Mobeen Khan | Telecom Podcast | Blues Wireless

The Fastest and Most Cost-Effective Way To Add Wireless Connectivity To Any Product

In this episode, Ken Forster talks to Mobeen Khan, the Chief Operating Officer of Blues Wireless. Headquartered in Boston, Blues Wireless is a full-stack solution to connect any device to any cloud.

Founded by former Microsoft CTO Ray Ozzie in 2018, Blues Wireless created Notecard, the fastest and most cost-effective way to add wireless connectivity to any product. Notecard is a highly secure system on a module (SoM) with embedded 10-year global connectivity that allows any developer to send data from remote assets using JSON and just two lines of code. Blues' customers represent leading and innovative companies spanning agriculture, automotive, construction, healthcare, industrial, manufacturing, retail, supply chain, cold chain, transportation, and logistics. Use cases range from simple tracking and remote monitoring to edge analytics and remote control.

For over a decade, Mobeen has been leading and developing innovative products for the Internet of Things, mobility, and enterprise & consumer software markets. After early entrepreneurial experience in natural language processing, he led AT&T’s IoT strategy and product management for nearly eight years.

Recognized as an industry thought leader in the IoT space, he holds patents pending in the use of blockchain in device management and IoT Edge enablement. Mobeen earned his Bachelor of Science in Computer Engineering and his Master of Science in Wireless Communications from Rutgers, and his MBA from Columbia.

Discussion Points:

• What would you consider to be your 'Digital Thread'?
  
• Tell us a bit about Inzigo. What inspired you to create it? What are some of the early lessons that it taught you?
  
• You began your career as the Chief Marketing Officer for AT&T's Advanced Mobility Solutions before rising to the position of Vice President of Strategy for the Internet of Things. What exactly was your role, and what were some of the most notable victories you had during your time there?
  
  
• To connect assets, telcos used their conductivity footprint to extend from connecting people to connecting machines. Who among the Telcos did you believe performed the best job with their IoT initiatives?
  
  
• You and Ray Ozzie founded Blues Wireless in January 2020. What prompted you to co-found the company, and what are your main offerings.
  
  
• What have been some interesting use cases you’ve seen of Notecard?
  
  
• Your value proposition seeks to simplify the device's connection to the cloud, referring to your Notecard as a data pump, which I find intriguing. How has this accelerated IoT development compared to other methods?
  
  
• You've also begun investing in other companies through the Mentors Fund. Tell us a little bit about the fund and your investment thesis.
  
  
• Tell us about the key trends you're noticing in your work with the Mentors Fund and at Blues Wireless.