From data science and artificial intelligence to augmented reality and virtual reality, Milwaukee-area technology leaders shared how they're leveraging emerging technologies during a virtual panel discussion Feb. 18 at United Way of Greater Milwaukee & Waukesha County's Technology United CIO Forum.
The Milwaukee Bucks leverage spatial analytics to help the team analyze competitors and prepare for upcoming games, the team's chief technology and strategy officer Robert Cordova said.
"Every NBA arena records the position of every player during the game and the basketball 20 times per second," Cordova said. "How you slice and dice that spatial analytics really becomes the secret sauce."
Additionally, the Bucks are planning to set up a private cellular network for fans to use within Fiserv Forum, which will also enable the company to capture information about those fans, Cordova said.
Molson Coors Beverage Co. is using AR and VR to help train new talent through computerized work processes, checklists and AR-enabled remote support, Molson Coors Beverage Co. chief information officer Darrin Vohs said.
"The amount of automation in our operations is rapidly increasing, and we're not going to be able to train all of our people on how to use all those things," Vohs said. "The ability to get rapid support in the facilities I think is critical."
Vohs added that Molson Coors previously outsourced a large portion of its technical work but is now hiring more technical talent in-house because outsourcing isn't "nimble or agile enough," he said.
Molson Coors also has a three-person emerging technology team that works with universities, private equity groups, and internal research and development teams to bring and vet new ideas, Vohs said.
American Family Insurance is "in a race to dominate in terms of data," the company's chief information security officer and head of technology operations Sheldon Cuffie said. For instance, it's looking to leverage information from car manufacturers to properly price auto insurance based on risk, he said.
The Madison-based insurance company partners with the University of Wisconsin-Madison and car manufacturers like General Motors in order to expand its data science capabilities, Cuffie said.
Additionally, American Family Insurance is using artificial intelligence for home insurance pricing based on property inspections and roof scoring, and deploying drones to fly over claim sites to get rapid imagery, Cuffie said. It's also trying to understand how the rise of electric vehicles will impact the future of insurance, he added.
Cuffie emphasized the importance of involving "non-techies" within companies by helping them learn and understand new technologies.
"We're not doing tech for tech's sake, we're doing it to really help our companies grow and evolve," Cuffie said. "Many of the technologies — whether it's augmented reality, immersive or virtual reality — these are going to drive literally billions and trillions of opportunities over the next five to 10 years."
