I recently took part in The EMS (Eric Miscoll Show), a biweekly panel discussion exploring all things manufacturing, and perhaps more specifically, all things EMS. This particular episode explored the topic of autonomous manufacturing and had two visionary founders and CEOs who believe that the next revolution in manufacturing goes way beyond automation to autonomy. Both startups are leveraging complex computational algorithms and AI to build autonomous manufacturing solutions, CloudNC for CNC parts and Launchpad for new products introduction, or NPI, in the electronics space. Much of the "revolutionary" talk over the last seven or so years has been around Industry 4.0 and the idea that connected factories using data and automation can substantially improve their performance, but to be frank, it has been way too much talk and not enough action. As Elvis Presly said, "a little less conversation, a little more action please!"

In the age of heightened climate-change awareness and an increasingly urgent transition to low-carbon energy, the days when oil companies such as BP could rely purely on fossil fuels and make their own commercial weather are over, according to the FTSE 100's group head of technology, David Eyton. "For a period of time, being just oil and gas was sufficient," he says. "Now it's not; the world is changing, thank goodness. Most nations are embracing sustainable energy and the array of businesses that we [BP] might participate in is expanding." The role of technology – and of heads of technology – is also changing, he adds.