Episodes

  • September rundown: Hyperscalers go nuclear

    September rundown: Hyperscalers go nuclear
    Sep 27 2024
    Energy usage in data centers is an increasingly Hot Topic, particularly with AI applications becoming more popular and widely used.

    While some organizations have talked up their commitment to renewables, such as solar or hydro, others have this month started to discuss a different, perhaps more controversial low carbon path.

    Elsewhere, a new rebellion against home working is beginning – and this time it's not CEOs or ministers leading the charge.

    In this episode, Jane is once again joined by Ross Kelly, ITPro’s news and analysis editor, to discuss the biggest stories of the past month.
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    20 mins
  • AI’s thirsty secret

    AI’s thirsty secret
    Sep 20 2024
    When people talk about the environmental impacts of data centers, normally the discussion focuses on energy usage. It’s something we’ve talked about at several points this year already, with reference to growing efforts to house AI workloads in green data centers that run on renewable energy to reduce their carbon impact.

    But while we can generate nearly limitless amounts of green energy, there is a decidedly finite amount of water in the world – and unfortunately, most data centers need vast amounts of fresh water to cool hardware.

    Without care, big tech could push already drought-stricken communities to breaking point.

    In this episode, Jane and Rory unpack the growing problem of data center water use, how operators can tackle this, and how it will exacerbate environmental tensions in the near future.

    Read more:
    • Data center water consumption is spiraling out of control
    • Google data centre soaks up a third of Oregon city's water supply
    • What is a green data center and why are they attracting big investment?
    • Data center waste energy to heat homes in 'UK-first' scheme
    • OVHcloud just open sourced its data center liquid cooling system — here’s why
    • AWS plans to be 'water positive' by 2030
    • Microsoft lays out water-positive plans for next decade
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    25 mins
  • SPECIAL EDITION: Securing your business with education and training

    SPECIAL EDITION: Securing your business with education and training
    Sep 17 2024
    What’s the biggest cybersecurity threat your business faces right now? Hopefully, an answer springs to mind, along with a list of the solutions you have in place to keep attackers at bay. But ask yourself this: do your employees know? And if the worst did happen, how confident are you that your workforce would know exactly how to respond?

    Cybersecurity education and training is one of the cornerstones of any enterprise security strategy, keeping companies looped in on the latest attack methods and helping employees foster a security-first mindset.

    But how receptive are employees to the various training methods, how can training keep up with new advancements such as AI, and where do vendors such as your managed security service provider fit into the mix?

    In this special edition of the ITPro Podcast, in association with Proofpoint, Jane and Rory are joined by Kevin Leusing, EMEA chief technologist at Proofpoint. Together, they discuss how firms can best use cybersecurity education and training to protect their workforce against the latest threats.

    Read more:
    • https://bit.ly/proofpoint-cyber-awareness-kit
    • 2024 State of the Phish
    • 2024 Voice of the CISO
    • Why social engineering is such a problem and how your business can protect itself
    • Organisations could soon be using generative AI to prevent phishing attacks
    • Nearly half of EMEA data breaches were due to internal blunders in 2023
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    21 mins
  • Cracking open insider threats

    Cracking open insider threats
    Sep 13 2024
    Cybersecurity teams face a constant battle of ensuring their company is shored up in the right places. Facing down increasingly sophisticated and persistent threat actors, there’s every reason to focus on one’s perimeter to shield oneself against external threats.

    But insider threats – attacks carried out from within an organization’s environment – must also be part of any business’s security strategy. When the call is coming from inside the house, either via a hacker who’s secretly gained access or in the form of a disgruntled employee, security teams need to be ready to clamp down hard.

    In this episode, Jane and Rory welcome back Ross Kelly, ITPro’s news and analysis editor, to discuss the scale of these insider threats.

