Media & Tech

Media Industry Trends : From consumer tech to digital futures and media innovations.

Experts & Opinion : Viewpoints

The Reluctant Futurists

By Martin Raymond 30 : 06 : 2023 Leadership : Society : Forecasting

LS:N Global’s editor-in-chief Martin Raymond discusses all things normal, but not so everyday – yet – with The Future Normal authors Rohit Bhargava and Henry Coutinho-Mason.

The Reluctant Futurists

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AI Companionship Market

AI Companionship Market:

Artificial intelligence is emerging as a solution to the growing loneliness crisis, providing virtual comfort and support through...

 AI : Loneliness Epidemic : Artificial Intellligence
The new normal: Gun violence in America

The new normal: Gun violence in America:

As gun violence reaches an epic scale, our US foresight analyst Carly Ettinger explores the rise of the gun safety tech market – and...

 Gun Safety : US : Security
Accredited Advice

Accredited Advice:

Emerging intelligent analysis and review tools are supporting underserved beauty consumers with more accurate haircare recommendations.

 Beauty : Health & Wellness : Technology
The Future of Ethical Banking

The Future of Ethical Banking:

Algbra’s ESG manager Marten Möller discusses the responsibility banks must take on in an equitable and ecologically conscious world.

 Technology : Finance : Sustainability
AI Believers

AI Believers:

Navigating the normacrisis era, Gen Z are turning to AI sanctuaries for on-demand, personalised spiritual fulfilment, exploring...

 AI : Spirituality : Technology
The future of responsible AI

The future of responsible AI:

The question is not whether AI can replace us but what role we play in ensuring that AI does not irreversibly harm humanity.

 AI : Ethics : Artificial Intelligence
Decolonising Data Privacy

Decolonising Data Privacy:

To earn and retain consumers’ trust via ethical data handling strategies, businesses can learn from Indigenous cultures prioritising...

 Data Protection : Technology : Decolonisation
Audio to Watch

Audio to Watch:

Moving music to new frontiers, platforms including Spotify, TikTok, Twitch and YouTube have educated consumers into developing a unique...

 Music : TikTok : Social Media Platform
Can AI generate emotionally driven brands?

Can AI generate emotionally driven brands?:

Artificial intelligence is learning to read and copy human emotions, but while AI can mimic, it can't experience emotions firsthand.

 AI : Advertising : Society
Brand Innovation Debrief: Snap’s Retail Play

Brand Innovation Debrief: Snap’s Retail Play:

Facing stiff competition in the social media market, Snapchat’s developer is bringing its expertise in augmented reality to advertisers,...

 Media : Entertainment : Retail
Gastro Gaming Market

Gastro Gaming Market:

Joining forces with video game publishers, food and drink brands are turning to gaming to offer tastes, skins and experiences that are...

 Food & Drink : Gaming : Food
Virtual Accessibility Market

Virtual Accessibility Market:

Virtual reality’s rise from a gaming tool to an engaging accessibility gateway is expanding the frontiers of inclusivity and opening up...

 Technology : Virtual Reality Market : VR
Cannes Lions 2023: AI Mania and the Meh-taverse

Cannes Lions 2023: AI Mania and the Meh-taverse:

The 2023 Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity delved into AI obsession, the future of influencer marketing and a lukewarm...

 Media : Advertising : Technology
Three takeaways from VivaTech 2023

Three takeaways from VivaTech 2023:

At Europe’s biggest start-up and tech event, VivaTech (14–17 June, Paris), AI was unsurprisingly the dominating topic, but also notable...

 Technology : Design : Retail
The Reluctant Futurists

The Reluctant Futurists:

LS:N Global’s editor-in-chief Martin Raymond discusses all things normal, but not so everyday – yet – with The Future Normal authors...

 Leadership : Society : Forecasting
Subversive Sustainability Ads

Subversive Sustainability Ads:

Consumers are inundated with misleading sustainability claims. Opting out of binary messages of climate doom and hope, brands are using...

