Emerging Technologies and Entrepreneurship in IT
Emerging Technologies and Entrepreneurship in IT tests whether you can explain current technologies in plain terms and apply startup thinking to a digital idea. Expect matching of technologies to uses, plus basic validation, cost and risk questions.
Core rules and concepts
- Artificial intelligence enables machines to perform tasks such as classification and prediction; machine learning learns patterns from data. AI output still needs human verification.
- IoT connects sensors and devices to networks. Cloud computing provides on-demand computing, storage and services. Big data involves high volume, variety and velocity.
- Blockchain is a distributed ledger designed to make records tamper-evident; it is not the same as cryptocurrency. AR overlays digital content on the real world; VR creates a simulated environment. RPA automates repetitive rule-based tasks.
- Entrepreneurship starts with a problem worth solving. Validate demand with interviews or a small test, build a minimum viable product (MVP), measure use, then improve.
- Basic financial thinking includes revenue, fixed and variable costs, break-even and cash flow. Protect original work through appropriate intellectual-property routes.
Worked example
A student proposes an app connecting local repair shops with customers. Before coding, run 20 customer interviews and create a simple landing page describing the service. If 10 people request a repair and 3 shops agree to respond, the team has evidence of two-sided demand. Build a small MVP with one locality, one service category and manual matching. Reasoning: this tests the riskiest assumptions cheaply before spending on a large app; manual matching reveals whether shops respond reliably.
Traps that cost marks
- Treating blockchain as another word for cryptocurrency.
- Assuming AI is always correct or needs no data.
- Equating funding with business success.
- Building a full product before validating that customers will use or pay for it.