Digital Innovation – Key Element in Coping with Next Global Crisis
This post is also available in: 
עברית (Hebrew)
The global COVID-19 crisis is still at heightened levels, however, some organizations are already looking to technological innovation to reduce the impact of a future pandemic. A recent report by the US Information Technology and Innovation Foundation (ITIF) suggests that policymakers should direct stimulus money toward digital technologies, as a policy.
ITIF, an independent, nonpartisan research and educational institute, lists some 30 different stimulus proposals in various fields. “It is not clear whether COVID-19 is a rare 100-year event or the new normal,” the report read. “Regardless, policymakers should err on the side of caution, and act as if it is the latter.”
The report stresses the need for individuals and organizations to have the technological means to maintain physical distance and continue working.
Internet access is a key limitation for many areas in the United States, so the authors call for greater support from the federal government, including a new broadband deployment fund, the allocation of more spectrum for 5G, according to govtech.com.
Interested in learning more about digital innovation? Attend i-HLS’ InnoTech Expo in Tel Aviv – Israel’s largest innovation, HLS, and cyber technologies expo – on November 18-19, 2020. Meet InnoTech’s steering committee
The report suggests accelerating emerging technologies, such as autonomous vehicles and artificial intelligence, that can enable greater physical distancing and reduce human intervention. The most dramatic proposal is investing $5 billion a year to create an “Apollo-like program” for robotics.
“Robotics are the ultimate in physical distancing, as they do not get sick,” the report said. “Robots could help deliver food and tests to patients in hospitals. They could help care for the elderly in nursing homes. They could administer tests such as throat swabbing and taking people’s temperature.”
Other substantial policy recommendations revolved around the collection or use of data to track how a pandemic spreads. The authors advocate for a “globally competitive smart-cities program and national Internet of Things (IoT) strategy” so that cities can better gauge how people’s behavior changes and how services should be managed during a pandemic.
One education-specific proposal would expand the free and reduced lunch program so that schools can purchase devices for qualifying low-income children. Schools should be reimbursed for providing “Wi-Fi hotspots or wired broadband installation kits” to students.
Some of the proposals emphasized ways to make transactions more digital to help the economy stay afloat and prevent the probability of illness spreading through physical contact. For example, offering electronic IDs to citizens to facilitate online transactions, such as contract signings.
Related measures called for new federal standards in regard to electronic health records and government data in general.
Attend i-HLS’ InnoTech Expo in Tel Aviv – Israel’s largest innovation, HLS, and cyber technologies expo – on November 18-19, 2020 at Expo Tel Aviv, Pavilion 2.