 Sustainability : Advertising : Design
Immersing operating rooms in VR

Immersing operating rooms in VR:

How will virtual reality achieve mainstream adoption? Dr James Clarkson, chief medical officer at Wide Awake VR, believes integrating it...

 Media : Virtual Reality : Healthcare
AI-powered Groceries

AI-powered Groceries:

From cost savings and circular economies to consumer behaviour forecasting, food innovators are turning to artificial intelligence to...

 Retail : Food & Drink : Technology
Third-space culture

Third-space culture:

As founder of Thiiird magazine, Rhona Ezuma is redefining our collective tomorrows by championing next-gen creatives from Black, people...

 Style Magazine : Magazine : Magazines
AI Optimism Market

AI Optimism Market:

Pushing back on doom, dive into the AI boom’s potential to make consumers healthier, more productive and equal.

AI : Creativity : Technology
Targeting ultra-high-net-worth individuals on social media

Targeting ultra-high-net-worth individuals on social media:

Social media specialist Lily Power argues that getting digitally social with the 1% is all about exclusivity, authenticity and tapping...

 Luxury : Advertising & Branding : Retail
How travel retail is evolving

How travel retail is evolving:

For the travel retail marketplace, Chinese shoppers are still the predominant target customers as they resume overseas trips. We round...

 Retail : Travel : Beauty
World Retail Congress 2023 : Resilient Retail Futures

World Retail Congress 2023 : Resilient Retail Futures:

World Retail Congress 2023 in Barcelona explored how innovators are embracing purpose, transformation and resilience in the aftershock...

 Technology : Retail : Sustainability
Generative AI Magazines

Generative AI Magazines:

Channelling the creative power of artificial intelligence, innovators are producing entire print lifestyle magazines based solely on...

 AI : Technology : AI Creativity
Gender Euphoria in VR

Gender Euphoria in VR:

Award-winning director and self-taught game developer Cameron Kostopoulos believes virtual reality can and will be a place for empathy...

 Health & Wellness : Society : Media & Entertainment
The rise of the expert influencer

The rise of the expert influencer:

As users increasingly seek transparency, trust and intention on Instagram, a new wave of influencers are emerging, full of professional...

 Retail : Advertising & Branding : Fashion
The EUX factor

The EUX factor:

Quinine’s founder Ian Johnston explains why the future of the retail experience is to blend all touchpoints with the customer into a...

 Retail : Technology : Design
The Overconsumption Mindset

The Overconsumption Mindset:

Dr Daniel Benkendorf, professor of psychology at the Fashion Institute of Technology (FIT) in New York, considers why a growing number...

 Sustainable Fashion : Climate Change : Global Warming
Quiet Mode

Quiet Mode:

In a world full of noise, innovative features from tech and social media companies are helping consumers who crave a new kind of quiet.

 Youth : Technology : Society
America puts the new in neurodivergence

America puts the new in neurodivergence:

As inclusivity is no longer optional, mainstream US businesses are adopting accessibility strategies tailored to the neurodivergent...

 Design : Health & Wellness : Youth
Milan Design Week 2023 : A Future for Alternative Energy

Milan Design Week 2023 : A Future for Alternative Energy:

At Milan Design Week 2023, brands and creatives tackled the global energy crisis head on, offering tangible solutions through the lenses...

 Design : Architecture : Technology
The case for AI as Augmented Intelligence

The case for AI as Augmented Intelligence:

Inspired by the excitement seen at SXSW 2023, Brazilian agency Box1824’s CEO Paula Englert and vice-president Laura Kroeff argue that...

 AI : Artificial Intelligence : SXSW
EQ-Commerce

EQ-Commerce:

Innovative retailers are using technology to create intelligent, empathic commerce journeys – where every touchpoint is a learning...

 Retail : Technology : Media And Technology
Transforming brand loyalty

Transforming brand loyalty:

Ross Basri, co-founder of Uptop, explains how non-fungible tokens (NFTs) could transcend fluctuating popularity to create value-driven...

