Entrepreneurial Workshop
May 20, 2011
Mark Denissen
VP, WW Strategic Marketing
Texas Instruments
m-denissen@ti.com
• How do you identify important problems
worth solving?
– What is your Circle Of Competency?
– What Important Trends do you see?
– What is Changing?
There are all kinds of businesses that Charlie and I
don't understand, but that doesn't cause us to stay
up at night. It just means we go on to the next one,
and that's what the individual investor should do.
Warren Buffett
• Problems Worth Solving
– Clear Problem Statement (1982)
• Tax returns are difficult to complete without
Professional help.
• Computers have the capability to quickly perform
complex mathematics.
• We could use Computers to quickly prepare tax
returns.
• Problems Worth Solving
– Key Questions
• How is the problem solved today?
• How do you propose to solve the problem?
• Why is your solution superior?
• Who is going to pay for this solution to the
problem?
• Tax Example
– Key Questions
• How is the problem solved today (1982)?
– Professional Tax Preparers
– Individuals doing their own returns
• How do you propose to solve the problem?
– Use Computers to quickly prepare returns at reasonable prices
• Why is your solution superior?
– Faster Preparation
– Preparers can be quickly trained
– Mathematical accuracy
• Who is going to pay for this solution to the problem?
– People with Relatively simple returns who do not choose to use a CPA
• Jackson Hewitt Tax Founded 1982
•
•
•
•
•
•
Small 6 location business in Virginia
Started selling franchises in 1986
>500 offices & 300,000 returns 1992
IPO January 1994
Acquired by Cendent for $480M 1997
Peaked at 7400 locations and 3.4M returns
• Problems Worth Solving
– Key Questions
• How is the problem solved today?
• How do you propose to solve the problem?
• Why is your solution superior?
• Who is going to pay for this solution to the
problem?
• Where to find interesting problems?
• Observe the world around you
• Build a network
–
–
–
–
–
–
In your company
With other people you respect
At Research Universities
Multi-disciplined is better
On-line (Use the WWW)
Start with what is possible
» Listen first
» Wait at least 10 min for 1st “it won’t work because”
Invention & Innovation @ TI
Innovation in signal processing
has been the technology thread
throughout TI’s 80-year history.
2000s
1990s
1980s
1970s
1960s
1950s
1940s
1930s
Invents the
integrated circuit
Applies signal
measurement to
magnetic anomaly detection
Revolutionizes oil
exploration by measuring
reflected signals
Invents the
handheld
calculator
Applies signal
processing to
consumer
products
Introduces
single-chip
digital signal
processor
Creates
first apps
processor for
multi-media
cell phones
Introduces
world’s fastest
analog-todigital
converter and
lowest-power
DC-DC
converter
Innovation Defined
“A new idea or invention of new technologies or products
is NOT an innovation.
The innovation process spans all the actions needed to
convert an original concept into a useful product which is
profitably taken to market.
Pat Haggerty,
TI Founder
Energy Consumption / GDP
Source: IEA
NegaWatt Definition
Source: Wikipedia:
Negawatt power is the idea of creating awareness (and incentives) to reduce
demand for electricity to ease the load at peak times or alleviate the need to build
more generation plants. In theory, these negawatts can be aggregated and an
arbitrage market could be created to trade these.
The term was coined by Amory Lovins, who saw a typo — "negawatt" instead of
"megawatt" — in a Colorado Public Utilities Commission report. He adopted the
term to describe electricity that by means of energy efficiency was not created.
NegaWatts: The Argument for Efficiency
65% of all electric energy is lost in the process of
conversion (~60%) & distribution (~5%)… this is why
energy conservation is so important => 1kWh saved is
3.3kWh of energy source never consumed.
Energy Opportunities Continue to Grow
Use It
Self-Powered
Systems
Conversion
Transportation
Move It
Transmission
& Distribution
Motors
Consumption
Real-Time
Monitoring
Make It
Distributed (Local)
Renewable (Clean)
Conventional (Fossil)
Appliances
Smart Meters
2-Way Comm.
Price Signaling
Demand Response
Supply Response
Power Supplies
& Zero stand-by
Lighting HVAC
Renewable energy
Make It
kW-level and MW-level power
• Thousands of utility scale plants
• Millions of personal residence, or
village accessible energy “plants”
• Enabled through
•
•
•
•
•
Higher efficiencies at
Lower costs with
Greater stability and
Increased safety whether
Grid-tied or Off-grid
mW & W-level power
• Cutting the cords for lighting,
signage and consumer electronics
Making the smart grid smarter
Move It
Communication
is the Key
• HAN (Home Area
Network)
• WAN (Wide Area
Network)
• Wireless RF, PLC,
and wired IP
• From the Utility to
the Meter to the
Consumer products,
appliances, local
generators and
Plug-in Vehicles
17
LED / Lighting
Use It
Backlighting
Video display/signage
General illumination
Transportation
LEDs are 10 times more
energy efficient than
conventional lamps
and have enormous life
spans…
Challenges in power
management, dynamic
coloring & control, heat
channeling and form
factor are aggressively
being pursued
Self-powered systems enabled with energy
harvesting & ultra-low power ICs
Remote patient monitoring
(body heat)
Industrial wireless sensor network
(light, motion, RF)
Structural monitoring
(motion)
Consumer wireless sensor networks
(light, motion)
Summary
•
•
•
•
Identify Key Trends
Build a Circle of Competence around a few
Look for Problems you could solve
Test with these questions:
• How is the problem solved today?
• How do you propose to solve the problem?
• Why is your solution superior?
• Who is going to pay for this solution to the problem?