Tony D'Onofrio
Technology
Your Face is The Next Computer Cookie
In January 2018, in a D&D Daily "Live from NY" interview, we debated the impact of iPhoneX on FaceID technologies. This new Apple iPhoneX had just placed the disruptive future of facial recognition technology in our pockets.
Less than a year later, it is surprising to observe the continued advanced deployments of FaceID solutions, especially outside the United States. For 2018, the global facial recognition market is valued at $3.97 billion and is estimated to reach $10.15 billion by 2025 at a CAGR of 14.35% during the forecast period.
Unlocking Smartphones with Your Face is Only the Beginning
Very interesting is the mix of the major organizations investing in face recognition. Out of the top 10, eight are academic entities with most based in China. The only USA university that makes the top 10 is Carnegie Mellon. Microsoft leads the top 10 followed by Samsung which already has 186 patents in facial recognition.
Over the next several weeks, in four parts, we will delve into the latest adoption trends of facial recognition. This first post will explore selected USA / UK retail developments and introduce FaceID as your computer cookie.
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The Internet, mobile and social media have forever transformed the distribution of viral messaging. No longer the best kept secret, at the center of successful communication is the medium of video.
82% of Twitter users watch video content on Twitter. More than 500 million hours of videos are watched on YouTube each day. Ten million videos are watched on Snapchat per day. Over 500 million (half a BILLION) people are watching video on Facebook every day. The Top 10 YouTube stars of 2017 generated over $110 million in personal pre-tax income. Every second, a million minutes (17,000 hours) of video content will cross global IP networks by 2021.
Having a passion for powerful visual communications, weekly through my personal website I share one to three new videos. As we enter the fourth quarter, it is time to showcase my 2018 top five amazing innovation leadership videos.
Five Technologies Changing Shopping Malls Forever
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Mercedes-Benz Smart Car Concept - Would Gottlieb Daimler Share this Vision?
The spark for the growth of the modern gasoline powered automobile was an innovation race. In the early 1890s,"Le Petit Journal, a French newspaper with a knack for publicity stunts, decided to hold a contest to discover the best method of propulsion: steam, electricity or petrol engine. It invited entrants to drive from Paris to Rouen, a distance of 79 miles. Their vehicles would be judged not by their speed but whether they were safe, easy to use and economical to run."
"The clear winner was not a direct participant but an inventor: Gottlieb Daimler, whose internal-combustion engine had powered nine of the vehicles, including the four that shared first prize. He had, the judges proclaimed, “turned petroleum or gasoline fuel into a practical solution” for self-propelled vehicles, which were starting to be referred to in French as “automobiles”. Daimler’s victory helped establish the supremacy of petrol-powered cars in the 20th century, and the term automobile soon spread into English and other languages."
What's in your Smart Car for 2018?
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Meet the 2017 World Most Admired Technology and Retail Companies
Concurrently with BrandZ issuing their 2017 top 100 global brands report which was analyzed in the last post, Fortune Magazine published their latest list of the world most admired companies.
In a digital highly connected world, branding and differentiated customer experiences will define leadership. What is the correlation between brand value and being most admired? Which companies have already achieved the threshold in being on both lists? What differentiates these companies? Which industry trends are driving increased brand value and being most admired? Are western brands the future of these two lists?
The Top 10 Most Admired vs The Top 10 Global Brands
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Happy Chinese New Year. 新年快乐
2017 is the year of the Rooster. Anyone born in the following years - 1945, 1957, 1969, 1981, 1993, 2005, and 2017 - shares the characteristics and personality traits of this tenth of 12 animals in the Chinese zodiac cycle.
While in Shanghai in early January was fascinated by the amount of innovation discussed in the China Daily newspaper. The news clips were additional confirmation that all industries in both developed and emerging markets are being digitally disrupted. On multiple fronts, China is advancing faster as they are bypassing traditional legacy technology cycles to new platforms.
