Episode Transcript
[00:00:06] Tamlyn Shimizu: Welcome to Smart in the city, the BABLE podcast, where we bring together top actors in the smart city arena, sparking dialogues and interactions around the stakeholders and themes most prevalent for today's citizens and tomorrow's generations.
I am your host, Tamlyn Shimizu, and I hope you will enjoy this episode and gain knowledge and connections to accelerate the change for a better urban life.
Smart in the city is brought to you by BABLE Smart Cities we enable processes from research and strategy development to co creation and implementation. To learn more about us, please visit the BABLE platform at BABLE Smartcities EU.
[00:00:45] Tamlyn Shimizu: So today I'm here at Green Cities moving in the beautiful city of Malaga, Spain. We are official media partners at the event, so I'm sitting down with some of the stakeholders getting all the intel on what they're working on. While the event has a large focus in Spain, it's beginning to internationalize more and bringing more dialogues from Spain to Europe. So that's where we come in with the media partnership. And so we're here at green cities trying to spread these learnings from projects in Spain to other parts of the world. So here to present there are very interesting use cases is a startup inside the catalog of Telefonica, which is one of the largest telecommunication companies in the world. I have with me two lovely gentlemen sitting across from me here.
The first one I'll introduce is Reno Bellini. He's a CMO at Synapsis Tech Digital Solutions.
[00:01:35] Rino Bellini: Welcome, welcome to you. I'm very happy to be here.
[00:01:40] Tamlyn Shimizu: Yeah, happy to have you.
Sitting next to him is also another lovely gentleman. His name is Oleg Garankin. Sorry for that.
He is responsible for technical design and technical development of products at Synapses tech Digital Solutions. Hello, nice to have you. Yeah, nice to have you on.
So before we get into you telling us more about what you do and your background, I like to always warm up with a little teaser. So the teaser is for you today.
So you have to go into your imagination brain a bit. Imagine your perfect world in 2050.
What does it look like?
[00:02:28] Rino Bellini: Good question. I like to make this question because it's incredible. I think that probably the technology will help to rejoin people.
Why? Because the social media right now are in crisis.
Because there is no touchable friends.
So the new generation needs to return.
[00:03:01] Oleg Garankin: To have a human touch in real life, real world.
[00:03:06] Rino Bellini: Yeah. The technology can help to make this new way of meeting more secure because you can have an information about the person that you meet.
You will meet and also can facilitate you to find things. I want a good restaurant because I want to pass a nice day, a nice dinner with this person. Yeah.
[00:03:39] Tamlyn Shimizu: So regaining that human connection, it's real.
[00:03:43] Oleg Garankin: Human connection, not virtual.
[00:03:45] Tamlyn Shimizu: Yeah. So I want to learn more about your background for both of you.
Where did you come from and where have you been?
[00:04:00] Rino Bellini: Well, I started many times ago with the first version of Internet.
Was curious because in Italy there wasn't any kind of website.
The only website was the website of the Bologna University where I studied. And through the knowledge of a great writer and also professor in Bologna, Umberto Echo, that was the author of the great Romance, the name of the Rose, also a great movie with Sean Connery. Well, he illustrates to a very restricted public the new magic technology Internet.
So with this illumination I started my first startup and we start to make not only website but also service through the web.
And then all the evolution we are I think at the six 7th generation of Internet right now.
So I find with Olek a new way to express my interest to the technology. That was always a passion for me, not only at work.
[00:05:35] Tamlyn Shimizu: Yeah. For the digital world.
[00:05:36] Rino Bellini: And for this reason we found in computers vision something really new.
Cause it's important that computer vision can make a resume or can use not only the images but also can use artificial intelligence and Internet of things and collaborate altogether to make new service.
This is my background.
[00:06:09] Tamlyn Shimizu: Very interesting. So it seems like a natural progression into this world.
[00:06:14] Oleg Garankin: Olek, where did my experience?
I have more than 33 or 35 years in the industry of it.
My first university qualify. I'm engineer of the database, the traditional database relative of database.
I worked in the Oracle corporation, I worked with Microsoft, I worked with SAP. And many years I went and consult for the product which related for traditional software.
After that, seven or eight years ago we will meet with Reno. He decides we will should make any different.
And I have the book of the description of the intelligent artificial this moment we will start our project.
[00:07:36] Tamlyn Shimizu: Yeah. And I want to now get into more of the details about what you do. So can you tell me what is your goal behind synapses tech and how are you doing it?
[00:07:51] Oleg Garankin: The main goal of the synapses tech make of biggest platform for the computer vision which related not only the analytics or detection for the video or images. The platform should help the old people make all process. Finally, if you have one camera you get any images we can use any analytics, analyze and after that you should open the door or make or send event or any signal.
Sorry for my english.
The final goal the platform help the people, any line of business and any line of life.
[00:08:58] Tamlyn Shimizu: Yeah, very overarching. And you told me earlier when we were speaking about an interesting use case that you're doing in Madrid, can you also tell our listeners about that one?
[00:09:11] Oleg Garankin: I think Reno said best about our project for the hest of the help for women, the science.
