Welcome to this 52nd 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.
We’re not on Clubhouse to discuss how to interpret some of those trends and weak signals most Saturdays at 9 am EST (we’re on tomorrow).
You can subscribe to this weekly newsletter here to get it directly by mail.
This is what I noticed this week, thank you for sharing this newsletter to those who look into the future.
Competitive Intelligence
Our links this week relate to OSINT techniques, ever so relevant these days:
What you need to know about Bing maps. Instant Messaging App OSINT Investigations Tips & Techniques. Facebook Intelligent Search. Facebook AI’s Demucs teaches AI to hear in a more human-like way. Receiving Data with Web Based Shortwave Radios. Search what you can see. A new way of searching for photos on the web.
Strategic blindspots
Looking at the familiar with “alien eyes” allows you to unlock new business model opportunities while avoiding risks stemming from strategic blindspots.
Transferable skills. The state of burnout for women. More People Are Coming Out of Retirement. Audi Owner Finds Basic HVAC Function Paywalled. Storms batter aging power grid as climate disasters spread. Can a soccer club become a luxury brand? Amazon’s Project Kuiper contracted for “the largest commercial procurement of space launch services in history”. How Web3 will revolutionize photography. Social ads have gotten so expensive that it’s starting to be cheaper for brands to open up physical stores than it is to target people on instagram.
We have scheduled the dates for 2022 for our “Advanced Analysis”course . Our next course will be offered in an hybrid format on June 9-10 ( online - or in person in Montreal). Registrations are now open.
Our future
More health and beauty brands want your DNA. Generation Mute: when silence becomes a trend. Slow travellers. Peek into the future. NASA Tries New Ways, Fluid Materials to Build Giant Space Telescope. Robots And The Resilient Spirit Of “Techspitality” In The Food Business. Indoor Farming to Reach an Estimated $155.6B by 2026. 2022 digital media consumption habits. Micromobility charges up for 2022. Forget Logos, Fashion Houses Are Clamoring for Colors.
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?
Dystopiacore gym routines. Delicore' s style inspired by bagels and babkas. LinkedIn now has a way for people to formally classify their time away from paid work. Dystopian vibes or Shanghai’s new COVID lockdown. A five-course meal via conveyor belt. Farfetch and Neiman Marcus Teaming Up to Take on U.S. Luxury. Ergo ‘Will’, the first person experiencing homelessness in the metaverse. Google is offering employees a free Unagi escooter subscription to bring them back the office. An Institute of Infinite Curiosity. Old enough. When Austrians get electronics fixed, their government foots half of the bill.
Join us to discuss those trends and signals every Saturday at 9am EST on Clubhouse. We have a panel of futurists that illustrate what those signals might mean, and a fantastic group of curious minds in the room.
On our radar
I teach a class on social media whistleblowing and its impact on corporate governance for the Institute of Corporate Directors all over Canada: one of the cases I have developed is the case of the firing of Mozilla’s CEO. A new timeline appeared on my radar this week.
Hodgepodge discovery
Articles for curious minds and the polymaths …
Special report about the circular economy. How we lost our sensory connection with food. The Wizard of Oz as an Allegory for the 1896 Presidential Election. The man who stole maple syrup. Creative imitation: exploring the case of cross-industry innovation. Residents share their daily data to help build a new city in South Korea.
A few readings for our francophone readers who came in troves last week: Le nom , c’est l’homme.
I learned a new word: Cryptomedia.
I have extracted some of the news this week from the refreshing newsletter L’Intimiste: “Tout le monde a le droit, à ses heures, de préférer l'écume des jours à l'écume de l'actualité”. Perfect for our polymaths…
Feeling Good
Nostalgic illustrations. Sounds of the forest. Public pianos. Under water. The gardens that survived for centuries. Marvel used to publish their shareholder reports as comics. Digital art that buys freedom.
Photo: Breathe in the fresh forest air. Luis Del Rio Camacho/Unsplash, CC BY-NC
Share your favorite issues of the newsletter, or send friends - or random strangers… A special shout-out to 15Marches this week who referred me in their newsletter and sent me many many new subscribers (if you read French, check their curated list of newsletters, it is awesome)!
And do not miss the next issue:
Contact me at Competia with your feedback or ideas. Thank you for reading.