    Read more:

    • Why you should always be wary of insider threats
    • North Korean insider attacks are skyrocketing – dozens of US firms didn't spot the hacker in their midst
    • Cyber firm KnowBe4 unknowingly hired a North Korean hacker – and it went exactly as you might think
    • Should your business worry about North Korean cyber attacks?
    • State-sponsored cyber attacks: The new frontier
    • The Verizon data breach that exposed 63,000 employees is a reminder of how a simple mistake can have costly implications
    • Preventing deepfake attacks: How businesses can stay protected
    • How Intel's FakeCatcher hopes to eradicate real-time deepfakes
    • AI threats: The importance of a concrete strategy in fighting novel attacks
    • Why I think the Scarlett Johansson OpenAI scandal shows the danger of AI-generated voice content
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    24 mins
  • Preparing for the quantum revolution

    Preparing for the quantum revolution
    Sep 6 2024
    Quantum computing is an exciting field of research that promises to revolutionize computing as we know it. Relying on quantum mechanics to process calculations much faster than conventional physics would allow a normal computer to, quantum computers could drive rapid breakthroughs in fields such as medicine or machine learning.

    But what are the specific ways in which quantum computing can help businesses and the world? And how long will it take for quantum computers to become widely used?

    In this episode, Rory speaks to Graeme Malcolm, CEO at M Squared Lasers and co-chair of the UK Quantum Technology Leadership Group, to unpack some of the immense potential of quantum computing including in the fight against climate change.

    Read more:

    • What is quantum computing?
    • The quantum computing sector needs to cut the hype and focus on responsible development
    • UK government quantum investment welcomed by industry
    • Why quantum computing might be much closer to becoming a reality than we think
    • What is the ‘steal now, crack later’ quantum computing threat?
    • How quantum computing can fight climate change
    • UK government ramps up quantum funding in bid to drive commercial viability
    • Google's greenhouse gas emissions have skyrocketed in the last five years – and soaring AI energy demand is the main culprit
    • Microsoft's AI-fueled data center rush caused carbon emissions to surge by 29% in 2023 — and now the tech giant could miss critical sustainability targets
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    31 mins
  • August rundown: Who's afraid of remote work?

    August rundown: Who's afraid of remote work?
    Aug 30 2024
    For many, August has been all about getting away on holiday – stepping back from your desk, and putting on your email out of office. But others have spent the past month focused on how to ensure workers work longer hours and physically turn up to do their 9-5 on company soil.

    Eric Schmidt, former CEO at Google, has got into hot water over his claims that companies should ditch remote work schedules if they want to succeed. Schmidt even suggested that his former company was lagging in the generative AI race as a result of its focus on work-life balance.

    Also this month, companies competing in that very race have been closely watching the brewing California AI Bill, which seeks to improve the safety of publicly available AI models. How might these companies fare in the wake of the new laws?

    In this episode, Jane and Rory welcome back Ross Kelly, ITPro’s news and analysis editor, to explore the past month’s developments.
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    27 mins
  • A quick update

    A quick update
    Aug 16 2024
    We're on summer break for the next two weeks, but we'll be back at the end of the month for the rundown and back at full speed throughout September and beyond.

    Thanks for listening!
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    Less than 1 minute
  • The state of enterprise connectivity

    The state of enterprise connectivity
    Aug 9 2024
    Almost any business these days needs its own network to function – whether it’s for internal comms, interaction with the internet, or for controlling complex environments such as smart factory floors, business networks keep the wheels spinning at an enterprise level.

    But promises and delivery haven’t always lined up in the networking space, with the likes of 5G and gigabit broadband coming in later than planned and developments such as widespread, real-time edge computing emerging as more important than they might have been expected to be.

    In what directions are business networks headed, and which growing trends should we expect to define enterprise connectivity in the coming years?

    In this episode, Jane and Rory speak to Kerry Baker, lead industry analyst North America at Ookla, to explore the current network picture for enterprises.

    Read more:
    • What are private 5G networks and can they transform the workplace?
    • Why businesses are turning to private 5G
    • Ofcom approves 5G mmWave, but what are its benefits?
    • What is 6G and how far are we from rollout?
    • UK government to run Starlink trials in Snowdonia, Lake District
    • SpaceX given FCC nod to provide Starlink Wi-Fi to moving vehicles
    • Nokia and Google score breakthrough in Android 13 network slicing
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    27 mins