What’s In This Issue?
The Man Behind San Francisco's Facial Recognition Ban
I know sharing the biggest story of the week is hardly non-obvious ... but San Francisco's ban on facial recognition tech was too big to ignore, so I thought I'd share this story of the man behind the ban, and his ambitious plan to extend it to many other states.
The Age of the Influencer Is Out. Is the Slacker Back In?
At some point over the past twenty years, the 90s icon of the slacker gave way to the "striver" - a young person who embraces the hustle, side gigs and aims to control her own destiny. This fascinating article takes a look at the shift and wonders aloud if the current appeal of the striver may soon give way to a new slacker generation in its stead.
Malls Are Dying. The Future Belongs To The "Immersive Bazaar"
Earlier this year I curated a trend I called Strategic Spectacle to describe the growing use of attention-grabbing experiences to more deeply engage audiences. Last week the New York Times Magazine offered an inside look at the growth of one of the most pioneering companies in this space: Meow Wolf.
"The ideal experience-economy offerings are engaging enough to distract us from our devices but also optimized to be shared on those devices," the author of the story writes. And Meow Wolf has been growing ambitiously to deliver on this mission, with a multi-million dollar development planned to open in Vegas in December, a new themed hotel in Phoenix and a $60 million flagship amusement park project in Denver.
As a brand, this vision is so "on trend" that it is immediately worth paying attention to and putting on your shortlist to learn more about. Their growth may offer a new experience-driven model that others will use to reinvigorate public spaces like shopping malls and perhaps even retail itself.