[00:09:24] Rino Bellini: Okay. This is related to a project to a PoC that we have made for the society that make the metro service in Barcelona, the Meb.
They ask for something new, they ask for something that can be helpful for the user of the metro.
And not only be sure that in the recipient zone the pass is permitted only to the personnel of the TMB, but also for the user. And one of this service is guarantees to the user the assurance.
[00:10:18] Tamlyn Shimizu: Can I say this, their safety.
[00:10:21] Rino Bellini: Yeah. And one of the things that we have thinking about is why we can make something that be able to recognize at log distance, at large distance, the international side of requesting help.
[00:10:41] Tamlyn Shimizu: Yeah. So just for the listeners, I guess anybody can make the sign for help with their hand in the metro and then your technology recognizes that and it.
[00:10:56] Rino Bellini: Automatically is not only recognizing the sign but it's also that with artificial intelligence we can activate alarm that can be visual, can be a sound and also put an alert in all the device of the security of the metro and.
[00:11:18] Oleg Garankin: Of the police with your position of where.
[00:11:21] Tamlyn Shimizu: Yeah, very interesting.
[00:11:24] Rino Bellini: When the fact happens, not only synergizes what camera is focused in this moment. So we think that can be useful. Not only that but also the preventing fight or detecting fight is also related to the smart city. Imagine in a small town like can be Almeria. That is the city where we live.
Our territory got more or less 240 camera.
It's impossible to control to a human personnel, a human employer control 24 camera because in a control room there are more or less 40 monitors.
[00:12:19] Tamlyn Shimizu: Yeah.
[00:12:20] Oleg Garankin: If they are tied very quickly then.
[00:12:24] Rino Bellini: I see the monitor our platform neuralis permit to analyze 24 camera at the same time and make a signal or put an alert where something happens.
[00:12:38] Tamlyn Shimizu: Yeah, I've also heard of some cities looking for other solutions like this. I've heard of them putting in noise cameras and this also seems like a very good solution. I'm wondering. So for at BABLE we actually are kind of focusing a lot on use cases and sharing use cases. That's the basis of the platform that we have. It's a knowledge sharing platform. And from this we followed a DIN standard for the use case. And that's why I want to ask you a couple more in depth questions about the use case. Because I think it's really interesting. These are the details that we've studied that are really interesting for cities to know about.
So I was wondering if you could also explain to us, for example, in the Madrid use case or another use case, anything about how did the city find financing for this or any lessons learned from it or any other results.
[00:13:39] Oleg Garankin: I don't know.
It's a very difficult question because we always work with our big partner like Telefonica, which help us for the POC.
[00:13:54] Tamlyn Shimizu: Yeah, so they help you get.
Yeah.
[00:13:59] Rino Bellini: I want to remember you that we are a startup, so we got personal, but we got technical. Personal Telefonica help us a lot for all the commercial parts.
[00:14:17] Tamlyn Shimizu: Yeah, absolutely.
Maybe I kind of put you with many different questions, but maybe just around what you're learning from these pilots. How are you adapting your technology or changing the way you do things based off of the results that you get from these pilots?
[00:14:39] Oleg Garankin: I think we should talk about our funny story about the peaks.
[00:14:47] Rino Bellini: No, not only. First of all I want to underline one things. I think that returning to previous question, our goal that is all something that the biggest like very much is not only that we are able to detect a lot of things and we can make a project for big organization. I think that our goal is that we have made an open platform. It's not close only to our product, but it's open to collaborate to other reality, other things that are similar but are not the same.
Is the philosophy that is on the bable of our startup. Collaborate or make network in the open?
[00:15:43] Tamlyn Shimizu: Yeah, for cities it's very important that.
[00:15:45] Rino Bellini: They have this open because we are in a new market. Nobody got the majority right now.
So it's better make a good network with similar company and each one can develop a sector, make a vertical sector and not only horizontal. We make everything. No, we don't want to make everything. We want to specialize in some sector and find partner that can help us. Because it's like Internet, Internet at the.
[00:16:21] Oleg Garankin: Beginning for interrupt you. But many students can make any narrow reds narrow services. We could integrate or could use this redis for our platform.
This student could pay the one benefits.
[00:16:48] Rino Bellini: We can pay benefit to the student or all the person can want to collaborate with our platform. This is one. I think that is one goal from the other side.
Have an open platform permit us to expand very quickly to a sector or another and then make a tailor made dress for the final customer.
[00:17:13] Tamlyn Shimizu: Yeah, so tailor it.
Yeah, that makes sense. I want to ask you a question that's more general.
That's so we're here at green cities, right? So we're talking a lot about climate and sustainability. And I'm just wondering, in your experience, you have long experience with it, et cetera.
How do you think cities can best use digital tools to become more green?
[00:17:40] Rino Bellini: We got a project. I tell you a secret, you know.
[00:17:45] Tamlyn Shimizu: You'Re telling it to a lot more people than me, right?
[00:17:48] Rino Bellini: I tell you no. The only thing the great wills that move the world are money.
