News 28.02.2023

Need to Know

Airbag jeans provide protection for motorcyclists, Buscopan hijacks LFW with IBS advert, and demand for renewable energy workers on the rise.

New airbag jeans provide discreet protection for motorcyclists

Airbag Jeans by Mo’cycle, Sweden

Sweden – Although at first glance Mo’cycle’s trousers look like regular jeans, once activated, the breakthrough garment can inflate like an airbag to protect the wearer in case of an accident.

Swedish company Mo’cycle is introducing the next frontier in safety for motorcycle riders. After four years in the making, the firm is launching airbag jeans that are capable of protecting the rider’s lower body parts and first vertebra of the spine in case of accidents and crashes.

According to the company, the trousers can absorb 10 times the impact energy compared to traditional pads thanks to an innovative material, Armalith. Stronger and lighter than steel, the single-layer fabric is water-repellent, breathable and abrasion-resistant, but looks, feels and stretches like regular denim, promising comfort and convenience. In addition, the airbag jeans are re-usable and, like regular jeans, they can be machine washed and repeatedly worn.

Look out for our upcoming microtrend tracking the rise of upgraded protective clothing, which not only enhances safety, but also boosts confidence and style.

Strategic opportunity

Functional and protective gear that combines utility with convenience and style is a double whammy for consumers who want the benefits of highly technical garments and accessories without having to compromise on visual appeal

Buscopan hijacks London Fashion Week with IBS advert

Buscopan. Creative by MRM Spain, UK Buscopan. Creative by MRM Spain, UK
Buscopan. Creative by MRM Spain, UK Buscopan. Creative by MRM Spain, UK

UK – Against the backdrop of London Fashion Week, healthcare brand Buscopan launched the Fashion Cramps campaign, raising awareness of Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS) through a humorous shoot where high fashion meets cramps.

Fashion and IBS seemingly don’t have much in common, yet Buscopan and marketing agency MRM Spain used the media clout of London Fashion Week to draw attention to the digestive condition. The campaign draws an amusing parallel between the discomfort caused by IBS and the awkward poses of models in editorial-styled fashion imagery.

This unusual approach suggests that healthcare marketing can be creative and look beyond the medical field. ‘London Fashion Week was the perfect moment for Fashion Cramps, due to the intertwined relationships between this high-stress event and the symptoms of those suffering from the issues that Buscopan seeks to alleviate,’ explains Félix del Valle, chief creative officer at MRM Spain.

The growing interest in pre- and probiotic categories and efforts like Buscopan’s tie-up with popular culture indicate the potential of the Gut Health Market to further advance from niche to mainstream.

Strategic opportunity

Buscopan’s Fashion Cramps shows how using pop-culture moments for marketing can make campaigns feel more relatable.

Researchers ask US government for OpenAI legislation

US – OpenAI-powered ChatGPT has seemingly limitless communicative powers and now a group of researchers have asked the US government to restrict them.

Launched in November 2022, the chatbot has been used to write covering letters, dating app messages, poetry and pass an MBA exam.

But now researchers from OpenAI, Stanford and Georgetown Universities are concerned that as generative language models become more accessible they could be used to spread disinformation. The researchers wrote a study outlining potential threats and called on the US government to pursue a range of curtailments, including access controls, hardware export restrictions and media literacy campaigns.

‘We don’t want to wait until these models are deployed for influence operations at scale before we start to consider mitigations,’ says Josh A Goldstein, one of the lead authors of the report.

In Anti-provocation Platforms we talked about how the internet is increasingly seen as a civic space. For it to uphold values of civility, those that create tools for use online must be diligent, as these researchers are about protecting our mutual online spaces.

Silk to Silicon by Sebastian Koseda at Backlit Gallery, UK

Strategic opportunity

With popular social media platforms becoming ever more unpredictable, consumers are burnt out on online negativity. They want to know that there are online spaces that are trustworthy. Be unwavering in your commitment to keeping your online spaces safe and focused on their intended purposes.

Stat: Demand for renewable energy workers on the rise

Photography by Fauxels Photography by Fauxels

Global Workforce solutions firm Airswift surveyed 10,000 energy professionals to reveal that clean energy workers have the most in-demand skills. Almost eight in 10 were offered at least one new job in the past year.

