said Jes Nordentoft, Business Accelerator and Investor at Accelerace. He continued “VIA’s new blockchain application, Trusted Analytics Chain, is the only solution we’ve seen to help the industry securely collaborate on critical analytics problems. This is exactly what the energy industry needs during this transformative time.”

About VIA
Headquartered in Boston, Massachusetts, VIA is a mission-critical software company that enables organizations to share and analyze sensitive, distributed data at speed without compromising security or control. VIA’s decentralized architecture keeps data sovereign, while its agentic AI helps organizations solve critical challenges, and its military-grade security governs access. Designed for simplicity, rapid deployment, and disconnected, contested environments, VIA makes sensitive data usable wherever the mission happens, even offline. The Department of War, federal and state law enforcement, Fortune 50, and critical infrastructure companies around the globe trust VIA to help them solve their toughest analytics and digital security challenges.

About Accelerace
Accelerace is one of the world’s top 10 seed accelerators. Since 2008 Accelerace has spotted, trained and invested in more than 500 of the most promising Danish and international startups and growth companies. 88% of the companies are still on the market today. As part of the national Scale-up Denmark initiative Accelerace is scaling up startups within tech, foodtech, cleantech, life sciences & biotech and medtech & health care technologies through guidance and mentoring from skilled serial entrepreneurs, camps and network. Accelerace has invested in more than 69 promising startups, who have been through the Accelerace program and have started partnerships with Maersk, Novo Nordisk Foundation, Arla, Foss, NRGI, Business Lolland-Falster, Bang & Olufsen, SE, Endesa & Enel. Accelerace is also organizing the Nordic NOME (Nordic Mentor Network for Entrepreneurship) mentor network for life science startups.

VIA Wins MITX Best Technology Innovation Concept Award

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Somerville, MA – May 29, 2018 – The Massachusetts Innovation and Technology Exchange (MITX), the premier organization representing the digital marketing and technology community, last week announced the winners of the 22nd Annual MITX Awards, celebrating New England’s thriving tech innovation ecosystem. VIA accepted the award for Best Technology Innovation Concept.

The award recognizes VIA’s blockchain-based application, Trusted Analytics Chain (TAC), which currently has a patent pending. VIA developed TAC with its energy clients in mind: the application establishes secure access to highly sensitive data, which is one of the biggest challenges to widespread AI implementation across the energy industry.

Using blockchain technology and distributed learning, TAC ensures clients’ data remains on premise and completely anonymous, allowing multiple companies to anonymously pool sparse data to improve analytical outcomes. Additionally, TAC is able to securely allow AI experts to learn from many different, distributed data that has never before been available in the energy industry.

“The celebration is an annual exchange of ideas and connections with hundreds of the best and brightest minds showcasing the latest innovative technology and work shaping the future of customer experience,” said Amy Quigley, president of MITX. “There was some very tough competition this year, but it was a fun-filled evening with all who participated!”

Hundreds of organizations participated and were judged by an esteemed committee of industry experts on their submission’s value proposition, unique innovation, and results. Marketing Operations Leader Laura Montorio accepted this honor on VIA’s behalf at the ceremony hosted at Royale Boston.

VIA MITX Technology Innovation Concept

Every winner was allowed a five-word acceptance. Ours? “Guys, let’s take a selfie!”

VIA MITX Technology Innovation Concept

The event was MITX’s 22nd annual award ceremony, hosted at Royale Boston.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

About VIA
Headquartered in Boston, Massachusetts, VIA is a mission-critical software company that enables organizations to share and analyze sensitive, distributed data at speed without compromising security or control. VIA’s decentralized architecture keeps data sovereign, while its agentic AI helps organizations solve critical challenges, and its military-grade security governs access. Designed for simplicity, rapid deployment, and disconnected, contested environments, VIA makes sensitive data usable wherever the mission happens, even offline. The Department of War, federal and state law enforcement, Fortune 50, and critical infrastructure companies around the globe trust VIA to help them solve their toughest analytics and digital security challenges.

About MITX
Inspire. Connect. Provoke.
At MITX, we’re building valuable connections between the people and ideas behind technology and its impact on the future of customer experience, all to create a community that’s finding tomorrow’s solutions together. Celebrating 22 years of connecting tech and innovation professionals in New England, MITX is a dynamic community of more than 20,000 thought leaders and collaborators. MITX is headquartered in Boston, MA. For more information, visit http://www.mitx.org/.

