As the fallout from the SolarWinds breach continues to unravel, two of the longer-term implications from the attack are coming more clearly into focus. CISOs and their security teams will need to double down on their organization’s supply-chain controls and place greater focus on evaluating and identifying third-party risk – and be able to clearly communicate the importance of doing so to the CEO and the Board.
“For many security teams, this will mean a continuation of applying existing supply-chain controls but with a fresh mindset,” said Lakshmi Hanspal, Global CSO at Box who will be one of the featured speakers at HMG Strategy’s upcoming SolarWinds Digital Roundtable discussion on January 27 at 11 a.m. ET. We’ll be unpacking a lot regarding the short and long-term ramifications of the SolarWinds breach with Lakshmi and the other speakers, so I highly encourage all CISOs, CIOs and other technology executives with a stake in cybersecurity to register for this must-attend interactive discussion.
Jack Ma Resurfaces After Weeks of Mystery
Jack Ma, the charismatic founder of Alibaba, has reappeared, ending weeks of intense speculation over his whereabouts.
“Alibaba’s Hong Kong-listed stock was up over 8% on news of his reappearance,” writes Arjun Kharpal of CNBC. “In a video posted on Chinese social media, Ma addressed rural teachers as part of one his charity foundation’s initiatives. The annual event, which is usually hosted in the resort city of Sanya, sees the Jack Ma Foundation celebrate the achievements of rural teachers who are awarded cash support.”
Ma was among several Chinese tech titans who had apparently raised the ire of the nation’s ruling Communist Party, which has been steadily reasserting its control over the China’s economy.
Microsoft Bets on Tech for Self-Driving Vehicles
A company that develops technology for autonomous vehicles is attracting significant investments from major players such as Microsoft and GM.
“Cruise has raised $2 billion in a new equity round that has pushed its valuation up to $30 billion and delivered Microsoft as an investor and partner,” writes Kirsten Korosec of TechCrunch. “GM, Honda and other institutional investors have also put more capital into Cruise as the autonomous vehicle company inches closer to commercializing its technology.”
Automation Surges Forward Amid Pandemic
The automation of work is gathering momentum, fueled by the pandemic and growing demand for robotic processes across the modern enterprise.
“Robo Global, a research firm, predicts that by the end of 2021 the worldwide installed base of factory robots will exceed 3.2 million units, double the level in 2015. The global market for industrial robotics is forecast to rise from $45 billion in 2020 to $73 billion in 2025,” according to a report this week in The Economist. “Allied Market Research, a firm of analysts, predicts that the global sales of process-automation products will balloon from $1.6 billion in 2019 to nearly $20 billion in 2027. In December UI Path, a trailblazing Romanian startup in the area, filed for an initial public offering. It may start with a market value of $20 billion. On January 12th Workato, an American rival, said it has raised $110 million in fresh funding.”