Recruiters from various industries, including tech and fossil fuels, have their eye on renewable energy workers. But those with the in-demand skills are also looking for employers who align with their vision for the planet’s future.

Renewables workers are the most likely to care about their employers’ values, but this now goes beyond the environment and encompasses metrics such as their contribution to society and workplace flexibility,’ says Airswift CEO Janette Marx. ‘Green energy firms will now have to compete with fossil fuel firms on a wider range of metrics, from societal impact to flexibility, by creating more meaningful roles with KPIs linked to social as well as environmental contributions, and by reducing fixed hours and physical deployments.’

As renewables and nuclear energy will dominate the growth of global electricity production in the next three years, according to the International Energy Agency, firms that employ green energy workers will have to rethink their approach to sustainability to attract those skilled employees. In our upcoming Work States Futures macrotrend, we will analyse how employers need to understand this newly empowered generation of workers who question how, where and why they work.

Strategic opportunity

Firms wishing to invest in renewable energy experts will only attract those talents by setting ambitious sustainability targets, salaries, work-life balance and vision

Previous News Articles
Cash App taps Timothée Chalamet for youth-friendly money talk

News

Cash App taps Timothée Chalamet for youth-friendly money talk

Cash App has launched an integrated brand campaign featuring Academy Award-nominated actor Timothée Chalamet which aims to foster intergenerational...
Finance : Gen Z : Youth
Foresight Friday: Rose Coffey, senior foresight analyst

News

Foresight Friday: Rose Coffey, senior foresight analyst

Every Friday, The Future Laboratory team offers an end-of-week wrap-up of the topics, issues, ideas and virals we’re all talking about. This week, ...
Beauty : The Synthocene Era : Virtual Beauty
Stat: Southeast Asia is TikTok’s largest advertising audience

News

Stat: Southeast Asia is TikTok’s largest advertising audience

Southeast Asia now accounts for nearly a quarter of TikTok’s global advertising audience, according to the Digital 2025: July Statshot report.
Statistic : Stat : Southeast Asia
Spktrl’s AI diamond ring aims to cut screen time

News

Spktrl’s AI diamond ring aims to cut screen time

Parisian start-up Spktrl is reimagining wearable technology with the launch of its AI-powered Light Ring, a piece of high jewellery designed to cur...
Wellness : Augmented Human : The Synthocene Era
Represent launches in-person fitness competition 247 Mission Rivington

News

Represent launches in-person fitness competition 247 Mission Rivington

British fashion brand Represent has held its first-ever fitness event, 247 Mission Rivington, with 100 athletes competing in a 12‑hour endurance ch...
Sport : Fashion : Fitness
Stat: Technological innovation is driving the future of beauty

News

Stat: Technological innovation is driving the future of beauty

Wealth divides, digital tools and regional identity are reshaping the international beauty market, according to The State of Fashion: Beauty Volume...
Statistic : Stat : Beauty
AI-generated images of animals in plastic help WWF-Korea raise awareness about pollution

News

AI-generated images of animals in plastic help WWF-Korea raise awareness about pollution

WWF-Korea has launched Animal Trash Fashion, a powerful out-of-home campaign using AI to starkly illustrate the devastating impact of plastic pollu...
Sustainability : Design : Advertising
Rixo launches pre-loved resale platform

News

Rixo launches pre-loved resale platform

British fashion brand Rixo is expanding its circular ambitions with the launch of Rixo Pre-Loved, a resale platform where customers buy and sell it...
Retail : Fashion : Sutainability
Stat: Global business travel spending hits historic high

News

Stat: Global business travel spending hits historic high

Business travel is set to reach a record £1.18 trillion ($1.57 trillion, €1.36 trillion) by the end of 2025, according to ...
Stat : Statistic : Global Travel Market
Axe gamifies fragrance sampling with arcade-inspired bus stop activation

News

Axe gamifies fragrance sampling with arcade-inspired bus stop activation

Axe is making fragrance sampling fun again with a new campaign for its Cherry Fizz body spray.
Advertising : Fragrance : Retail
You have 2 free News articles remaining. Sign up to LS:N Global to get unlimited access to all articles.
BECOME A MEMBER
SIGN IN