VIA Joins NVIDIA Inception Program

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Somerville, MA – May 10, 2018 – VIA, a leader in solving energy industry problems using artificial intelligence and blockchain, is thrilled to announce that it has joined the NVIDIA Inception program, which is designed to nurture startups revolutionizing industries with advancements in AI and data sciences. This will support VIA’s AI solution and further develop its blockchain application through the use of GPUs.

“VIA is excited to be a part of the NVIDIA Inception Program. Simply put, AI would not be where it is today if it were not for the acceleration provided by GPUs. Blockchain applications, such as VIA’s Trusted Analytics Chain (TAC), will also require the type of computing power NVIDIA GPUs deliver and we are enthusiastic about adopting this technology in our development process,” said Jeremy Taylor, Chief Scientific Officer at VIA.

NVIDIA’s Inception program is a virtual accelerator program that helps startups during critical stages of product development, prototyping, and deployment. Every Inception member gets a custom set of ongoing benefits, from hardware grants and marketing support to training with deep learning experts.

About VIA
VIA helps energy companies across the globe realize the value of their data through AI and blockchain. Since 2016, the company has worked with the world’s largest utilities and government agencies on AI initiatives like predictive maintenance and contingency planning. VIA has developed a blockchain-based application, Trusted Analytics Chain (TAC) to help energy companies reduce the burden of preparing and sharing their data. TAC (patent pending) is the bridge that securely connects power company data, distributed across many locations, to potential AI solutions. Headquartered in Somerville, Massachusetts, VIA has been featured in Wired and Inc. Magazine for its leadership in technology innovation. For more information, please visit www.solvewithvia.com.

Colin Gounden on FutureTech Podcast: AI, Blockchain, and Global Energy Infrastructure

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VIA CEO, Colin Gounden, recently joined FutureTech (now Finding Genius) podcast host, Juliet Lemar, for a conversation about how VIA uses artificial intelligence and blockchain solutions to support the energy industry’s $100 billion a year efforts to maintain, upgrade, and improve energy infrastructure.

The US electric grid is one of the most complex man-made systems ever created. And at over 100 years old, its age has become a major liability for a nation dependent on electricity. Colin said, “When the internet goes out, it’s like going back to 1979. But if electricity goes out, it’s like going back to 1879.” Aging energy infrastructure carries an extremely high risk of failure that can result in power outages. VIA works specifically with electric utilities to help them predict and prioritize this risk.

“We’re at a moment in time when there’s a lot of pent up demand for improving and investing in infrastructure. Utilities can’t update all their equipment at once, so they want to know ‘Where do I start? How do I decide which transformer or transmission tower to replace first?’” Colin elaborated. Using VIA’s AI and blockchain solutions utilities are able to prioritize this risk, making the process of maintaining and upgrading infrastructure more efficient, safe, and cost-effective. Listen to the full podcast here.

VIA and ReconCraft Launch Groundbreaking NIST-Compliant Predictive Maintenance Initiative for US Military Vehicles

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Somerville, MA – April 27, 2018 – VIA, a leader in solving energy industry problems using artificial intelligence and blockchain, is pleased to announce that they have signed an agreement with ReconCraft to provide one of the first NIST-compliant predictive maintenance solutions for military equipment using its AI and blockchain technologies.

ReconCraft designs and manufactures innovative technologies to support US military marine vessels, submarines, and tactical vehicles as well as vessel fleets for law enforcement and emergency response teams. Through this partnership, VIA will predict risk levels to maintenance issues for vessel engines and power supplies. Historically, predictive maintenance using machine learning has not been widely implemented in US military equipment due to the distributed and classified nature of the data. Using VIA’s Trusted Analytics Chain (TAC) application, this data will remain distributed, private, and anonymous, making AI analysis possible across a fleet of vehicles for the first time.

“What makes this project particularly exciting is that we’ll be collaborating closely with ReconCraft to develop an application that meets the US military standard of data privacy,” said Dr. Jeremy Taylor, Chief Scientific Officer of VIA. He continued “TAC uses differential privacy as well as a NIST-compliant form of homomorphic encryption. This is a level of security that all US federal agencies should follow.”

