As interesting as the “Internet of things” trend may be, the buzzword has been a bit overused in recent times, often covering a hype-ridden collection of half-baked predictions and musings of where society is heading.

However, the notion that all “things” will eventually be “connected” is becoming a reality, with Internet-enabled thermostats, smoke alarms, and even kettles edging deeper into our everyday lives.

Image: http://venturebeat.com/ 

How do innovators transform new machines, molecules, and even melodies into multi-billion dollar value innovations - and break the rules of standard marketing in the process?

In March 2014, I gave an interview in Palo Alto that sheds some light on these questions through the lens of my own research on market creation and customer experience design.

The next major technological advancement poised to dramatically impact our personal and professional lives is The Internet of Things. According to author Patrick Tucker in his book The Naked Future: What Happens in a World That Anticipates Your Every Move?, we can expect to have 50 billion internet connected devices by 2020.

image: http://www.freedigitalphotos.net 

I recently had a client discuss their goal is to be one of the top sales people at their Fortune 1000 company. That’s not bad idea, but it’s thinking very small.

I said, “So would you rather be the best sales person in your company or your industry?”

I got back the obvious answer. And it was a big wake up call for my client. She knew she was missing the real opportunity.

Ask yourself…

Let’s face it: most big companies are bad at innovating. While there are always outliers -- Google and Amazon come to mind -- innovation at blue chips tends to be the exception, not the rule. What’s more, when innovation at large companies is realized, it’s often achieved by acquiring smaller, nimbler firms rather than via in-house, organic growth.

Tools can be simple or complex, but at their core, they're meant to be a solution to a particular problem. A knotted ball of Indian hemp, for instance, might seem completely different from a mechanical clock, but each represents one culture's attempt to keep track of time. From knotted time balls to modern iPhones, 175 tools tell the story of human ingenuity and innovation spanning nearly two million years in the Cooper Hewitt exhibit Tools: Extending Our Reach, on display through May 25, 2015. The exhibit is part of ten inaugural exhibits and installations that mark the museum's reopening December 12 after three years of renovation. 

Image: http://www.smithsonianmag.com/ 

If you’ve ever been told to "just sleep on it," you may have considered the platitude a thinly veiled attempt to avoid giving any real constructive advice. But what if this was, in fact, the best suggestion you could receive when trying to solve a problem?

It turns out, there are ways to hack into our brains as we sleep to come up with creative solutions.

Portland, Oregon, may not be a coastal city, but if all of the world's ice sheets melted, it would still end up mostly underwater. In a new series, Seattle cartographer and urban planner Jeffery Linn mapped out what Portland and several other cities would look like with maximum sea level rise.

Each map includes newly named islands and bays, like the "Chula del Mar" in San Diego. In L.A., the city of Downey has become "Drowney," and the airport is "Ex-LAX." The map also notates where landmarks like Disneyland and the Miracle Mile would end up in the newly formed bay.

Image: http://www.fastcoexist.com/ 

Alright, folks, the Christmas holidays are coming.

It's time to go back home and tell your friends and family how this accelerator of yours feels like.

Because let's face it: ever since you set foot on this foreign ground, your live hasn't been quite the same.

In a nutshell, here's what you've been up to lately:

It’s not every day I get to duck around protesters on my way to a demo day, but it’s to be expected on UC Berkeley’s campus.

On Tuesday night, Free Ventures, a year-and-a-half old student incubator on Berkeley’s campus, held a demo day for its third batch. There were only six startups, and the whole event fit into a small auditorium, but in a way, it was a pivotal moment not only for Free Ventures, but also for the university’s startup community.

Startup accelerator Techstars has launched a post-accelerator program, called Techstars++ that provides exposure for entrepreneurs who have completed the Techstars accelerator. Techstars’ launch partner is Mayo Clinic.

Post-accelerator startups can use the Techstars++ network to spend time learning from and engaging with a corporate partner.

Image: http://mobihealthnews.com/ 

If you never start, you’ll never have a chance to fail. But you’ll never have a chance to succeed, either.

So stop pretending you haven’t failed by not trying. Stop procrastinating and go for it. Your dilly-dallying around, your excuses, your poking, playing, puttering and loafing about aren’t fooling anyone. Procrastination is fear cloaked in nonchalance.

As entrepreneurs we know life is often a roller coaster with lots of uncertainty and chaos. When you’re in the struggle, it’s tough to see a clear path to success, but it’s crucial to let your vision guide you, not your current circumstances. You must embrace those challenges, because that’s where your hunger for a better life is developed.

Healthcare giant McKesson Corp. plans an aggressive move into venture capital funding for healthcare technology, expecting to commit several hundred million dollars to the effort over the next five to eight years, and hiring long-time venture capitalist Tom Rodgers as managing director of strategic venture capital operations.

image: http://www.freedigitalphotos.net 

Program Purpose The New York State Innovation Venture Capital (NYSIVC) Fund is a seed stage and early stage venture capital fund with up to $50 million to support and attract new high-growth businesses. The NYSIVC Fund will provide critical funding to promote the commercialization of new technologies, incentivize economic growth and encourage job creation across NY State.  

The European Commission has adopted a new Technology Transfer Block Exemption Regulation (TTBER) and new Technology Transfer Guidelines for the assessment of technology transfer agreements under EU antitrust rules with effect from May 1 2014. Although the TTBER provides for rather substantial restrictions on the stipulations in technology transfer agreements compared to the former TTBER 2004, many of the modifications that were laid down in the first drafts (such as adaption of the market-share thresholds) did not subsequently enter into force. The main changes introduced by the new TTBER are discussed below.

Albany, N.Y. (AP) -- The Cuomo administration awarded a new round of grants and tax credits to companies for projects expected to create jobs throughout New York State. As part of the are part of the Regional Economic Development Awards, the Finger Lakes region, of which Rochester is a part, was awarded $80.7 million, which will support 100 projects. Here are some of highlights of these projects awarded economic development funding in Round IV include:

image: http://www.freedigitalphotos.net 

Once someone learns that I’m an entrepreneurship professor, sooner or later I’ll be asked: “Can you really teach entrepreneurship?” This seems to come from the long-held – and consistently disproved – belief that entrepreneurs are special and if you aren’t born that way (props to Lady Gaga), there’s no point in trying. So let’s get that out of the way right now. Yes, entrepreneurship can be taught and learned, and entrepreneurs are just like the rest of us.

Image: Simple exercises like a bake sale can help people develop an entrepreneurial mindset, says Stewart Thornhill. CREDIT FLICKR 

With all the news about Silicon Valley startups, you could get the idea that entrepreneurship is thriving in the United States.

The reality is U.S. entrepreneurship has been in a pretty steep decline for 30 years. The Next Idea team got to wondering about that. So, we asked Stewart Thornhill to write an essay about entrepreneurship. He’s a professor who teaches entrepreneurship at the University of Michigan.

Image: Credit xianrendujia / Flickr 

The computer scientist credited with inventing the World Wide Web says affordable access to the Internet should be recognized as a human right, as a report showed that billions of people still cannot go online and government surveillance and censorship are increasing.

Image: EPA/ANDREJ SOKOLOW