TREND REPORTS
Brands Expand Into Products and Services for Children
[Product]
2019/05/08 09:07
As Cassandra found in our Modern Parents report, 92% of Millennial parents in the U.S. say their children influence their purchases. Brands have taken notice and targeted advertising for non-kid’s items toward children, knowing they may not hold the purse strings but they do hold significant power. The following brands are launching products and services catering to these young kids who help t...
The U.S. Has a Battery Problem in the Race for Electric Car Supremacy
[Investing]
2019/05/08 09:06
The U.S. push to challenge China’s dominance in the production and sale of electric vehicles has at least one weak link: Most of the raw materials needed to make the batteries are dug elsewhere.Both Chinese and U.S.-based companies have invested heavily in lithium mining projects in Chile, Australia and Argentina, some of the world’s top producing nations. But unlike the U.S., Chinese compani...
A Biometric Vending Machine for Dispensing Legal Cannabis
[Product]
2019/05/08 09:05
PopCom will use smart contracts and enhanced biometrics and blockchain tech for compliant and secure payments.The American startup PopCom is working on a vending machine that would allow the legal purchasing of government-regulated items. So, alcohol, medication and cannabis vending machines could be around the corner.“There are definitely infinite possibilities,” PopCom CEO Dawn Dickson told...
2019 MIT Harold and Arlene Schnitzer Prize in the Visual Arts
[Design]
2019/05/08 09:04
Winners of the 2019 Harold and Arlene Schnitzer Prize in the Visual Arts represent four outstanding student portfolios. Each of these artists contributes to a vital art ecosystem that animates MIT’s culture.Established in 1996, the Harold and Arlene Schnitzer Prize is awarded each year to current MIT undergraduate and graduate students for excellence in a body of work. Students submit their ar...
(Infographic) Consumers Prefer High-Quality Imagery to Cutting-Edge Tech From Brands
[Consumer]
2019/05/08 09:03
58.7% say visuals are most impactful kind of brand engagement. Just 16.7% preferred interactive tech like VR and AR, and 12.1% cited conversational tech like chatbots.There are so many brands online, but the majority of consumers follow fewer than 10 of them, according to new research from digital asset management platform Bynder. Maybe that’s because brands have been laying it on a little too...
(PDF) WIPO Technology Trends 2019 - Artificial Intelligence
[Business]
2019/05/07 09:10
MatAn analysis by the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) shows many sectors and industries are exploring the commercial exploitation of artificial intelligence. In addition to specific techniques and applications, the WIPO analysis identified 20 application fields that were mentioned in 62 per cent of all its AI patents. In all, 209,910 AI patents refer to one or several applicatio...
This Airplane Seat 'Skycouch' Makes Flying with a Baby Less Miserable
[Product]
2019/05/07 09:09
Imagine putting your newborn to bed, in an actual crib, at 30,000 feet.No parent looks forward to flying with a baby. These little bundles of joy get squirmy in your arms over the course of an hours-long flight. They don’t know how to swallow to clear their ears as cabin pressure changes with altitude. At any moment, they’re likely to start screaming in moderate discomfort, to the chagrin of...
“Avengers: Endgame” is Already the Year’s Highest-Grossing Film
[Business]
2019/05/07 09:08
The 22nd film in the franchise benefits from a pre-existing universe of fans.DISNEY’S EXECUTIVE boardroom may be the happiest place on Earth right now. Three days after its release, “Avengers: Endgame” was already the highest-grossing film of 2019. It has broken the record for best-ever opening weekend, thanks in no small part to its phenomenal box-office takings in China. But the latest Ave...
(Paper) Self-Powered 'Pacemaker for Life' in Pigs Unveiled
[Tech]
2019/05/07 09:07
Scientists on Tuesday unveiled a battery-free pacemaker that generates its energy from the heartbeats of pigs in what could pave the way for an "implant for life" in humans suffering from heart defects.Millions of patients rely on pacemakers —small electrical implants in the chest of abdomen—to help regulate their heartbeats after chronic or acute illness.Even with recent technological advanc...
