Welcome to this 56th 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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This is what I noticed this week, thank you for sharing this newsletter to those who look into the future.
Competitive Intelligence
Google introduces multisearch. Thomson Reuters to review contracts, including for database used to track immigrants. New espionage group is targeting corporate M&A. The Risks of Posting too Much Information. Searching the Arabic web. Removing your personally identifiable information from Search. This is a list of RSS feeds for government CERTS.
Strategic blindspots
Looking at the familiar with “alien eyes” allows you to unlock new business model opportunities while avoiding risks stemming from strategic blindspots.
Google just filed a trademark for the Pixel Watch name. John Deere is becoming one of the world's most important AI companies. Zoom is bringing gesture control to the office. Critical Thinking Is About Asking Better Questions. A Working Theory for NYC’s One Bedroom Apartment Shortage. Disney moves into "aspirational furniture". Are you a TWAT?
We have scheduled the dates for 2022 for our “Strategic Blindspot course . Our next course will be offered in Montreal on October 26-27, 2022. Registrations are now open.
Our future
A 3D printer To Treat Infertility. Predicting the Future of Food. "The Future of Protein". 2022 AgriFoodTech Investment Report . The Supersonic Plane That Could Change Everything. Championing no food marketing to under-16s. A Data-Centric Odyssey of Human Generation. China's Weibo shows user locations to combat 'bad behavior'. Airbnb leads the way to the office of the future. TheMall aims to have 100 floors . Five predictions about music streaming’s future.
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?
L’arroseur arrosé: H&M Copies a Chinese Designer. The selfie drone. Balenciaga wraps store in pink faux fur. Seat gap fillers. Bill Would Force Drunken Drivers to Support Victims’ Children. Tropicana Is Dropping a Cereal Fans Can Eat with Orange Juice. Post Secret Voicemail. Tesla, Target, and Disney now have logos you can see from space. 'Cash stuffing'. Turning This Trial into Fanfiction. Rocket Lab catches falling rocket with a helicopter.
Down the rabbit hole
This section highlights a subject that lead me to many useful threads, or a single site, that opened many doors.
This week, I went down the rabbit hole into the Usborne Book of the Future.
Hodgepodge discovery
Articles for curious minds and the polymaths …
Recombinant Uncertainty in Technological Search. Gummy Bears, 100 Years On. Hole-in-one insurance. Why is the chip so addictive? To Retain Employees, Support Their Passions Outside Work. Does This Water Have Legal Rights? 24 Hours in the Creative Life of Artists.
Thank you this week for the inspiration: from the newsletter of my colleague Mitch Joel Six Pixels of Separation.
Feeling Good
Quarantine fine dining. Napoleon called her France's Chief Air Minister of Ballooning. Scorsese's Film Foundation Launches Free Virtual Theater. On the hour, for fifteen minutes. What Your Neighborhood Looked Like Millions of Years Ago. Recommend me a book.
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Contact me at Competia with your feedback or ideas. Thank you for reading.