MIT Media Lab launches CELab

Today the MIT Media Lab held a consumer electronics symposium to mark the launch of the Consumer Electronics Lab (CELab) within the Media Lab. I attended the first half of the day (I had to miss the second half due to classes) and here are some thoughts and quotes from the morning:

V. Michael Bove, Jr. - Director of the CELab
- Stated that the major themes of the lab would be: Materials, Power, Sensors/Actuators/Displays, Self managing ecosystems/smart displays, Cooperative wireless networks
- Michael also highlighted a major change in funding policy for the CELab... in the past only large institutions could afford to sponsor (sponsorship gave the rights to all intellectual property within the research group being sponsored and it typically cost millions) the Media Lab and reap the intellectual property benefits from membership. The CELab will be open to firms of all size and sponsorship fees will be based on the sponsor firms revenues.
- In a typical marketing move the lab is offering 20% off for those that sign-up before July 1st and 10% off for those that sign-up before October 1st.

Nicholas Negroponte - Chairman of the MIT Media Laboratory
- Nicholas believes that we are entering a new era of computing
- Era 1: Bits are bits - this was the realization that all bits are just bits and it doesn't matter if you are storing music, pictures, text or video, it is just bits
- Era 2: Bits vs. Atoms - this era focused on how bits can transform atoms... think along the lines of how Amazon changed retail distribution and how Apple is changing music through iTunes and iPod
- Era 3: Bits IN Atoms - This is the era we are heading into where bits will co-exist with atoms everywhere. Think about embedded computing and the idea of computing devices being everywhere, including inside the body

- Nicholas also mentioned that firms need to start thinking about not: "Piling on more stuff into gadgets moving on Moore's law VS. making stuff easier to use"

Walt Mossberg - WSJ personal technology columnist served as emcee
- Walt commented that while the notion of convergence has been hyped for decades now, a sign it could now be occurring is that the most popular CE device on the market is made by a computer company - Apple's iPod
- Here are some great quotes from Walt about the recording industry's effort to raise prices on digital downloads:
-"the infinitely stupid recording industry"
-"I couldn't match their stupidity if I tried"

- Despite all the talk about home networking, Walt remarked that most consumers only get wi-fi to share an internet connection, not for any real home networking purposes like sharing files or printers.

Geoffrey Frost - Chief Brand Officer - Motorola
- Geoffrey had a great quote about how you can tell the wireless industry is in it's beginning: "we call it wireless... today we don't call cars 'horseless'."

The afternoon was packed with great professors from the Media Lab that I am upset I missed. I noticed that the event was being taped so check out the media lab homepage to see if they will post the sessions there.