Presenter and tech journalist James Daggar-Nickson hosts a new weekly technology show, Swipe, on Nine and Sky’s new Your Money channel Tuesdays at 8.30pm.

We sat down with James  to get his tips on ASX tech investing

>> Read Stockhead’s weekly ASX tech stock wrap here.

He says when looking into which of the many tech stocks to invest in, it’s worth focusing on the ones who are looking for opportunities amid widespread disruption.

What most excites you about the technology sector?

The fast-paced nature of tech is extraordinary. The rate at which we are seeing innovation and the scale at which it is impacting everything around us is unprecedented.

From an enterprise perspective that rapid change is often seen through the prism of disruption.

That’s entirely understandable, especially for those businesses and industries that haven’t prepared for the pace of change. The notion that technology is only impacting the tech sector is naïve at best and ignorant at worst.

Every industry and corner of an individual’s life is being impacted by advances in technology. The key is to view the ‘disruption’ as an opportunity.

Where do Australia tech companies rank in terms of leading research?

Research has never been a problem in Australia. We have an excellent reputation for quality research when it comes to technology.

Understandably we’ve tended to excel in areas that reflect us as a people and our environment: agriculture, health, renewables and so on.

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The problem we’ve had is taking that quality research and commercialising it. There’s a number of reasons for the ‘why’ that has been the case.

What’s encouraging is the realisation of the problem and the steps being undertaken to address it — such as increased funding opportunities/avenues and better alignment and ties between universities and the private sector.

What sort of trends should investors focus on in the tech sector? Which might we see in the future?

I was fortunate enough to cover Telstra Vantage 2018 earlier this month which brought together some exciting new technologies for both the consumer and enterprise space.

In particular, the evolution of AR and its use-cases, drone technology and IoT [Internet of Things] advances were stand-outs.

What are the key factors investors should look for when choosing technology stocks? 

The ASX tech stocks that have performed well are those that provide a service or product that have an addressable market beyond Australia.

A global market view is crucial.

Also of great value from an investor perspective is a network effect when looking at scale.

 

Your Money is available on Foxtel Chanel 601 and free-to-air channel 95.

He hosts Trading Day: The Countdown and Trading Day: The Open weekdays from 9am AEST and is also the anchor of new technology program Swipe, which airs on Tuesday nights at 8:30pm AEST.