News 13.03.2024

Need to Know

A daily recap from SXSW, Louis Vuitton opens first Singapore chocolate store and Vodafone launches Aggro-rithm online safety campaign

SXSW 2024 daily recap: AI as a 24/7 professor and the difficulty with engineering XR devices

Humane AI pin, US

US – As SXSW 2024 unfolds, the enthusiasm for new technologies is increasingly evident. According to futurist Amy Webb, the presence of over 1,500 AI panels at this year’s SXSW speaks volumes, as do the queues forming for discussions led by luminaries like the head of ChatGPT.

During a captivating conversation, Josh Constine, former editor-in-chief at TechCrunch, turned venture partner at venture capital firm SignalFire, engaged in an insightful dialogue with Peter Deng, head of ChatGPT at OpenAI, addressing the core question around defining humanity’s role in an era dominated by artificial intelligence (AI). Deng emphatically asserted that AI’s ascent does not entail the replacement of humans, but rather serves to amplify our capabilities by ‘enabling us to go deeper and explore things we’re wondering about’. Deng suggested that AI’s integration into daily life will foster cognitive enhancement, citing examples like his own nine-year-old child learning programming with ChatGPT’s assistance. When pressed about ChatGPT’s societal role, Deng stated that the main goal is to provide ‘flexible tools that let people remove barriers from the goals they have’.

Expanding beyond the confines of screens and into immersive environments, SXSW has placed significant emphasis on mixed reality (XR) with an experience hall showcasing exhibits like MetaQuest, The Golden Key and Impulse. Notably, the This Week In XR podcast explored XR in the age of Vision Pro, with a discussion featuring Rony Abovitz, former Magic Leap executive and founder and CEO of synthetic beings start-up Sun and Thunder, who emphasised the unique challenges of creating XR devices: ‘Engineering XR devices is harder than projects like SpaceX because we’ve already gone to space. We haven’t done anything like this before.’

While acknowledging the impressive clarity and saturation of colours offered by devices like Apple Vision Pro and Oculus, the panel critiqued the weightiness of the hardware, singling out the design choices by Apple’s Tim Cook. Abovitz, expressing his discontent, remarked: ‘I’m 6’ 2", played football in high school, and this thing is heavy. It’s not something you should wear around your neck. How can you expect to wear this while working all day?’

Concluding the discussion, the panellists turned their attention to the future potential of XR devices, contemplating their capacity to integrate the functionalities of four to five essential devices – such as phones, laptops, tablets and TVs – into a singular unit. They highlighted the cumbersome nature of current headsets, suggesting that a shift towards a design akin to smart glasses could address this issue, especially considering the existing requirement for tethering headsets to a battery pack.

Strategic opportunity

Facilitating collaboration and knowledge-sharing among industry leaders, policy-makers and consumers will be pivotal in propelling future innovations in AI and XR technologies. Peter Deng emphasises the imperative for continued acceleration in the development of such technologies -– but notes that deployment should be approached with caution. Implementing an ongoing feedback loop between enterprises and consumers will ensure they meet evolving needs and expectations.

Louis Vuitton opens first chocolate store in Singapore

Le Chocolat Maxime Frédéric by Louis Vuitton, Singapore Le Chocolat Maxime Frédéric by Louis Vuitton, Singapore
Le Chocolat Maxime Frédéric by Louis Vuitton, Singapore Le Chocolat Maxime Frédéric by Louis Vuitton, Singapore

Singapore – Luxury fashion house Louis Vuitton has taken a delectable leap beyond its French borders with the inauguration of Le Chocolat Maxime Frédéric, an exquisite chocolate shop nestled within its Marina Bay Sands flagship store in Singapore. Breaking ground as the brand’s first chocolate venture outside France, the delightful haven promises a fusion of artisanal craftsmanship and haute couture sensibilities.

Named after its visionary founder, Maxime Frédéric, renowned head pastry chef at Cheval Blanc Paris, the establishment echoes the ethos of Louis Vuitton, drawing parallels between the meticulous skills of artisans in both realms. Frédéric expresses this connection, stating: ‘This is all about artisanal craftsmanship, and is totally comparable to our craft as pastry chefs, bakers and chocolatiers.’

Curated to captivate residents and global travellers alike, the confectionery marvel unveils a range of chocolates inspired by Louis Vuitton’s iconic design codes. From Vivienne on Malle to The Petula and Monogram tablets, each creation is a testament to Frédéric’s culinary artistry and passion for top-quality ingredients.

As explored in Five Luxury Brands Recrafting Heritage In-Store, several luxury brands, such as Louis Vuitton, are opening flagship and pop-up stores with new codes of craft and heritage embedded into the physical destination.

Strategic opportunity

Embrace your brand’s heritage and craftsmanship, infusing it into physical destinations. Can you redesign flagship stores to incorporate new codes of craft and heritage, creating an immersive and memorable environment for customers?

La Prairie takes luxury skincare to the slopes

La Prairie Cobalt Pop-Up at Aspen Mountain, US La Prairie Cobalt Pop-Up at Aspen Mountain, US

US – Luxury skincare brand La Prairie has taken to the slopes for a pop-up store at the base of Aspen Mountain in Colorado.

Between 8 and 10 March, guests could ‘take their skincare ritual to new heights’ by enjoying luxury eye treatments in a branded gondola to celebrate the launch of the brand’s new Skin Caviar Eye Lift. After a tiring day skiing, hand massages and hot cocoa were also available in the Cobalt Chalet, named after the brand’s iconic cobalt blue packaging, in addition to branded skis and goggles for photo opportunities.

La Prairie’s pop-up marks the latest brand activation experimenting in the luxury ski tourism sector, associating the new skincare product with an aspirational alpine lifestyle.

In our Five Luxury Leisure Pop-Ups report we identified how other luxury brands such as Burberry and Louis Vuitton have hosted brand activations on the Chinese and Japanese mountains, respectively. By targeting seasonal tourism resorts, luxury brands are injecting a renewed sense of ephemeral exclusivity into the sector.

Strategic opportunity

A seasonal resort brand partnership is a clever way to engage with HNWIs as they relax on holiday; luxury brands can use leisure or sports collections with key target customers in exclusive locations

Stat: Vodafone UK partners with Global Action Plan for online safety

'The rise of the aggro-rithm' Campaign by Vodafone, UK 'The rise of the aggro-rithm' Campaign by Vodafone, UK

UK – Vodafone UK has joined forces with Global Action Plan to advocate for online safety, urging UK regulators to prioritise safety in the development of online platforms. They’re rallying support through a petition, highlighting concerning statistics: one in 10 boys aged 11–14 in Britain encounters harmful online content within a minute of browsing. These harmful materials, often fuelled by AI algorithms, propagate misogynistic and violent ideologies, affecting young boys’ perceptions of masculinity.

To address this issue, Vodafone has collaborated with children’s charity NSPCC to create a toolkit empowering parents with the tools to navigate the digital landscape safely. The prevalence of negative content is alarming, with over half of young boys exposed to influencer content associated with the manosphere, where misogynistic views thrive. Such exposure can lead to desensitisation and the endorsement of offensive ideologies.

In line with findings from our upcoming Generations: Now and Next 2024–2025 report, the campaign underlines the need for vigilance and proactive measures to safeguard children’s online experiences, ensuring they can explore the internet safely and enjoy its benefits without exposure to harmful content.

Strategic opportunity

Brands that operate online need to not only consider building safeguards into their website to offer better protection, but also to petition further for legislative change. Consider offering parental control options, adhering to content guidelines and implementing age-appropriate content filters

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