 Retail : Technology : Society
Elastic Agencies

Elastic Agencies:

Responding to the demands of Post-purpose Brands while facing rising inflation, creative agencies must embrace flexibility to keep...

 Design : Advertising & Branding : Technology
Video Dating Futures

Video Dating Futures:

As users demand more authenticity when seeking romantic connections, dating apps are pivoting towards video-first formats.

 Youth : Media & Entertainment : Technology
Live Commerce Opportunities in the US

Live Commerce Opportunities in the US:

Live-stream commerce may not have followed the same trajectory of popularity in Western markets as it has in China but its potential as...

 Retail : Media & Entertainment : Technology
Black art matters in Web3

Black art matters in Web3:

British artist Nubianizm explains how a new generation of Black visual artists find solace, community and compensation on the blockchain.

 NFT : NFTs : Web3
Digital Display Futures

Digital Display Futures:

Online visual merchandising faces structural challenges as customers simultaneously seek aspirational relatability, quality and...

 Visual Merchandising : Retail : E-commerce
Human Sustainability Workplaces

Human Sustainability Workplaces:

Christina Disler, founder of human data analytics platform Aster, is paving the way for a workplace culture that supports human...

 Workplace : Technology : Society
Yassified Marketing

Yassified Marketing:

Appropriated by all corners of the internet, African American Vernacular English could simultaneously sell authenticity and empower...

 Advertising & Branding : Media And Entertainment : Society
Six tech brands developing DIY repairable devices

Six tech brands developing DIY repairable devices:

Spurred on by growing right-to-repair movements, tech brands are slowly meeting consumers’ long-standing demands for DIY repairable devices.

 Mobile Phones : Sustainability : DIY
Wearables: the at-home doctor

Wearables: the at-home doctor:

Wearables may have been a novelty 10 years ago, but today they have the ability to elevate human potential, particularly in the realm of...

 Technology : Wearable Tech : Healthcare
Right to Repair laws take on big tech

Right to Repair laws take on big tech:

New repairability laws are encouraging eco-aware business models. But will corporate power comply?

 Media : Technology : Sustainability
Lunar Landers

Lunar Landers:

With multiple countries now aiming for the moon, automotive companies are throwing their hat in the ring to develop new lunar transport...

 Mobility : Technology : Design
CES 2023: AI Futures

CES 2023: AI Futures:

From multiple you’s to emotional AI and sensor-ised worlds, we speak to experts from design agencies Seymourpowell and NewTerritory...

 Technology : Artifical Intelligence : CES
Generative AI Creativity Market

Generative AI Creativity Market:

An emerging wave of consumer-facing generative AI platforms are redefining the very nature of creative work.

 Technology : Media & Entertainment : Design
The New News

The New News:

As consumers seek an alternative to the 24-hour news cycle, media outlets are racing to re-invent themselves for the next generation.

 Society : Media & Entertainment : Design
AI-vertisements

AI-vertisements:

AI is pushing the boundaries of brand and consumer interactions, creating experimental and sensorial campaigns that exceed consumers’...

 Design : Marketing : Advertising
Future Forecast 2023: Media & Technology

Future Forecast 2023: Media & Technology:

From the Betterverse to the dawn of the AI revolution, we select five key directions for 2023 in the media and technology sector.

 Technology : Media & Entertainment : Youth
Five apps introducing the next generation of dating

Five apps introducing the next generation of dating:

Dating apps are evolving beyond the swipe, with new entries looking to align more closely with Gen Z’s relationship priorities and...

 Youth : Media & Entertainment : Technology
Five ways fintechs are engaging with ESG

Five ways fintechs are engaging with ESG:

Fintechs are combining technology, financial services and ESG practices to help customers prioritise purpose, sustainability and...

 Finance : Technology : Sustainability
Five disruptors welcoming women into Web3

Five disruptors welcoming women into Web3:

As the Alternet evolves, Web3 innovators are leaning into Betterverse values to create a more inclusive digital landscape for women...