VIA has developed AI solutions for the energy sector, where data collected from pieces of equipment like substations, transmission towers, and utility poles has similar confidentiality requirements.

Jonathan Hoflich, Co-Founder and Chief Business Development Officer at ReconCraft described the reason behind selecting VIA on this first ever initiative for the company: “Operational availability, readiness, and reduced lifecycle costs are key features of our vessel fleets. Adding advanced predictive maintenance algorithms to our boats is strategically aligned with our mission. VIA’s history of working with government agencies, their experience in predictive maintenance, and their data privacy approach made them our top choice for a partner. Through our joint efforts, VIA will further increase the operational readiness of ReconCraft boats during deployment and operations worldwide.”

About VIA
Headquartered in Boston, Massachusetts, VIA is a mission-critical software company that enables organizations to share and analyze sensitive, distributed data at speed without compromising security or control. VIA’s decentralized architecture keeps data sovereign, while its agentic AI helps organizations solve critical challenges, and its military-grade security governs access. Designed for simplicity, rapid deployment, and disconnected, contested environments, VIA makes sensitive data usable wherever the mission happens, even offline. The Department of War, federal and state law enforcement, Fortune 50, and critical infrastructure companies around the globe trust VIA to help them solve their toughest analytics and digital security challenges.

About ReconCraft
ReconCraft designs, develops, and manufactures multi-mission offshore, coastal, and riverine vessels up to 60’ feet for military, law enforcement, and commercial use. ReconCraft is founded and managed by former military operators with extensive experience in vessel operations, maintenance, and training. ReconCraft vessels are specifically designed for high duty cycles and in areas with little to no infrastructure and minimal maintenance resources. Operational Services include tactical boat operations, vessel maintenance, and law-enforcement training. ReconCraft’s headquarters is located in Boston, MA, while its vessels are manufactured at the Company’s West Coast facility nearby Portland, OR. ReconCraft has been featured in Inc. Magazine as the 205th fastest growing private company during the 32nd Annual Inc 500 review and recently received an award from the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) for their outstanding performance on a major DHS acquisition.

Pepper Hamilton Features Colin Gounden at Energy Blockchain Event

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VIA CEO Colin Gounden was a featured speaker alongside Scott Clavenna, Chairman of Greentech Media, at Pepper Hamilton’s Energy Blockchain event last week. Hosted at the firm’s Boston office, the event focused on current applications of blockchain in the energy industry as well as opportunities and obstacles facing further development of the technology. Colin’s presentation addressed how VIA is supporting utilities in their efforts to adopt these solutions.

VIA is developing a blockchain application, Trusted Analytics Chain (TAC), currently in beta testing. TAC will allow businesses to pool their data in order to improve analytical outcomes without having to physically transfer or aggregate the data. By moving the algorithm instead of the data, TAC ensures all client data remains on premise. Additionally, the application uses homomorphic encryption and differential privacy to keep client data secure and anonymous, which solves some of the key concerns utilities have about implementing AI solutions. To learn more about this and other solutions VIA provides, please visit our website.

Blockchain energy VIA

Scott Clavenna (left) and Colin Gounden both presented and led Q&A sessions about the growing opportunities for blockchain in energy.

blockchain energy VIA

Gounden spoke to VIA’s work supporting utilities’ adoption of AI initiatives.

 

VIA Unveils Refreshed Brand

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Somerville, MA – March 29, 2018 – VIA a leader in solving energy industry problems using artificial intelligence and blockchain, today revealed its newly refreshed brand. At the core of the refresh, VIA is updating “Via Science” to “VIA” and using “Solve with VIA” as the anchor to its brand. In addition, the company is releasing a new logo, a fully redesigned website, and an expanded social media presence to better reflect the company’s mission: solve its client’s biggest challenges.

“Since VIA was founded in 2016, we’ve made it our mission to change the way energy companies think about predictive maintenance, contingency planning, and other asset management and operational issues. In that time, both our team and technologies have evolved to better serve this mission, but our brand for the most part, remained the same,” said VIA’s Director of Marketing, Jackie Finn. She continued “Over the past six months, we held several company-wide brainstorming sessions and consulted with our most trusted partners to identify our core strengths and define exactly who we are as a company. These refinements are reflected in the refreshed brand we’re launching today.”

