Data is the lifeblood of any business. Today, big data has applications in just about every industry -- retail, healthcare,financial services, government, agriculture, customer service among others. Any organization that can assimilate data to answer nagging questions about their operations can benefit from big data. Those who work to understand their customers' business and their problems will be able to proactively identify big data solutions appropriate to their needs, and thus gain competitive advantage over their competitors. Job demand for people with big data skill-set is also in the rise especially professional, scientific and technical services; information technology; manufacturing; and finance and insurance; and retail.

A blockchain-driven platform wants to reduce the influence that biased shop assistants and product marketers have on consumers in the skincare industry, and instead create an ecosystem where shoppers can receive expert, impartial advice from qualified dermatologists. Opu Labs says consumers are currently overwhelmed with an avalanche of information online and believes they are not getting the service they deserve. For the millions of people out there with skin conditions, it's often difficult to find the right treatments to cosmetically and medically deal with their complaints. The company believes that artificial intelligence (AI) and big data holds the key to making shoppers better informed – helping them to save money and dramatically reduce the amount of time they spend researching which products to buy. One of the centerpieces of the start-up's offering is Opu AI. Here, users can upload an image of their face which will be analyzed for redness, wrinkles, hyperpigmentation or acne across four specific regions.