 Media And Entertainment : Technology : Web3
Gamer Wellness Market

Gamer Wellness Market:

As esports’ influence continues to challenge that of traditional sports, lifestyle brands are helping gamers to level up their physical...

 Health & Wellness : Gaming : Sport
Web3 Music Market

Web3 Music Market:

In a bid to reform its fractured systems, the music industry is embracing the Web3 space to empower musicians, digital communities and...

 Music : Web3 : NFTs
Local TV Market

Local TV Market:

Around the world, disruptors are launching regional alternatives to streaming giants, telling hyper-local stories to reach small yet...

 News : Media & Entertainment : Society
Chinese Entertainment Market

Chinese Entertainment Market:

As China tightens its control over ‘extravagant’ forms of entertainment, citizens are engaging with media with less passivity and more...

 Media : Technology : Entertainment
Five fintech innovations for young home-buyers

Five fintech innovations for young home-buyers:

As younger people strive to break away from being Generation Rent, a wave of fintech services are taking them from temporary tenants to...

 FinTech : Mobile Money : Mortgages
Digitised Favelas

Digitised Favelas:

A symbol of economic inequality in Brazil, the favelas are becoming the focus of technology projects that aim to minimise stigma and...

 Technology : Brazil : Favelas
Auto Entertainment

Auto Entertainment:

The car sector is drawing from virtual platforms, extended reality and even cryptocurrencies to create immersive and entertaining...

 Mobility : Entertainment : Technology
Digital Afterlife Market

Digital Afterlife Market:

From NFTs to AI holograms, the intersection of technology and the funeral industry is changing how we grieve and how we’ll be remembered.

Digital : Technology : Media
Squad Subscriptions

Squad Subscriptions:

From gyms to streaming services, fractionalised subscriptions are allowing people to earn income by converting memberships into...

 FinTech : Media & Entertainment : Society
Radio Market

Radio Market:

The humble medium of radio is finding a new purpose, audience and role as a connector and facilitator as global nations move through the...

 Media : Radio : Society
Reading Market

Reading Market:

Innovators are harnessing pandemic behaviours to re-imagine books for a new generation of escapist, eco-conscious and phygital readers.

 Media : Entertainment : Youth
How NFTs could elevate brand loyalty

How NFTs could elevate brand loyalty:

Artist Sarah Friend on how digital currencies and NFTs are challenging our financial assumptions and augmenting how we buy, sell, trade...

 Finance : Society : Cryptocurrency
Metaverse Market

Metaverse Market:

Expanding far beyond its gaming roots, the metaverse is becoming a youth hub in which the future of socialising, entertainment and...

 Entertainment : Gaming : Gen Alpha
Digital Fandom Market

Digital Fandom Market:

Fandom in the digital age is booming, with live-streaming, tokenisation and neo-patronage changing how we think about and interact with...

 Technology : Entertainment : Media
Game-Fi Rising

Game-Fi Rising:

Brands are using game-based finance to create new retail opportunities, rewarding game play loops and building a greater sense of...

 Gaming : Finance : Technology
Deprogrammers

Deprogrammers:

Rejecting traditional education, this global youth community are using digital platforms, virtual tools and DIY content to educate,...

 Youth. : Youth : Media
Climate Newsrooms

Climate Newsrooms:

Global news organisations are launching dedicated climate crisis verticals, as the media recognises its role in being part of positive...

 Media : Society : Climate Crisis
New Sportswomen Media

New Sportswomen Media:

With mainstream sports platforms largely unrepresentative, there is growing demand for online networks and reportage focused on women...

 Health And Wellness : Sports : Women's Health
Decentralised tech is driving LATAM’s socio-economic future

Decentralised tech is driving LATAM’s socio-economic future:

Bernardo Mendes, chief gaming officer at Druid Creative, discusses how gaming, the metaverse and Web3 will help Latin American citizens’...

