Real time changes everything

Written by Dave Wallace
5th July 2024

My campaign for clean water kicked up a gear recently when I took possession of a small but very cool-looking handheld microbiological lab.

In the next few years, the banking world will become real time

The Fluidion Alert 1 is the latest technology in water sampling. It enables a water sample to be taken from a source and tested for E. coli in a matter of hours.

It’s a game-changer, allowing for almost real-time results. This starkly contrasts the traditional process, which involves taking a sample, sending it to a lab, and waiting for days or even weeks for the results. The lab process has been used for decades—the water industry and regulations are based on it.

However, it is manual and labour-intensive. A lab technician counts the number of E. coli colonies in a particular sample, which is used to generate the so-called MPN (most probable number), which factors in a few parameters to give the result. It requires trained lab staff working in accredited laboratories, both of which are at a premium, and the final result is actually an estimate rather than a precise figure. This remains the de facto standard to this day.

However, over the last few years, several trends have meant that technology is finally catching up. The Covid pandemic in particular led to some seismic advances in how bacteria and viruses are detected.

Water-borne pathogen monitoring has been transformed with a technique called loop-mediated isothermal amplification (LAMP). Don’t you love an acronym? For those interested, LAMP is an isothermal amplification technique that amplifies the target genetic sequences of a sample rapidly and under constant temperature conditions (typically around 65°C).

In layperson’s terms, you cook a sample with a reagent, which causes the bugs in the sample to multiply quickly.

The Fluidion device uses LAMP, and the really clever bit comes next. As the LAMP reaction progresses, it produces a detectable fluorescent signal. This signal indicates the presence of the target pathogen’s genetic material (for example, E. coli DNA). Essentially, the E. coli DNA glows with a specific colour when a light is shone through it, which means that the machine can count it—which it does. So, you get an EXACT result, not a guestimate.

So, we have a handheld device that can be used by anyone with minimal training. It is more accurate than what has been available previously and is fast—so fast that it’s almost real time. And its price point puts it into the hands of the masses. The water industry is about to have its “internet” moment and is already starting to feel its impact. Citizens can now take control of something that used to be in the hands of professionals.

I have recently had a run-in with the water industry. They don’t seem to realise what’s about to happen. It’s like the early days of the internet when bankers used to say that the internet would be a passing fad.

However, the most significant impact will be the arrival of real time, which changes everything. The inefficiencies and delays of traditional sampling methods will be no more and regulation will have to evolve to take real time into account. It will mean transparency. A topic that bamboozles almost everyone outside the water industry (try working out bathing quality status using percentiles) will now become accessible to all.

So, this device is not just a tool; it’s a revolution in the water industry. It also represents a technology-led transformation as devices become more connected, storage and detection capabilities increase, and machine learning and AI are utilised, enabling the final jump from almost real time to real time.

It’s the equivalent of the arrival of the smartphone. Like the iPhone, it is about to change everything. It’s also like the arrival of fintech, symbolised by the arrival of Revolut in the banking industry.

Revolut put FX trading into people’s hands through mobile devices. It was beautifully designed, and it was easy to understand what was going on. It opened up an opaque industry run by traders into something accessible to all. It made the process transparent and real time (for the user). The banking industry was forced to sit up and take notice. Revolut has built on this to become a global challenger, making complex finance more inclusive. It has shaped its proposition around making the complex more inclusive but doing it in real time. And the banking industry has been forced to follow its lead.

Machine learning and AI are supercharging what is happening in banking. In the next few years, the banking world will become real time. Like in the water industry, this changes everything. Regulation will have to keep up, and the banking industry, which has long relied on inefficiency to make money, will be forced to think about alternative ways of making money.

It’s a sunny morning. I am just heading off to get another water test. Let’s see what it says in a few hours.

About the author

Dave Wallace is a user experience and marketing professional who has spent the last 30 years helping financial services companies design, launch and evolve digital customer experiences.