Fellow SA Rocktonian Max Kaizen wrote a piece this week about innovation in South Africa and it certainly spurred some heated debate amongst readers of this blog. I have to admit it also got me thinking because web-based innovators in South Africa are often called copy-cats for their apparent lack of originality.
So I decided that I’d do some searching to find some innovation and I registered as an attendee at the Futurex expo at the Sandton Convention Center. I figured that I’d go there and find lots of unique and innovative ideas that I could then report-back on and write about in my Technology Thursday post and I headed off yesterday morning to the most comprehensive showcase of products, services and solutions for big, small and home business.
My mandate was simple – find innovative products developed and/or manufactured in South Africa. I really wanted to find any technology that would promote the theme of SA Rocks and prove the critics wrong.
After spending three hours going through two large conference halls filled with hundreds of exhibitors I ended up with finding a grand total of zero innovative products made by us fellow South Africans.
What I did find was the large corporate giants showcasing their various software and broadband offerings and a whole bunch of smaller players showcasing products that were developed all over the world except South Africa.
It’s the first time also that I’ve seen Futurex promoting investment opportunities for countries like China and India and both countries had entire sections at Futurex that they could use to showcase their products to our market. This is fantastic to a point but not what I was looking for.
Futurex last year combined the expo with Linuxworld which I felt really helped promote the idea of Open Source and Linux to companies in South Africa. So much innovation is happening on the Linux front and for me the link between the two was very important and helped promote this innovation to big business.
After a disappointing expo my challenge now is to prove to the critics that South Africa is innovative and I’d like you to help me with this.
I need a list of home grown innovation so that we can shut the critics up so if you know of any innovative products, websites or services developed by South Africans that could be included in this list then please post a link to that website in the comments below.
Depending on the feedback received we might even be able to start a web directory on this site to help promote these home grown innovations so let’s get this thing going.
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May 17th, 2007 at 1:12 pm
Theres 3 South African Innovations to start your list. I’d add MXity to that list too.
May 17th, 2007 at 3:44 pm
Thanks Rafiq. What about the rest of you? I’m seriously worried that there really is no innovation. Right, I guess I better expand the list further.
http://www.prontocondoms.co.za
http://www.thawte.com
http://www.ubuntu.com
http://www.digspot.co.za
http://www.studentwire.co.za
http://www.studentsale.co.za
It’s a start – anyone else want to add some?
May 17th, 2007 at 3:45 pm
I’d like to put forward our awesome aggregators as well as another site, Get Local:
Afrigator
Amatomu
GetLocal
Aggregators are wicked cool and have fast become vital tools for SA Bloggers. Get Local is a cool networking neighbourhood tool, if you will. check it out.
May 17th, 2007 at 3:46 pm
I would really like to have people create some sort of index here… lets add as many sites as we can fine. I almost challenge people to find them…
May 17th, 2007 at 5:14 pm
http://www.vehiclegeyser.co.za
http://www.rapestop.net/
http://www.crimelert.co.za
May 17th, 2007 at 5:28 pm
Nice links there Sjefke!!! Thanks!
May 17th, 2007 at 9:16 pm
Was searching for Kreepy Krauly, which is SA invention as well (!), and found these links:
http://www.southafrica.info/doing_business/trends/innovations/
(excellent site – plus 2 more pages):
http://www.southafrica.info/doing_business/trends/innovations/inventions.htm
http://www.southafrica.info/doing_business/trends/innovations/innofund.htm
http://zar.co.za/invent.htm
What I realise now is that you ‘know’ about products (like that wind-up radio), but you don’t know it was invented here – so, maybe it is more a perception issue – or, a ‘branding’ issue – which is why they started ‘Proudly SA’, I guess, although that doesn’t indicate anything about SA-inventions – just that a company adheres to certain regulations – which makes that even our friends at Telkom are PSA….
Maybe there should be a “SA Rocks – invented here” badge? With my name on it, as the inventor
May 18th, 2007 at 6:09 am
The dolosse – those big concrete wave breakers were invented in South Africa and when I searched to get a reference for them I found:
http://www.southafrica.info/doing_business/trends/innovations/dolosse.htm
And of course this site has other SA innovations – looks like there’s even a National Advisory Council on Innovations.
http://www.southafrica.info/doing_business/trends/innovations/
But great idea to get a directory going Nic and a story or the inventors and behind the inventions – could turn into a good book.
May 18th, 2007 at 10:01 am
YEIGO!!!!!!!!
May 18th, 2007 at 4:07 pm
Lovely Karen, thanks for contributing!!!
May 24th, 2007 at 4:23 pm
What about eNatIS ?