Baines pledges a Cambridge Tech Week to wow the world
Quantum computing and AI figure large in the agenda and the Innovation Showcase is extended to two days this year, putting more thrusting startups in a global shop window from a Cambridge base.
Baines is a serial entrepreneur in his own right so well qualified to judge what kind of innovation global investors and markets want to see emanating from the Cambridge event.
He tells Business Weekly that CamTechWeek has already enlisted some big hitters of international renown to elevate CTW to a 'must see' event.
Baines believes the topsy-turvy trade climate globally can actually work to the advantage of CTW. When the macro backdrop is nice and steady companies tend to stick with what they are doing and not take any chances by changing approach, he reckons.
When the markets are challenging executives are more inclined to question what they are doing, the way they have always conducted business – and explore potential changes for the better, Baines adds.
This is one of the hallmarks that renders Baines such a highly respected entrepreneur in the technology sphere. He backs his years of know-how with an eye for expansion through fresh opportunities.
He wants CamTechWeek to exploit its rich pedigree for innovation and enterprise. As a well of globally admired and sought after enterprise he wants to see that reflected through CTW and its blossoming agenda.
His start point is the belief that Cambridge is one of the top three ecosystems for tech innovation in the world and should not be shy to exhibit why it consistently punches above its weight.
Enough of the navel-gazing. Let's show the world what we are all about, is the approach Baines wants to take to refashioning the agenda for Cambridge Tech Week.
He relishes the opportunity to 'navigate the gig' and work with prominent entrepreneurs to show global reach of Cambridge innovation. Cambridge can already claim to be the DeepTech capital of Europe and CTW can showcase that kind of impact, he says.
Baines lives in the West Country but has expertise immersed in the ecosystems of, for example, Cambridge and Bristol with their rich engineering heritage. But Baines has also operated worldwide – in Boston US, California, Japan and Germany for example – so is not cursed by parochialism. The world doesn't stop at the A14, he argues.
A major emphasis will be on scale-ups – the new generations that can blossom into the Abcams and Darktraces of tomorrow – startups with 10 people growing into enterprises that can employ and engage thousands.
To that extent, expect a much emboldened Innovation Alley to encourage more and more influential scale-ups; it will be extended over two days.
AI specialist Neil Lawrence, who took part in a a pre-event panel session at Mills & Reeve recently, is helping Baines and allies to shape an unforgettable CambTechWeek.
The event runs from September 15-19 inclusive and you can keep an eye out for ongoing updates on the website.