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Next week I will be hosting a panel discussion at SpeechTEK '19 , a technology conference focused on speech, voice, and AI. The event will take place at the Renaissance Washington DC Hotel in Washington, DC April 29 - May 1, 2019. I will post an update after the event with takeaways and insights from our discussion. In the meantime you can read a 451 Research spotlight report published earlier this year where I cover some of the topics we will be discussing, and includes an overview of some of the companies featured in our panel discussion next week. To read the full report follow this link . C205. PANEL: Speech Technologies Inside The Enterprise Tuesday, April 30: 4:15 p.m. - 5:00 p.m. Voice is rapidly emerging as the main user interface for many apps and devices. Speech recognition and natural language understanding will change how knowledge workers interact with computers and applications, opening opportunities for innovation in human-computer interaction, including intelli...

Slack's annual user conference wrapped up yesterday after two days filled with product and business updates. The opening keynote featured founder and CEO Stewart Butterfield and tennis star Serena Williams. I'm still processing all the information but here are my initial thoughts. Key announcements included integration with video communication platform Zoom and a 'bridge' to connect with email and calendar. For a nice summary of Day 1 announcements follow this link . These announcements signal team collaboration is expanding as a core productivity tool Workflow automation and third party integrations were once again, central topics in the keynotes, breakout sessions and show floor. These highlight the emphasis that Slack is placing on workforce productivity.  Coming up soon: a company impact report with my thoughts and key takeaways from the event for 451 Research subscribers.

Had a busy week in the West Coast, first with BlackBerry for their annual Analyst Summit in San Ramon and then rushing over to San Francisco for Slack Frontiers. I was tweeting and blogging throughout the two days at Frontiers but decided to hold off on my comments from the BlackBerry event since I was not sure what was on NDA. I've reviewed my notes and here are my key takeaways. If you're curious about what other attendees were talking about check out Twitter with the hashtag #BlackBerryTrust. BlackBerry has undergone a significant transformation in the last five years. CEO John Chen opened the event and provided an update on the company's transition to software and services. The company has made several strategic acquisitions over the last five years that support its positioning in cyber security the Internet of Things for connected devices like cars. BlackBerry is targeting verticals with a solutions-based approach that brings together several products in it...

"Don't tell me what I'm doing right ... tell me where I can improve ... it's constructive criticism ... I'm competing with someone that is working as hard -or harder- than I am ..." great insights from @serenawilliams at #SlackFrontiers — Raul Castañon (@rcastanonm) April 24, 2019

Full house for opening keynote at #slackfrontiers #Collaboration #Workforce productivity pic.twitter.com/aPtAeUlVCU — Raul Castañon (@rcastanonm) April 24, 2019

Mobile Ecosystem Forum (MEF) just published an interview I did with them earlier this year at MWC in Barcelona. Below an excerpt from the interview, for the full text and video follow this link  or check out the interview below. In 2017, 451 Research launched a paper that revealed the extent to which consumer software and devices had infiltrated the workplace. It reported that nearly three in four employees were using consumer messaging apps for business purposes. That obviously presented a security risk for enterprises. Yet 451 Research found that 62 percent of companies had not made any BYOD policy changes in the previous six months. Two years on, the problem of uncontrolled BYOD policies still persists. However, according to Raul Castanon-Martinez, Senior Analyst – Workforce Collaboration, 451 Research, it’s now become a little more nuanced. In short, even when companies do mandate their own communications channel, they cannot be sure employees will use them.

In San Francisco this week for Google Cloud Next '19. This is my third time attending and every year it has significantly grown in the number of attendees, sponsors/exhibitors and speakers. In 2016 – shortly after Diane Greene took the helm as Google Cloud CEO – it hosted 2,000 attendees. The following year it grew to 10,000 attendees. Last year, attendance more than doubled, with over 25,000 registrations. This year Google Cloud reports a 50% growth with over 35,000 registrations. Update 04/19/2019: You can read my comments regarding product updates to G Suite in this article by Matthew Finnegan of Computerworld. I also published a spotlight report (451 Research subscribers only): "Next '19: Google Cloud is redefining human computer interaction with voice user interfaces". Voice technology-related announcements at Google Cloud Next '19 included general availability of Google Voice for G Suite – which was announced at last year's event – and new capabilit...