A new note from Citigroup Inc. highlights just how much faster the bot economy is growing than the app economy did in its early days. According to analyst Mark May, mobile app stores alone generate roughly $40 billion in bookings annually, without even taking into account other revenue from such things as mobile marketing and advertising. A new opportunity is arising, however, as bots become mo...

A fine-grained allocation of costs can help companies weed out “freeloader” products and improve performance.Portfolio complexity is swamping many businesses. In the wake of globalization, some manufacturers have launched large and unwieldy numbers of country-specific models to suit particular markets: one vehicle manufacturer that had 30 models in the 1990s, for example, now has more than 30...

Indoor bounce parks see popularity spike as companies look to foster team trust.Corporate, fun, day: three words to strike dread into the soul of antisocial workers the world over. Is there anything worse for the introvert than being forced to take part in trust exercises with colleagues you avoid at the water cooler, let alone the go-kart track or paintballing experience? Well, yes, there prob...

Scientists at The Australian National University (ANU) have developed a new spray-on material with a remarkable ability to repel water.The new protective coating could eventually be used to waterproof mobile phones, prevent ice from forming on aeroplanes or protect boat hulls from corroding. "The surface is a layer of nanoparticles, which water slides off as if it's on a hot barbecue," said PhD...

Created by adventurer Nigel Gifford OBE, the Pouncer is an eco-friendly humanitarian food aid drone adaptable to local dietary requirements.Pouncer creator Nigel Gifford OBE is a former member of the British Army Catering Corps. Having seen how inaccurate, and thus wasteful, traditional parachute aid delivery can be, he designed a sustainable alternative. The unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) navig...

Own a PC? What shape is the play button on iTunes? What about the jogdial on the classic iPod? Circular. You’ll notice the circle has a rather recurring role in music. Whether it’s in the shape of the amphitheatre, or that hole in your guitar, the circle has a connect with music that goes a long way back, and hasn’t been forgotten even in this digital age of music. The conceptual iPod Shuffl...

Now that the back-to-school frenzy has died down, Origami Logic, a marketing analytics company based in Mountain View, Calif., reviewed the engagement that brands received from back-to-school-related social media posts from the beginning of June through August. It was Disney and Dolce & Gabbana, which promoted its children's line, Bambino, that found the most success. "Disney and Dolce &amp...

The ad aims to highlight that McDonald's only uses the finest grade Arabica beans from South and Central American Rainforest Alliance Certified farms. The ad uses renowned hand artist Guido Daniele to paint beautiful imagery on to hands holding the coffee on a simple black background. "We only use the finest Arabica beans in our freshly ground coffee, sourced from Central and South American Rai...

The future of virtual reality (VR) is already here. A quick Google News search will show you as much. With the introduction of the Samsung Gear VR in 2015 and this year’s unveiling of Facebook’s new 22,000-square-foot Area 404 hardware lab, VR is slowly but surely becoming a part of our everyday life.VR is an exciting field that is growing exponentially. For this reason, we created (together...