Together with
the University of Moratuwa, one of the leading technical universities in Sri
Lanka, Sri Lanka Telecom (SLT), the largest ICT and digital services provider
in Sri Lanka, has declared open a laboratory dedicated to research and creation
of the Internet of Things ( IoT) at university premises.
SLT Chairman
P.G. Kumarasinghe Sirisena, in the presence of University of Moratuwa Vice-Chancellor
Prof. Kapila Perera and senior management of both organisations, declared the
IoT Concept Innovation Laboratory open on Tuesday 29 October. Lives also
changed drastically in the last decade with the Fourth Industrial Revolution
and the subsequent exponential expansion in the usage of smart devices today.
The world today
is such that almost everything can connect to the internet, and anything can.
SLT first launched the Sri Lanka Internet of Things Challenge (SLIoT Challenge)
back in 2017, to provide incentives as well as create an ideal forum for
innovative individuals to discover new digital technologies that will help
boost living standards.
Although the
SLIoT Challenge has since become an annual challenge, the organisation has now
gone a step further by affiliating with the University of Moratuwa to open this
new IoT Technology Innovation Lab on the premises of the universities.
SLT claims that
this IoT Lab will play a key role in promoting the realisation of a Smart Sri
Lanka by providing the perfect environment for everyone who is innovative and
imaginative and has the expertise and interest in IoTs and emerging Technology
to explore and test IoT concepts.
Speaking at the
Lab's launch, Sirisena said: "Sri Lanka's productive transformation into
the Digital Hub in South Asia will rely on people swiftly embracing new Technology.
It is a critical moment for both Sri Lanka Telecom and the University of
Moratuwa as we launch this new IoT Concept Innovation Lab to conduct joint
research and development on IoTs. I believe this laboratory will play a key
role in helping to accelerate the nationwide spread of IoT-based applications
and services, and also increasing the number of IoT devices on the Sri Lankan
market. All of these are in line with our digital roadmap for the region."
Prof. Perera stated: "Technology has
always been at the forefront of our university. Therefore, collaborating with
SLT, the ICT leader for this initiative, is truly an honour for us as they
recognise and share our dream of building a knowledge-based ICT-enabled
society. This laboratory is open to anyone with the requisite expertise and
imagination, and we are sure it will see the launch in the coming months and
years of many new groundbreaking IoT projects.
OSL Take: Sri Lanka becomes the first in the South Asian
territory to establish such a lab sends a positive indication to potential
investors in this sector about the country's willingness to allocate funds
towards developing the R&D and innovation segment. Also, the Lab will offer
opportunities for investors to test out their ideas and form possible
partnerships with the government and other stakeholders.
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