Need to know   21 : 09 : 18

Need to know
21 : 09 : 18

In today’s daily digest: Smart box offers essentials to gym-goers, the Flippy robot threatens low-skilled jobs and recapturing attention through repetition.

1. Netflix pokes fun at itself in playful campaign 2. Installation uses repetition to recapture attention 3. AI-enabled burger-flipping robot comes to market 4. Smart box brand hopes to replace the corner shop 5. China develops chatbots that can portray happiness 6. Thought-starter: Are retailers doing enough to be inclusive?

1. Netflix pokes fun at itself in playful campaign

Netflix is a Joke by Netflix, US

US – Netflix has revealed the meaning behind a series of billboards in New York and Los Angeles bearing the phrase ‘Netflix is a joke’ in a 60-second spot aired during the Primetime Emmy Awards.

The billboard campaign was part of the streaming service’s wider campaign to promote its stand-up comedy offering. In the ad, comics including Ellen DeGeneres, Chris Rock and Jerry Seinfeld are overlaid onto scenes from a selection of shows from Netflix’s Original Series section.

Rock incites a riot in a scene from comedy series Orange is the New Black, while DeGeneres invades scenes from The Crown. In line with our Anti-authenticity Marketing macrotrend, Netflix is taking a self-referential approach to engage consumers.

2. Installation uses repetition to recapture attention

On Repeat by Universal Design Studio and The Office Group for London Design Festival On Repeat by Universal Design Studio and The Office Group for London Design Festival
On Repeat by Universal Design Studio and The Office Group for London Design Festival On Repeat by Universal Design Studio and The Office Group for London Design Festival
On Repeat by Universal Design Studio and The Office Group for London Design Festival On Repeat by Universal Design Studio and The Office Group for London Design Festival

London – Universal Design Studio has created a public pavilion in collaboration with London-based co-working company The Office Group (TOG) for London Design Festival. The installation, On Repeat, was designed to capture focus and attention achieved by the repetition of manual tasks that allow the mind to wander and creative thinking to flourish.

A programme of free events and workshops that explore the power of frequency and repetition gives visitors the opportunity to temporarily forget about everyday working life and achieve a free-flowing mindset. The programme ranges from manual tasks such as sushi-making or wood-cutting to talks that investigate the impact of repetition on our brains, bodies and lives. ‘We wanted to design an environment that requires human engagement to be fully built – and to fulfil its purpose – but also that physically represents the idea being explored, in this case, repetition,’ explains Hannah Carter-Owers, director of Universal Design Studio.

For more on how designers are trying to recapture consumers’ attention, read our Work Zones microtrend.

3. AI-enabled burger-flipping robot comes to market

Los Angeles – Fast food restaurant chain Caliburger has introduced Flippy, Miso Robotics’s burger-flipping technology, to its Pasadena location.

In development for a number of years, the model working in Pasadena is the start-up’s first fully operational prototype.

The machine – a robotic arm with a spatula attachment – can flip burgers twice as fast as a human worker and is powered by deep machine learning, enabling it to learn from its co-workers, and from its own mistakes. A human assistant is still needed to chop vegetables and assemble the burger’s other ingredients, but Flippy could theoretically learn these skills in the future, according to Miso Robotics CEO David Zito.

In a Dislocated World, robotic systems such as Flippy and Sewbot will increasingly replace low-skilled workers.

Flippy by Miso Robotics, Los Angeles Flippy by Miso Robotics, Los Angeles

4. Smart box brand hopes to replace the corner shop

Bodega by Paul McDonald and Ashwath Rajan, US Bodega by Paul McDonald and Ashwath Rajan, US
Bodega by Paul McDonald and Ashwath Rajan, US Bodega by Paul McDonald and Ashwath Rajan, US
Bodega by Paul McDonald and Ashwath Rajan, US Bodega by Paul McDonald and Ashwath Rajan, US

US – Former Google employees Paul McDonald and Ashwath Rajan are tapping into Automated Commerce in a bid to revolutionise the fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) market. The duo’s Bodega smart box is stocked with a variety of everyday essentials such as drinks, snacks and toiletries, and placed inside communal spaces such as gym foyers and apartment lobbies.

Customers use an app to open the Bodega, which also contains cameras that track which items are taken ito ensure the customer is charged accordingly. When an item is out of stock or running low, the Bodega sends a notification to the person in charge of the unit.

For more on how FMCG brands can capitalise on underused, potentially lucrative spaces, see our Opinion piece.

