⏩ The Climate Economy, life in the Metaverse, lab-grown foie gras and more.
The Future Normal: Fast Forward #26
People love the idea that there will one, big, essential future trend that – if only they know about it early enough – will give them an edge. Indeed that may well be why you read these newsletters. However 'the future' is not singular. The world is so big, and so diverse (thankfully!) that there will be multiple futures to embrace, and you will be able to find endless opportunities within many different trends.
This week's stories are a perfect demonstration of that.
The Climate Economy! The Metaverse! The Age of Biology!
Depending on who you speak to, each on of these is 'the' defining trend of the next decade. But in fact, they will all be critical trends to 2030 and beyond. And even when the next big trend(s) come along, they will still continue to offer huge opportunities, just as Digital Transformation and The Experience Economy are still going strong, as shown by the stories below.
So stop worrying about what 'the' big trend will be for 2025, 2030, 2050. Find a trend that's right for you, and more importantly, that's right for your customers. And then get to it.
The Climate Economy Is About to Explode
🔮 Future Normal // According to analysts at Credit Suisse, the recent Inflation Reduction Act in the US could fundamentally reshape the global economy by triggering an investment and employment boom that sees the country take the lead in many green technologies.
💡 So what? // Finally, might this be the moment that we shift from debating the costs of the green transition, to chasing the opportunity? Barely a week goes by without more analysis showing that there is money to be made (or saved) by going green. Time to get to work...
(Note: the DALL-E image above was generated from the prompt: "A beautiful sunrise over a solar farm in the desert, but the sun is a ball of exploding money, in a sci-fi utopian futurism art style")
This Is Life in the Metaverse
🔮 Future Normal // It's a common trend truism that The Next Big Thing starts out looking like a toy. In the case of today's Metaverse, that's certainly true. In this interesting piece, NYT journalist Kashmir Hill headed into Horizon Worlds to spend time with the early adopters of what Mark Zuckerberg is betting will be the future of computing and society.
💡 So what? // It feels like that along with climate, the Metaverse is the other big gold rush in town (or at least in my professional network!). It's clear why virtual worlds appeal to participants – they speak deeply to our basic human needs such as status, identity, connection and more. But to lay my cards on the table, I wish that many more of the creators of these worlds would take off their headsets and focus on fixing the problems we face in the real world. Especially as the opportunities in this space become clearer.
Functional Experiences will make you smarter, happier, more curious, and more creative.
🔮 Future Normal // Similar to how functional foods offer more than just sustenance but self-improvement on some dimension, experience expert James Wallman explores the concept of 'functional experiences' – using techniques grounded in science to deliver tangible mental and psychological benefits to their participants. These range from immersive, psychedelic-like to an interactive documentary designed to increase its viewers' tolerance of uncertainty.
💡 So what? // Two quick insights. First, people's expectations are never static, and the bar for what you need to deliver will continue to rise. Second, there are always opportunities in combinatorial innovation. Here, it's entertainment plus self-improvement. What 'x plus y' combination could you deploy in your industry?
Planning for 2023 & beyond?
The Future Normal has been selected by SXSW as a featured session. If you want a bespoke sneak preview of the big trends and opportunities that will shape YOUR future, then let's talk.
This AI Uses a Scan of Your Retina to Predict Your Risk of Heart Disease
🔮 Future Normal // Software developed using machine learning can predict someone’s risk of heart disease in less than a minute by analyzing the veins and arteries in their eye. The researchers suggested that "AI-enabled vasculometry [could be] fully automated, low cost, non-invasive, and has the potential for reaching a higher proportion of the population in the community because of ‘high street’ availability and because blood sampling or [blood pressure measurement] are not needed."
💡 So what? // You might intuitively view a future where you lean into having your retinas scanned as some kind of dystopia (thanks Minority Report!). But you could easily imagine a world where every morning we voluntarily lean towards our bathroom mirrors, or even our phones, for a quick health scan. A reminder that AI and computer vision will make healthcare ever more personalized and predictive.
Gourmey raises $48 million to keep working on lab-grown foie gras
🔮 Future Normal // Synthetic biology will transform the things you consume in the 'real world' as profoundly as digital technology has done in the past two decades. Last week, Gourmey raised $48 million to expand its production capabilities. The French startup matures stem cells in bioreactors with the right nutrients at the right temperature so that it becomes synthetic foie gras or — as they say — slaughter-free foie gras.
💡 So what? // We know that cell-cultured meat is coming – the real question (as always) is when, and how much will it cost? But more than that, this will open up challenging ethical questions with no easy answers. Many vegans and vegetarians will instinctively reject this as still 'meat', but I suspect that many meat-eaters will embrace cell-cultured foie gras as being the holy grail – all of the taste, without the guilt around animal rights and climate footprint.
The Future Normal is an exploration of how we will live, work and thrive in the coming decade. But nothing is pre-determined.
Can you share this and inspire someone to help create a cleaner, fairer, better future for us all?
Thanks for reading,
Henry