July Issue 2013

On June 26, Karachi’s Marriott Hotel served as the venue for the launch of the 4th generation of Intel’s Core processor. The event started on time and for the first 30 minutes, attendees were introduced to the latest computers with enhanced HD graphics, increased user-interaction, especially through touch-screen technology, faster processing and improved security. Each attendee was also given a gift bag, which included a Dr Dre Beats headphone.

The exhibition was followed by a conference and the final unveiling of the processor chip. The conference room had an admirable design and had imposing projector screens on the stage. The setting immediately made one know that this was a tech launch. It was impressive how a ballroom was transformed into such a space. Naveed Siraj, country manager of Intel Pakistan, spoke animatedly, á la Steve Jobs, at the conference. He told the audience how the processor was conceived, what its specialty was and promised that it would exceed consumer expectation. He spent considerable time explaining Intel’s commitment to touch-screen technology, which he described as “intuitive and human.” He termed Intel’s quest in chip-making for the past 43 years as “khoob se khoobtar ki talaash” and said that this launch was “the most significant in Intel’s history.” The chip was brought onto the stage by two men in white suits pretending to be robots, before Siraj unveiled it. During the Q&A session, Siraj was asked whether Intel’s technology such as face recognition could be used by US spying services, to which he replied that he would not comment on some of the “unfortunate” uses of technology.