 Gaming : Web3 : Latin America
The workplace of 2030 will be Web 3.0

The workplace of 2030 will be Web 3.0:

Tina He and Mind Apivessa, co-founders of Station, are empowering and upskilling regular internet users into the Web 3.0 workforce of...

 Youth : Media : Technology
Everyday tech gets an inclusive overhaul

Everyday tech gets an inclusive overhaul:

Emerging tech solutions are pushing access and inclusivity to the fore, enhancing everyday life and usability for those who are...

 Technology : Society : Disability
Alternet Economies

Alternet Economies:

A technological counter-culture is decentralising capitalism, reforming the internet and powering new value frontiers for creators,...

 Technology : FinTech : Internet
Low-impact Interfaces

Low-impact Interfaces:

To cut the carbon emissions of our online consumption, designers are exploring how to simplify UX and UI design to be greener and more...

 Technology : Sustainability : Design
Mundane Gaming

Mundane Gaming:

Countering our hyper-emotional online existence, gaming platforms are turning mundane daily activities into a form of escapism.

 Gaming : Technology : Health & Wellness
Four ways social media is reshaping shopping

Four ways social media is reshaping shopping:

Social networks and gaming environments are opening up as shopping platforms, prompting retailers to take their strategies into new,...

 Retail : Ecommerce : Online Retail
African Mobile Technology Market

African Mobile Technology Market:

During Covid-19, the mobile-first African continent is using phones to forge a new future for healthcare, commerce and rural connectivity.

 FinTech : Society : Technology
Media Kitchens

Media Kitchens:

Delivery platforms are working with media companies and social apps to launch virtual restaurants that combine food with entertainment.

 Food : Drinks : Media
Privacy Hardware

Privacy Hardware:

As digital privacy and data breaches become pertinent issues, physical tools and devices are being designed to shield citizens’ identities.

Technology : Advertising : Surveillance
Civic Ads

Civic Ads:

As society struggles with climate change, rising homelessness and unsafe infrastructure, brands are turning to advertising as a force...

 Media : Advertising : Global
Music as Medicine

Music as Medicine:

Music is emerging as the next frontier for wellness, with musicians, record labels and start-ups harnessing sound’s impact on health,...

 Music : Wellness : Media
Tackling racism in brands’ audio content

Tackling racism in brands’ audio content:

Steve Keller, sonic strategy director at Studio Resonate, says our racialised ears are creating whitewashed audio content – and it’s...

 Advertising : Audio : Diversity
Hybri’s AI models hint at phygital intimacy

Hybri’s AI models hint at phygital intimacy:

Richard Donczi, president of Realic, on blurring the boundaries between real-world experiences, human desire and virtual relationships.

 Technology : Neo-Kinship : AI
e-tourism

e-tourism:

Travel and hospitality brands are levelling up their services to embrace the thrills, sights and sounds of competitive gaming.

 Travel : Hospitality : Tourism
Post-digital Communication

Post-digital Communication:

Designers are swapping fiddly haptic interfaces for basic material props in order to enhance the poetry and meaning of virtual experiences.

 Virtual Reality : Communication : Technology
Auralux Experiences

Auralux Experiences:

Luxury brands and retailers are turning to audio formats as a new touchpoint for discovery, education and brand-led experiences.

 Luxury : Media : Advertising
Digital drugs will revolutionise media

Digital drugs will revolutionise media:

Michael Moskowitz, founder of digital health innovator AeBeZe Labs, discusses media's pharmaceutical power and the disruptive concept of...

 Health : Media : Wellbeing
Interactive listening

Interactive listening:

Technology devices are becoming central to the listening experience, with interactive apps and AR tools revealing greater meaning behind...

 Media : Technology : Music
Immersive VR journalism

Immersive VR journalism:

Designers Jim Brady and Ward Goes on how virtual reality journalism will enable the public to experience and question how emphatic the...

 Technology : Media : Alternative News

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