Rohit Bhargava's Blog, page 58

Why Scientists (And The Rest Of Us) Need Robots To Fear Their Own Death

Every week this theme of how to make technology more human seems to resurface in a slightly different way. Last week, a story about some new research from legendary neurologist and authorAntonio Damasiocaught my eye with an unusual thesis: robots could be more resilient and valuable to humanity if they had a sense of self-preservation. It’s a dangerously elegant idea.

Since the central plot device of any dystopian science fiction narrative that features artificial intelligence taking over...

This Japanese Hotel Costs Just $1 Per Night … If You Livestream Your Stay

In one of the most expensive countries for tourists, one hotel has a novel idea – stay with them and agree to live stream your stay and you can pay just $1 per night. The idea has been popular among young people wanting to travel to Fukuoka and willing to trade their privacy for a deal. It’s a compromise that we’ll likely see more brands asking consumers to make in the future and a sign of how our relationship to the qualities we might once of seen as sacred, like privacy, may now be...

Inside India’s First Brand For Curly Haired Women

India has some baggage when it comes to women with curly hair: “The Indian ideal for beauty prizes long, straight hair. For the most part, curly hair is considered ugly, unnatural and indicative of women likely to cause trouble and break rules.” An entrepreneur named Asha Barrack is trying to change these stereotypes and inviting Indian women with curly hair to embrace their curls and their personality too.

It’s a great example of a brand that is building a community by choosing to...

3 Non-Obvious Insights From the Launch of Disney+

It would have been hard for you to miss the launch of Disney’s new streaming service, which reportedly already passed 10 million subscribers just a day into launch and already inspired Netflix to announcenew partnerships. Of the many articles about the launch, here were three that I found particularly interesting …

Dated content may come with sensitivity warnings. As Disney unlocks lots of archived content, some of the ways that women or minorities are shown in this content will appear...

Alexa Is Five Years Old, So Why Does She Still Suck?

Alexa has officially been around for five years, and this article asks a good question: why hasn’t she improved? The pitch from Amazon was that Alexa would always be listening, and always improving. Half a decade later, she seems no smarter than when we first got her. In our house Alexa does little more than set timers and remind me how much the Redskins lost by every week.What was magical five years ago, today has become ordinary. As the article notes, it’s time for Amazon to step up.

Yet...

Why You Shouldn’t Panic About Plastic-Eating Bacteria (Or Anything Else)

Scientists areexperimenting with plastic-eating bacteriaand people are worried. We know ocean plastic is a problem, but is unleashing a bacteria that could eat it really a good idea? What if it eats what it isn’t supposed to? It turns out the real promise of this tech isn’t dropping it into the ocean to let it eat plastic bottles. Instead, it could make recycling easier and more profitable – creating a desperately needed better financial incentive for companies and people to recycle now that...

What the Rise and Fall of Juul Can Teach Us About Influence

As the health risks of vaping increasingly come to light, some people are literallythrowing their juuls out of windowsjust to quit. Vaping had been soaring in popularity as recently as earlier this year, but several media reports about the adverse health implications of vaping have burst that bubble. This was a product that got popularized by viral memes and social media, and just as quickly was outed as addictive and potentially deadly. Now the memes show people drenching their juuls in...

Modern Workplaces Need To Get More Dad-Friendly, Survey Finds

I remember being a new dad and working full time at a marketing agency. Like any working parent, I struggled to find a balance. This week a parenting site called DaddiLife conducted a survey of 2000 working millennial dads in the UK and found that companies are falling far short in giving dads the flexibility they want to be with their kids.

I have written before about the not-so-well-appreciated equivalent of the stay-at-home mom — the stuck-at-work dad. As our gender roles continue to shift...

Why Trend Predictions Suck (And How To Fix Them)

The first time I wrote about trends, I was inspired by bullshit.

I remember reading an article with a headline that promised “5 Trends That Will Change The Future.” The first trend on the list was “Mobile Usage Will Continue To Rise.” That was the moment when I understood deeply why so many people mistrust trend predictions.

As I dug deeper, I started to discover that there are actually three reasons why most trend predictions are so bad:

They are self serving. The only people declaring 202...

Scientists Regrow Teeth, Americans Need Chaos and Why Your Next Flight Might Be Delayed On Purpose | Non-Obvious Insights #181

This week the dual themes of selfishness and unselfishness emerged in the stories I’m sharing below. On the selfish side – Instagrammers sharing tone deaf posts about the Bahamas, a study finding a disturbing portion of America simply wants to destroy things and the dire side effects of Amazon’s quest for faster delivery. On the unselfish side, a new airline software change that asks us to feel more empathy for each other and Kit Kat tests environmentally friendly (and fun) packaging. Enjoy t...