Welcome to this 92nd issue of our newsletter “Weak Signals and other Trends”. Each week, I sift through hundreds of sources of inspiration to track where we’re heading. If you are a new subscriber to this newsletter, take the time to send me a note and introduce yourself, I love to understand who is reading.
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I am preparing this newsletter this Friday from Zurich, Switzerland. This is what I noticed this week, thank you for sharing with those who look into the future.
Estelle.
Competitive Intelligence
Pentagon sees giant cargo cranes as possible Chinese spying tools. 1 dataset. 100 visualizations. Machines can now detect when bullish executives doubt their own words.
We have scheduled the dates for 2023 for our courses. “Adva nced Search Techniques for Competitive and Customer Intelligence” will be offered on February 15, 2023. Registrations are now open.
Strategic blindspots
Looking at the familiar with “alien eyes” allows you to unlock new business model opportunities while avoiding risks from strategic blindspots.
Ford’s 14-page patent application for a system that could make it easier to repossess a car with self-driving tech. Netflix is hiring consumer products people to create merchandise around its shows. The business of menopause is projected to be a $600B market by 2025. From the plane to your Uber. Why the Floppy Disk Just Won’t Die . How a retailer Design Studio Packaged a Nation’s Dreams. How ChatGPT Recipes Compare to Chef Recipe. Your Competitors Aren’t Always Who You Think They Are.
A throwback to an article I published for the World Economic Forum: Why your business should be aware of its blind spots.
Our future
We are losing our sense of smell. Welcome to the summer of robots. Five Key Trends to Watch out for in AgriTech. A new biomaterial that could potentially aid in repairing tissue damage caused by heart attacks. Body doubling. Inside the lab that’s growing mushroom computers. Calibrating Experiences of the Future. A self healing data center. This Algorithm Could Ruin Your Life . The 2023 cyberthreats report. Farmers Turn To Robot Beehives, Tractors And Fruit Pickers. Why virtual city clones are the future of urban planning. Traffic Lights Could Have a 4th Color in The Future
This interview of Ezra Klein and this quote:
I think there’s a very deep attentiveness to the idea that revolutions, even that things you might really want, things we might really love have dark sides.
We keep you updated on those trends and more on Twitter.
Weak signals
Weak signals are indicators of a change, a trend or an emerging risk that might become significant for the future. They allow us to run hypothesis, expand our thinking, and challenge assumptions. How will you interpret those in your industry or field of expertise?
Insect farming startup targets pet food. Examining the business of camel cloning in Dubai. Ford filed a patent for using your connected car to harass you if you fall behind on your payments. ChatGPT is listed as a co-author of 200+ Kindle ebooks. People are rage quitting. TikTok Buddhist monks in Cambodia. Starbucks filed a patent application for a system that automates “color customization” for beverages. The Hyper-Realistic TikTok Beauty Filter. FDA is redefining ‘healthy.
Down the rabbit hole
This section highlights a subject that lead me to many useful threads, or a single site, that opened many doors: “A rabbit hole is not a distraction. A rabbit hole is your brain trying to tell you to pay attention to something you’re curious about. Ignore algorithmic rabbit holes” ( by are.na)
This week, I discovered the DashBoard of the Current Future.
Hodgepodge discovery
Articles for curious minds and the polymaths
I like new words, so the Dictionary.com new 313 words, including cakeism and hellscape came at the right time. This week, I looked up rage farming. The people behind ChatGPT. How Loneliness Reshapes the Brain. The bumblebees that solved puzzles. Social media usage by age. Plotting cars and carbon. America’s Highest Earners And Their Taxes Revealed.
Numbers
14- 14% of adult Gen Z use TikTok as the starting point for researching major news events compared to 2% of adults in general.
75%- While European and Asian countries have seen return-to-office rates of over 75%, the US is lagging behind at around half.
60%- In 2022, Americans spent ~$1B buying air fryers, ~60% of US homes now have the kitchen gadget.
Feeling good
One diary entry per day in 2023, written by a different person from history. The library of short stories. Doors touched. Wines in vulcanos. A snowplow naming contest. Patterns in the life of van Gogh .
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