Rio's McIntosh says tech skills battle can be won

Rio Tinto's growth and innovation group executive Steve McIntosh agrees miners are in a big fight with competing industries for the technical skills they need to maximise returns from smart machines, and data, but it's one he doesn't feel they need to back away from.

Richard Roberts in Toronto

Work in progress: Rio Tinto's remote operations centre in Western Australia

Mining has tended to project itself as a laggard when it comes to using advanced information and other technologies - the contrast with the aerospace, modern media, financial services, military and other sectors generally accentuated by mainstream media coverage.