5. China develops chatbots that can portray happiness

Scientists at Cornell University have manually categorised 23,000 posts from social media platform Weibo to create an emotion-classifying algorithm, which was then used to tag millions of posts according to their emotional content. This dataset was subsequently used as a resource to train chatbots to be emotionally engaging. See our macrotrend The E-motional Economy for more on how consumers increasingly expect technology to perceive and convey emotions.

6. Thought-starter: Are retailers doing enough to be inclusive?

Some 20 years since the principles of universal design were established to make environments such as shops unbiased, flexible and intuitive for all body types, ages and abilities, retail spaces still leave shoppers sidelined, says senior writer Kathryn Bishop.

Consumers in their 50s or older, armed with disposable income, spend £314bn ($417bn, €348bn) a year in the UK, equivalent to 43% of total household spend on consumption, according to a study by the International Longevity Centre (ILC-UK).

Identified as reaching Flat Age by The Future Laboratory, the over-50s are increasingly active, youthful in their mindsets and expect retail spaces to be aware of their abilities and preferences without patronising or – as is common – ignoring their existence entirely.

With the potential to increase annual spending in the UK by as much as £3.84bn ($5.1bn, €4.26bn) through age-inclusive retail, it is time for retail spaces to become age-agnostic, encouraging shoppers to hit the high street safe in the knowledge that they are catered for.

Read the full Opinion piece here.

Everlane Fit Studio, San Francisco Everlane Fit Studio, San Francisco
Discover More News
Kia Europe turns road trips into sound journeys for visually impaired people

News

Kia Europe turns road trips into sound journeys for visually impaired people

Automobile manufacturer, Kia Europe and creative agency Innocean Berlin have launched Soundscapes, a creative experiment that transforms the tradit...
Soundscapes : Mobility : Pimp My Ride
Diriyah gets its own Pantone colour as part of cultural revival

News

Diriyah gets its own Pantone colour as part of cultural revival

The historic Saudi city of Diriyah now has a shade to call its own: Diriyah Tan.
Saudi Arabia : Diriyah : Diriyah Biennale
Stat: Consumers sacrifice dining and takeout amid inflation

News

Stat: Consumers sacrifice dining and takeout amid inflation

Amid growing economic uncertainty and inflation concerns, consumers in the US and UK are scaling back on discretionary spending, with 63% cutting b...
Stat : Stats : Spending
O Boticário launches sensual guide for female pleasure

News

O Boticário launches sensual guide for female pleasure

Brazilian cosmetics brand O Boticário has launched Her Touch, a digital book that aims to dismantle taboos around female pleasure by reframing the ...
Beauty : Wellness : Brazil
Trendmood translates online clout into physical retail

News

Trendmood translates online clout into physical retail

Instagram beauty scoop account @trendmood1 is making its first foray into physical retail with a Los Angeles pop-up set to open this summer.
Retail : Beauty : Pop Culture & Media
Stat: UK gym market hits record as Gen Z fuel sign-ups

News

Stat: UK gym market hits record as Gen Z fuel sign-ups

The UK gym market reached a record valuation of £5.7bn ($7.6bn, €6.6bn) in 2024, up 8.8% year on year, according to UKactive’s latest report.
Sports : Health : Wellness
Zendaya wears spacesuits by On to champion movement for all

News

Zendaya wears spacesuits by On to champion movement for all

Zendaya and Swiss sportswear brand On have launched Zone Dreamers, a fictional film trailer turned campaign spotlighting the emotional power of mov...
Fashion : Advertising : On
Stat: AI news fails to win over US audiences

News

Stat: AI news fails to win over US audiences

Despite growing industry interest in AI-generated journalism, a new poll from Poynter and the University of Minnesota reveals widespread public sce...
Technology : Media : AI
Glastonbury’s Shangri-La swaps social for soil in analogue relaunch

News

Glastonbury’s Shangri-La swaps social for soil in analogue relaunch

For 2025, Glastonbury’s Shangri-La is stepping away from digital channels and towards analogue connection, as the late-night area undergoes a thema...
Sustainability : Culture : Design
Corona constructs world’s first sun reserve in Brazil

News

Corona constructs world’s first sun reserve in Brazil

To mark its centenary, beach-born beer brand Corona has unveiled the world’s first sun reserve at Piedade Beach in Pernambuco, Brazil.
Sustainability : Drink : Advertising
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