Forget the low-brow beach novels this summer. Why not instead explore a new technology, meet like-minded professionals, build your own prototype, and contribute to the success of an entrepreneur in the developing world? And you can still go to the beach.

Registration is now open for Touch IoT with SAP Leonardo, an exciting new massive open online course (MOOC) that lets you explore the Internet of Things (IoT) with the help of SAP Leonardo, SAP’s newly expanded digital innovation system. Presented on SAP’s award-winning openSAP learning platform, this course gets you up to speed on advanced technologies like IoT, drones, blockchain technology, artificial intelligence, and autonomous vehicles. Get a firsthand look at current use cases and how SAP is putting these technologies to work in business.

The course runs June 7 until July 27 and is open to experts and non-experts alike, with no prerequisite technical knowledge required. People who will benefit from this hands-on learning experience include IT professionals, business decision makers, developers, as well as technology explorers who are interested in finding out more about how technologies are impacting the world around them.

Enroll in Touch IoT with SAP Leonardo here.

Register now for Touch IoT with SAP Leonardo, a new course to explore the Internet of Things. Starts June 7!

SAP Leonardo: Powering Digital Business

Introduced on the main stage at SAPPHIRE NOW in Orlando on May 16, the new SAP Leonardo is a digital innovation system on SAP Cloud Platform and SAP HANA, delivered in real time. Previously known as SAP’s brand for IoT, the SAP Leonardo portfolio has been expanded to include differentiated software capabilities like machine learning, artificial intelligence, blockchain technology, and analytics – all foundational technologies for today’s digital business. Find out more about SAP Leonardo from Mala Anand, executive vice president and president of SAP Leonardo, Data & Insights at SAP: Introducing SAP Leonardo.

In his keynote at SAPPHIRE NOW, SAP CEO Bill McDermott defined digital business as “intelligently connecting people, things, and businesses. If we do it right, you can know more, care more, and do more for your customers.” During his speech, he identified the two keys to unlocking digital business: data and speed. IoT is an integral technology in this new era of business.

“The shift to digital business is inevitable. Just consider that IoT currently enables over 150,000 devices to connect to the Internet every minute, and that number is going to grow exponentially in the coming years,” says Vernon Turner, senior vice president and research fellow, IDC, and guest speaker for Touch IoT with SAP Leonardo. “This deluge of data and the speed of information coming into enterprises makes it clear that they will have to become digital businesses that put customers at the center of each and every business decision.”

openSAP Enterprise MOOC Platform: Design Thinking, Crowdsourcing, Gamification

Touch IoT with SAP Leonardo introduces learners to the various capabilities and use cases for advanced technologies that are rapidly transforming how we live and work. The focus of this course is on IoT as an entry point into the new world of digitalizing business, covering fundamental topics such as sensors and the cloud, as well as new interaction paradigms, like augmented reality and wearables. Those who participated in the forerunner for this course, Imagine IoT, will find plenty of fresh material to explore, as this new course includes not only sensors and connectivity for IoT, but also drones, blockchain technology, and autonomous vehicles.

The course is delivered on the openSAP platform, which offers a broad range of business and IT courses modeled on advanced learning techniques like design thinking, crowdsourcing, gamification, and build-your-own-app challenges. The course format includes guest sessions presented by leading industry experts from IDC, Intel, and Technology Business Research. Active discussion forums, near real-time access to course leaders, and plenty of demos are just some of the highlights of what learners can expect from this course.

During one hands-on exercise, learners will get acquainted with SAP Connected Goods with a twist: they will participate as if they were a connected thing. They will then analyze data across the entire class of globally distributed learners, taking into consideration factors like location and weather. The resultant   big data correlations will depend on the snapshot of the participants’ data.

IoT Prototype Challenge for Charity

Similar to Imagine IoT, this course will include a prototype challenge with a peer review process. In this exercise, learners will have access to the user interfaces for SAP Connected Goods. To facilitate learning, they can use recommended templates as a basis for their prototypes. Feedback on the prototypes will be gathered through peer review and voting.

The top five prototypes will each receive an Intel NUC mini-PC, which can be used in an IoT context or as a way to interface with connected devices. The top 200 prototypes will receive USD$25 vouchers to fund an entrepreneur of their choice in the developing world through Kiva, an international nonprofit organization that provides micro-lending services in the developing world. “This is the biggest thing we’ve done, where all of the top 200 submitters get some interaction with this micro-lending platform,” says course developer Bob Caswell, senior product manager, SAP. “It’s all good and well to connect things in the world, but let’s not forget about connecting people. That does a lot of good that doesn’t otherwise happen.”

Sign up today for Touch IoT with SAP Leonardo at openSAP.