Welcome to this 43rd 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.
Join us on Clubhouse to discuss how to interpret some of those trends and weak signals most Saturday 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
The world’s largest public source of unfiltered flight data. A 19-year-old built a flight-tracking Twitter bot. Busting the Myth That There’s Little Data on Private Companies. Neudata launches ESG data scouting tool. Enhancing investments decisions through website traffic data. How Corporate Intelligence Teams Help Businesses Manage Risk:
A survey of 94 private-sector intelligence professionals revealed that their positions were often created in response to a “threat or crisis.” In the aftermath of terror attacks, cyber assaults, disinformation campaigns, and sudden political shifts, companies belatedly realized that a small investment in situational awareness is better than costly late reaction to unanticipated problems.
For those who need to master online competitive research We offer advanced search techniques courses online.
Strategic blindspots
Looking at the familiar with “alien eyes” allows you to unlock new business model opportunities while avoiding risks stemming from strategic blindspots.
Monetizing video games data. GM-Backed Cruise Launches Driverless Ride Service. Mapping the polycrisis. Losses Mount for Startups Racing to Deliver Groceries. Second-Order Thinking. The SPAC Ship Is Sinking. Who owns your address in AR? Probably not you. The Way You Think Everything Is Connected Isn’t the Way Everything Is Connected. Beyond the video games acquisition craze. How one company took over the NFT trade. What is the point of imagining new technologies without new ways of living and this quote:
Such recycled futures that regurgitate the same office or kitchen from decades past masquerade as innovation to suck the life out of other possibilities
We have scheduled the dates for 2022 for our “Strategic Blindspots”course . Our next cohort which will take place in Montreal, Canada, on April 26-27, 2022. Registrations are open.
Our future
The Meta Trending Trends: 2022 (now that is a mouthful). The world is getting much, much better. This hot-air balloon will take you around the world. This red-team designed scenarios for the French Army (in French). To weaponize your own voice against you. Robots aren't people. If anything, they're animals. Vices and Virtues in Web3. How AI Digital twins help weather the world’s supply chain nightmare. A wireless charging road. The next generation of space habitats will be privately-owned. A website with closing hours.
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?
Casa Bonita Paying Employees To Perform Community Service During Renovation Period. The kids’ search engine. Bee bricks become planning requirement for new buildings. Data Funerals. Data unions. Telfar TV. The new doomsday-inspired, leather-infused fashion aesthetic. The uncensored library. Shopify CEO Tobi Lütke to join board at cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase. Immersive hosting. The new hire who showed up is not the same person we interviewed.
Capturing and Colliding and this quote:
the importance of capturing your early-stage hunches, and revisiting them over time in the context of new ideas or projects
Join us to discuss those trends and signals every Saturday at 9am EST on Clubhouse ( we start back on January 8). 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 was finalizing this week the course I am teaching for the Executive MBA McGill-HEC, and have designed a growth path foresight exercise around Amazon: Amazon reimagines in-store shopping with Amazon Style, Amazon’s palm reading. Amazon Paid for a High School Course. Everything you need to know about Amazon Style. Over half of consumers would buy Amazon insurance products. Dropshipping through Amazon. Amazon Private Label. In-Depth Study of All 88 Amazon Private Label Brands.
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 list of 2021 visualization lists and it is beautiful.
Hodgepodge discovery
Articles for curious minds and the polymaths …
Gaps in music: The neuroscience of pauses. The Chinese Typewriter: A History. The Concept of Cozy Home Decor Looks Like Around the World. Off the grid. Axolotls are everywhere. Tree thinking. Great video of the Aftermath of the Biggest Eruption Ever Seen from Space. How Philosophers Think. Routine Maintenance. Opportunities at the Intersection of Web3 and Social Change (Google docs).
I have published this week a yearly review of the top 70 newsletters curious minds are reading in 2022.
Feeling Good
View shade. A wiki history game. Weird Old Book Finder. Imaginary friends.
The image illustrating this week is Explainable AI by Alexa Steinbrück.
Share your favorite issues of the newsletter, or send friends - or random strangers…
And do not miss the next issue:
Contact me at Competia with your feedback or ideas. Thank you for reading.