Virtually There
On Maui, Realtor Liam Ball is using virtual reality to draw in potential buyers – in some cases giving them a grand tour of homes they might not be able to visit in person. Photo: Chris…
Technology
Digital Dash - Time: The Greatest Challenge to Improving Yourself
I’ve found that development – whether professional or personal – is very time consuming. Adding a workshop, retreat, class or conference to my schedule as Hawaii Business’ digital media director is like attaching an anchor to my surfboard. You probably have had…
Game On
In the virtual world of apps and video games, a locally founded startup called GamePress has created a global gathering place. GamePress’ site, pokemongo.gamepress.gg, drew a staggering 20 million unique visitors in July when the popular GPS-based mobile game was…
New Way to Book Tours in Hawaii
ORIGIN: Like many origin stories, Activiter’s started in Vegas. Stuck on the Strip in the heat of the day, the company’s co-founders – Rob Lafontaine and Ikaika Sheehan – decided to see a show (mostly for the air conditioning) and waited in…
The 10 Commandments of Corporate Social Media
I have climbed Mount Koko Head and took many selfies. From this pilgrimage I return to you, brethren and sisthren, with these 10 commandments to keep thy company’s image righteous on the World Wide Web. May the spirit of Steve…
East Meets West in Startup Paradise
Asian and Mainland entrepreneurs and investors will experience a different East Meets West startup conference next month – and that’s not just because some business ideas will be pitched in outrigger canoes. Honolulu-based Blue Startups is hosting the third annual…
The Science of Success - The Success of Science
On nights with a full moon, scientists and engineers from Oceanit gather at Duke’s statue on Kalakaua Avenue in Waikiki, colorful glow sticks fastened around their necks. Toting surfboards, they head for the water’s edge and plunge into the silvery…
A Private Tour of Hawaii at Your Fingertips
ORIGINS: Husband and wife Andrew and Rita Fowers first met 11 years ago at Brigham Young University Hawaii in Laie, where their location inspired a company. “When I was a senior in college on the North Shore,” says Andrew Fowers,…
A Case for Brain Sports in School
ROBOTICS To prepare for Kalani High School’s Robotics 3008, members of Team Magma spend as many as 30 hours a week on everything from building robots as tall as five feet to fundraising for future competitions. The team has received…
The Evolution of the CIO
As part of Hawaii Business’ C-Suite conference series, we brought together three of Hawaii’s leading CIOs. Todd Nacapuy, chief innovation officer for the state, first talks about driving change and accommodating all kinds of users. Then, Sheh Bertram of Bank…
Drones Unleashed
Tucked inside Battery Bill’s store on Dillingham Boulevard is another store that looks like an oversize walk-in closet, but is, in fact, the epicenter of one of the state’s fastest growing industries. Drone Services Hawaii LLC, open for less than two…
Interactive Software for Better Learning
ORIGINS: The instruction methods used by Dan Nash, 28, and Sean Hookano-Briel, 33, to teach math at Waipahu High School drew attention from other teachers. A consulting firm they launched in 2012 created professional-development programs for educators and led to…
Can The Boss Vet My Facebook?
Q: My boss and I have very different views, and I’ve discovered he’s monitoring my Facebook posts and tweets. He came to my cubicle yesterday and said, “You’d better watch that stuff you post online.” These are my personal views and my…
UH Hilo: Hawaii's Under-the-Radar Hotbed of Innovative Research
Among the faculty and administrators I spoke with, there is a strong consensus that UH Hilo deserves to be recognized as an innovative research and educational center in its own right. “We’re a small but comprehensive university,” says Matthew Platz,…
Data-Driven Farming
Inspiration: Farmers told Vincent Kimura they needed an affordable way to protect their crops and increase their yields. Once he had an idea to address that problem, he teamed with Ryan Ozawa, Isar Mostafanezhad and Justin Hedani to create the…
Talk Story with Eric Gleason
Eric Gleason President, NextEra Energy Hawaii President, NextEra Energy Transmission After a career in investment banking – interrupted by a couple of years backpacking around the world with his wife – Gleason has spent the last six years in the…
“Magic” + Science = Fun
"Cosmic Kelly" Ferreira is an expert on kids. “Growing up on Maui, I was the oldest in a family of five, so I was more like a second mom to them,” she recalls. “And I was always an extrovert, not…
Turning Play into Pay
Most of them are Millennials, first-generation digital natives strutting their stuff and chiseling new entry points into a post-recession economy. Those who achieve social-media stardom get labelled as “digital talent,” which sounds so Hollywood, but signals their digital charisma and…
Managing Negative Online Reviews
"My store got blasted on Yelp. What do I do now?" You and your staff can deliver great service and products, all with a smile, yet still get a bad review online. You can’t control what people say about you,…
What's Astronomy's Future in Hawaii
For weeks, the astronomers, technicians and support staff working on Mauna Kea watched the protesters. Native Hawaiians and others opposed to the massive Thirty Meter Telescope gathered near the 9,000-foot mark, their encampment near Hale Pohaku, the small campus where…
Batteries: The Other Half of Hawaii’s Energy Future
Batteries are old. In a sense, the last major development in battery technology was the invention of the lead-acid battery in 1859 by the French physicist Gaston Plante. Earlier batteries had short lives, quickly losing their charge as their electrodes…
Armchair Travel, Hawaiian Style
A young Japanese couple experiences a dream Hawaii vacation. They start the day riding horses along a dusty mountain trail at Kualoa Ranch. Then they cruise down Kalakaua Avenue in a convertible, lounge on Waikiki Beach and end the day parasailing.…
Think and Act Globally, Attend and Learn Locally
Innovators and investors from around the world are gathering in Honolulu this January for the second annual East Meets West Conference. “Local entrepreneurs will be able to learn from technology companies that have conquered global markets,” says Chenoa Farnsworth, managing…
The Tour Starts Here
When Lawrence and Zachary Hester were booking activities for a family vacation in Hawaii, they noticed it wasn’t always a smooth process – so they took it on themselves to make a change. Their solution is FareHarbor, an online booking…