Rio 2013 Blog: Innovation and Technology in Rio de Janeiro

During the third panel of AS/COA's Rio conference, moderated by Rio Negócios CEO Marcelo Haddad, participants examined steps Rio de Janeiro can take to become a place for technology research and development.

Guruduth Banavar, vice president of industry solutions research at IBM, noted that big data will prove important in the next several decades, and that Rio can be a place for this type of research.

"@ascoa: @banavar, da @ibm "A análise e armazenamento de dados será fundamental nos próximos 20/30 anos"#techrj #bigdata

— Flávio Mestre (@flaviomestre) April 11, 2013

Karin Breitman, general manager of EMC Corporation's Brazil R&D Center, focused on challenges Brazil needs to tackle in terms of research and development, as well as education. She noted that the cost of labor is high in Brazil, which threatens the sustainability of R&D centers. Brain drain is also an issue, and she expressed the need to entice Brazilians with advanced degrees to return to or stay in Brazil.

We don't need more lawyers in #Brazil, says @kbreitman. We need to fits the needs of a growing country and focus on engineering. #techrj

— AS/COA Online (@ascoa) April 11, 2013

Marco Stefanini, founder and president of Stefanini IT Solutions discussed how Rio can also be a magnet for foreigners, noting that since many people want to be in the city, it's an ideal place to attract international talent.

Watch the video below.

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