Well, right now we are involved with many other protagonists, many other subjects to develop the project to calculate the carbon soil. What is the carbon soil? Carbon soil is the capacity of the terrain to absorb carbon from the air. If you absorb carbon from the air, we are all green.
We will be more green.
How is possible to be effective and to push to a change all the great industry make them green with calculating carbon soil or facilitate that the soil absorb more carbon.
Why they must do this? Because you've got a terrain with a high level of carbon soil. You will receive a certificate, a green certificate. This green certificate can be sold in a stock market.
So you transform your green certificate in money. It's something that Mr. Elon Musk already do. Already again, more money with the certificate of making a Tesla that's selling the same.
Like for example, one of his customer is Mr. Fiat, the italian car producer that got a model, that is Fiat Cinquento, that is selling United States. But fiat Cinquento don't have all the data, all the number to be selling United States. But if you are able to equal your lower data, your lower requirement with green certificate Cinquento can be selling United States.
[00:20:24] Tamlyn Shimizu: Okay, interesting. I like the economical approach.
Not sure I can admit to understanding it in full, the full picture, but interesting.
[00:20:36] Rino Bellini: The full picture is very simple. Permit me, if you are agronomic part a grower only with your land and continuous with your work, to produce potato or produce mice or something tomato, your carbon level become higher.
Imagine if you are like Morgan and you want to trade with the green certificate, you must push that. There must be more grower, more grower. It means more carbon soil certificate or green certificate and more money for Morgan.
[00:21:28] Tamlyn Shimizu: Yeah, very interesting. So you're working on that right now?
[00:21:32] Oleg Garankin: It's new project for now.
[00:21:34] Tamlyn Shimizu: Okay, very good. So, last question I have for you. There's many city representatives on the listening to this podcast, and that's our biggest group who listens to the podcast. So what is one thing you want them to focus on in the next year?
[00:21:52] Oleg Garankin: Our focus, the carbon soil.
[00:21:57] Rino Bellini: Absolutely.
[00:21:57] Oleg Garankin: We must determine this product, a methodology.
[00:22:02] Rino Bellini: To calculate very quickly the carbon soil measurement and the terrain.
[00:22:08] Tamlyn Shimizu: Okay, very interesting.
Good. Then with that I move on to our segment. And the segment I chose for you today is called shout out.
[00:22:19] Tamlyn Shimizu: Shout out.
Mention a person, an organization or a city you think deserves more recognition in the field.
[00:22:30] Tamlyn Shimizu: Do you want to?
[00:22:32] Rino Bellini: What fields?
[00:22:35] Tamlyn Shimizu: Any field. Right. In your field, in smart cities.
[00:22:42] Rino Bellini: I think that, for example, Malaga is right to nominate Malaga. Like an interesting growing hub of technology.
Because in Malaga we found new idea, new startup, and also a new way of looking at the technology by the public administration, because it's something that also is very effective. The good result of Malaga is now in all the Andalusia region. We found a lot of help by the public administration. That usually is the hardest part to convince that we propose something new. Yeah, Andalusia right now is moving very fast to the all new technology.
[00:23:39] Oleg Garankin: We'll have the reference site.
[00:23:41] Rino Bellini: Yeah, I think that Malaga was the first. Is the first.
I'm not the only one to say it, but also Google say Malaga is.
[00:23:54] Tamlyn Shimizu: I'll fact check this, but yeah, exactly.
[00:23:57] Rino Bellini: On the other side, I think that the positive result of Malaga is now so contagious. That is on Andalusia territory. So is one more reason to stay there. To visit Andalusia and use the service of sitapte stack.
[00:24:20] Oleg Garankin: It's very important.
We are ready for market.
[00:24:24] Tamlyn Shimizu: Yeah, very good, very good. So this last question is the very last question of the episode. It's a question we ask every single guest, and it's to you, what is the smart city? And I would like both of you to answer. Whoever wants to go first and then the other one can build.
[00:24:42] Oleg Garankin: Smart city is security.
[00:24:48] Rino Bellini: It's a secure area where you can live without the problem and the conflict. The problem, the conflict that we got right now, that is good not only for the security, but it's good for.
[00:25:01] Oleg Garankin: Your health and very useful. It's very easy to use.
[00:25:07] Tamlyn Shimizu: Yeah, like the boost.
[00:25:11] Oleg Garankin: Accessible.
[00:25:13] Rino Bellini: This is the right word. Accessible.
[00:25:15] Tamlyn Shimizu: Yeah, very good.
Safe and accessible. Sounds good to me.
Wonderful. Then with that, I will have to bid you ado. It's been a pleasure speaking with you. I'm really excited to see what comes next for you and I'll be watching your space. So thank you very much for coming on.
[00:25:36] Oleg Garankin: Thank you very much.
[00:25:37] Rino Bellini: Thank you.
[00:25:38] Tamlyn Shimizu: And to all of our listeners, don't forget you can always create a free account on BABLE smartcities EU. You can find out more about smart city projects, solutions, implementations, and more. So thank you very much.
[00:25:50] Tamlyn Shimizu: Thank you all for listening. I'll see you at the next stop on the journey to a better urban lifestyle.