The idea that clients “Solve with VIA” was an ever-present theme over the past six months and ultimately inspired VIA’s newly designed logo. The new design visually represents the journey VIA takes with its clients from identifying a problem to finding a solution. In addition to the new logo, “Solve with VIA” inspired the full redesign of VIA’s website and the company’s recently launched Instagram account.

#solvewithVIA is also the official hashtag for VIA’s brand. Follow along on Instagram, LinkedIn, and Twitter for all company announcements.

About VIA
Headquartered in Boston, Massachusetts, VIA is a mission-critical software company that enables organizations to share and analyze sensitive, distributed data at speed without compromising security or control. VIA’s decentralized architecture keeps data sovereign, while its agentic AI helps organizations solve critical challenges, and its military-grade security governs access. Designed for simplicity, rapid deployment, and disconnected, contested environments, VIA makes sensitive data usable wherever the mission happens, even offline. The Department of War, federal and state law enforcement, Fortune 50, and critical infrastructure companies around the globe trust VIA to help them solve their toughest analytics and digital security challenges.

CEO Colin Gounden Interviewed by Inc. Magazine

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Colin Gounden, CEO of VIA, was interviewed by Inc. Magazine for the recent article “Why Millions of People Rely On This A.I. Startup to Keep Their Lights On.” Gounden discussed his process for recruiting top tech talent, particularly in booming fields like AI and machine learning:

“Everyone talks about technology and IT, but it’s people who create the technology and the IT. But how do you find, keep, and motivate people? That’s the biggest imperative for us.”

VIA tests candidates on problem solving, communication, and company culture compatibility during the interview process. This emphasis on the individual continues after they are hired. Gounden also cites VIA’s unique approach to feedback as key to employees’ ongoing development and motivation.

 

VIA Tech Talent

CEO Colin Gounden (center) with the VIA team.

 

Via Science Accepted into Elemental Excelerator Program

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Somerville, MA – October 19, 2017 – Via Science, Inc. today announced that they have been accepted into Elemental Excelerator’s 2018 cohort. As part of the program’s Demonstration Track, Via Science will receive up to $1M to further develop its new blockchain and distributed learning technology, alongside implementation partners.

“We’re thrilled that Elemental Excelerator has accepted us into their program. With their support, we will work with three new transmission and distribution partners on the development of our application,” said Colin Gounden, CEO of Via Science. “One of the biggest challenges when working with energy companies on AI initiatives is gaining access to sensitive data. Our blockchain technology will address these concerns by keeping data on premise and completely anonymous.”

“This was our most competitive application season to date. 450 companies took the first step to apply and only 12 were selected,” says Jill Sims, COO and Head of Innovation Deployment at Elemental Excelerator. “We saw a major trend in the application of machine learning and artificial intelligence to energy software. Elemental Excelerator is excited to have Via Science join our portfolio. We are looking forward to the long-term impact of their blockchain technology.” With an acceptance rate of less than 3%, Elemental Excelerator works with their global network of investors and energy industry leaders to identify key technology gaps that remain in the sector.

Elemental Excelerator’s global partners include Enel, National Grid, SK Gas, and several others. For more information, see their recent press release as well as an article published in Pacific Business News.

About Via Science
Via Science creates software applications that identify and prioritize risks to critical infrastructure using a combination of artificial intelligence, blockchain technology, and causal analytics. Headquartered in Somerville, Massachusetts, Via Science has developed its risk assessment algorithms in conjunction with some of the world’s leading companies and government agencies in energy and security. The company has been featured in Wired Magazine, The Wall Street Journal, and Forbes for its expertise in causal analytics software applications. For more information, please visit www.viascience.com.

About Elemental Excelerator
Elemental Excelerator helps startups change the world, one community at a time. Each year, we find 12-15 companies that best fit our mission and fund each company up to $1 million to improve systems that impact people’s lives: energy, water, agriculture, and transportation. To date, we have awarded over $22 million to 63 companies. What makes us unique? We co-fund, co-design, and co-develop projects and strategies that improve infrastructure and sustainably enhance communities. Our program is funded by a diverse coalition of utility partners, corporate partners, the U.S. Navy, the U.S. Department of Energy, state government, and philanthropic organizations. We are a non-profit created in collaboration with Emerson Collective. More information can be found at elementalexcelerator.com.