# Submarines, IoT, and Intrapreneurship with Ericsson's Rob Tiffany

- Show: [Manufacturing Happy Hour](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/manufacturing-happy-hour)
- Published: 2021-09-28
- Length: 53m
- Page: https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/manufacturing-happy-hour/2021-09-28-submarines-iot-and-intrapreneurship-with-ericssons-rob-tiffany
- Listen: http://manufacturinghappyhour.com

## Summary

Rob Tiffany, VP of IoT and Intrapreneurship at Ericsson, discusses his career path from serving on US Navy submarines to leading IoT initiatives at Microsoft, Hitachi, and Ericsson. He explains that IoT is often overcomplicated, citing the complexity of integrating hardware, software, and security, which leads to high failure rates in proof-of-concept projects. Tiffany highlights successful industrial applications like Hitachi's 'trains as a service' model and his current work at Ericsson on 'Project Thunderstruck' to reduce vendor lock-in and enhance security. He also shares insights on intrapreneurship within large corporations and his non-profit work with the Moab Foundation for sustainability.

## Chapters

- [0:00](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/manufacturing-happy-hour/2021-09-28-submarines-iot-and-intrapreneurship-with-ericssons-rob-tiffany#t=0) Introduction and Navy Submarine Experience
- [12:02](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/manufacturing-happy-hour/2021-09-28-submarines-iot-and-intrapreneurship-with-ericssons-rob-tiffany#t=722) Lessons from Submarines and Career Transition
- [23:13](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/manufacturing-happy-hour/2021-09-28-submarines-iot-and-intrapreneurship-with-ericssons-rob-tiffany#t=1393) Early IoT: Vending Machines and Microsoft
- [29:59](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/manufacturing-happy-hour/2021-09-28-submarines-iot-and-intrapreneurship-with-ericssons-rob-tiffany#t=1799) Why IoT Underperforms: Complexity and Security
- [33:36](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/manufacturing-happy-hour/2021-09-28-submarines-iot-and-intrapreneurship-with-ericssons-rob-tiffany#t=2016) Hitachi's 'Trains as a Service' Success
- [39:40](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/manufacturing-happy-hour/2021-09-28-submarines-iot-and-intrapreneurship-with-ericssons-rob-tiffany#t=2380) Intrapreneurship at Ericsson and Project Thunderstruck
- [48:24](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/manufacturing-happy-hour/2021-09-28-submarines-iot-and-intrapreneurship-with-ericssons-rob-tiffany#t=2904) The Moab Foundation and Sustainability

## Topics

- [Connected products & IoT](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/connected-products-and-iot)
- [Security & privacy](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/security-and-privacy)
- [Leadership, teams & culture](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/leadership-and-culture)
- [Careers & education](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/engineering-careers-and-education)

## Most relevant to

large enterprises

## Mentioned

- Rob Tiffany (other)
- Ericsson (company)
- Microsoft (company)
- Hitachi (company)
- Azure IoT (product)
- Lumada (product)
- Project Thunderstruck (product)
- Moab Foundation (other)
- The Innovator’s Dilemma (other)

## Related episodes from other shows

- [The OG of IoT: A Chat w/ Rob Tiffany (Part 1)](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/over-the-air/2022-01-04-the-og-of-iot-a-chat-w-rob-tiffany-part-1) (Over the Air)
- [The Future of the IoT Connectivity Landscape | Ericsson’s Rob Tiffany](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/iot-for-all-podcast/2020-10-05-the-future-of-the-iot-connectivity-landscape-ericssons-rob-tiffany) (IoT For All Podcast)
- [#014: Why Your IoT Project Still Hasn’t Taken Off — And How to Fix It](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/coredump-sessions/2025-08-05-014-why-your-iot-project-still-hasnt-taken-off-and-how-to-fix-it) (Coredump Sessions)
- [Maturity and Adoption in the IoT Space | Avnet's Mike Powell & Avnet Abacus' Martin Keenan](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/iot-for-all-podcast/2020-11-16-maturity-and-adoption-in-the-iot-space-avnets-mike-powell-avnet-abacus-martin-ke) (IoT For All Podcast)
- [Industrial IoT and Connectivity | Simply Embedded's Chris Karaplis | Internet of Things Podcast](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/iot-for-all-podcast/2025-11-11-industrial-iot-and-connectivity-simply-embeddeds-chris-karaplis-internet-of-thin) (IoT For All Podcast)

## Citing this page

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