Hannover, March 15, 2015: CeBIT Hannover 2015 opened to a glitzy but brief ceremony here at the Hannover Congress Center. The distinguished guests who delivered keynotes at the ceremony included German Chancellor Angela Merkel, Alibaba founder Jack Ma and other other high-ranking representatives from politics and economy.
“I have come back (to CeBIT) again, to find the missing part of the Internet business. Th Internet was very successful in the past 20 years and has impacted human lives. But many traditional businesses hate the Internet as it destroys their businesses. But I find that very few Internet companies can survive for more than three years. I strongly believe the missing part is in Europe. All the Internet companies worry every day. and we have to find a solution to live long like Mercedes-Benz or Siemens. If Internet companies cannot live for more than three years, this industry cannot become mainstream,” said Jack Ma. “The world is changing so fast and most people don’t realise what is IT and Internet, We are moving very, very fast. IT and digital technology is not different. The differences arise in the way people think. The world will change in
“If Internet companies cannot live for more than three years, this industry cannot become mainstream,” said Jack Ma. “The world is changing so fast and most people don’t realise what is IT and Internet, We are moving very, very fast. IT and digital technology is not different. The differences arise in the way people think. The world will change in th next 30 years And I think that the next IT revolution will relieve human stress. And this revolution will leverage the strength of the human brain.”
“The future world will not be connected by oil but by data. In the future world, business is C2B and not B2C. Because you have lots of data the manufacturer must do customised things, otherwise manufacturing will be difficult. In the future, the machines must not just make products, but must also talk and think. It will not be supported by oil or by electricity, but by data.”
Ma said that a lot of importance will be given to data in the Diconomy (Digital Economy), which is the lead theme for CeBIT 2015.
He also said that companies like Apple will not be significant in future. “But Apple tells us what the future will look like.”
And Ma delivered the final punchline to much applause in the hall: “It is not technology that changes the world. It is the dreams behind technology that will change the world.”
By delivering the opening speech to 2,500 invited guests, the founder of Alibaba joins an exclusive list of high-profile industry speakers. In 2014 , for instance, the fair was opened by Prof. Martin Winterkorn, Chairman of the Board of Management at Volkswagen AG. The year before it was Thomas Enders, CEO of Airbus Group, and in 2012 it was Eric Schmidt, Executive Chairman of Google, who presented his plans for the company to invited guests at the Hannover Congress Center.
Watch the video of this keynote here. (29:00)
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Brian Pereira is reporting live from Hannover for CeBIT 2015 this week.
