It is not symptomatic that the chair in front of the laptop, at the corner of the table, is empty. Nobody went to the restroom; the machine has its place, and the chair in front is there for show. On May 13, 2014, the “high-risk” investment company Deep Knowledge, based in Hong Kong, announced that it had made the program VITAL “a member of its board of directors.” VITAL is a specialized program for investment evaluation, which in the case of Deep Knowledge is equipped with a database related to biotechnology companies and all related fields, as well as the latest techno-scientific developments in the sector. VITAL participates in board discussions and has voting rights.
The truth is that with this decision the human part of Deep Knowledge’s board simply made a public relations move. There are better software options in this category. While the use of computers with “decision-making” software is trivial in stock companies – in the position of “special employee”.
This does not prevent the symbolic nature of the decision for VITAL. With two or three additional such participations, the remaining (human) members of the various boards could focus on other activities that are customary in such cases for executives. Trips, expensive habits, etc. It is a “release,” however one might view it…