On the Road to Being World's Largest Retail Market
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For the past five years, Ford has been publishing a list of global micro trends. The company calls it "a compilation of the most compelling movements across the globe that are shaping how we live, work, and engage with the world around us."
As we begin the New Year, thought would share my favorite global highlights from both the 2016 and 2017 editions.
Social Media is Hard Work
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Summarizing the first three ingredients driving the age of disruption from Part 1 of this post:
Geopolitical Risks Ahead
The Netherlands, France, Italy, Austria, Germany, all have key elections in the next 12 months that could potentially join the global populist disruptive wave manifested in Brexit and the surprise USA presidential ballot. Geopolitical turmoil carries risk for global brands and must be carefully navigated for continued success.
Need for Technology Speed
Today is indeed the slowest day of technology change for the rest of your life. Each new disruptive technology is finding its expanded global audience faster.
Is the Data Economy the New Oil?
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The Smartphone, Bar Code, Cash Register, and Hype Cycle
At a recent growth and innovation summit had the pleasure of once again speaking about the future of retail. To engage the audience in an innovation conversation decided to ask a series of historical technology questions.
Out of the sixteen researched questions, following are my favorite top five:
Name One of the Top Five Greatest Inventions of All Time
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A recent Forbes article highlighted the following key takeaways from Tesla's latest quarterly results which beat expectations:
Battery Breakthrough
Major improvements are expected in batteries, including a pure lithium anode that might triple battery capacity in the future. The new Gigafactory batteries will have 10%-15% better capacity due to improved chemistry. The new factory will also reduce costs by at least 30%, allowing Tesla to deliver the much less expensive $35,000 Model 3 by 2017. CEO Alan Musk expects that within the next 10 years electric cars will reach cost parity with combustion engines.
Car Production
Car production continues to increase and Tesla expects to deliver 35,000 cars during the current financial year. Tesla's goal is to reach a run rate of 100,000 cars per year by the end of 2015. Next spring, Tesla will release the Model X crossover SUV. Musk expects selling as many units of the new model as the current Model S. The CEO noted that they already had a lot of orders for the Model X, despite buyers having not seen the vehicle.
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By 2018, the smart home market will reach $71 billion, more than double the $33 billion in 2013. Eighty percent of the current market is 
driven by entertainment. By 2020, other research points to a $1.7 billion market just for light controls and $1.4 billion for automated thermostats.
This month Time magazine dedicated their cover to a special report on "The Smarter Home". According to Time, the following companies will control your future smarter home:
Tech Titans
Apple - With iOS 8 this fall Apple will release the Apple Homekit. Say "bedtime" to Siri and your Philips internet bulb will turn off.
Google - Followed up $3.2 billion purchase of Next (smart thermostats / smoke detectors) with acquisition of Dropcam (web enabled security cameras.
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Sponsored Content
Top 3 Weekly Essentials
Chain Store Age
Harvard Business Review
It is a Small World
"To succeed in life, you need three things: a wishbone, a backbone and a funnybone." – Reba McEntire
Continuing our global journey to learn something new, our next stop is the Trevi Fountain in Rome. The name "Trevi" comes from the Italian words tre, meaning "three", and vie, meaning "roads". The fountain is located where three roads meet.
A fountain has been located at the Trevi Fountain site for over 2,000 years. The current fountain was designed by Nicola Salvi and built between 1732 and 1762. It's the largest Baroque fountain in Rome.
The Trevi Fountain's water comes from the Acqua Virgo aqueduct, the only functioning aqueduct from ancient Rome. Local lore says that throwing a coin into the fountain will ensure you return to Rome. Other lore says that throwing two coins will lead to love, and throwing three coins will lead to marriage.
Wishes aside, since 2006, a Roman Catholic charity called Caritas has collected the roughly €3,000 a day thrown into the fountain and used it to provide food and social programs worldwide.
Life is one sweet ride. Time flies way too fast. Take a moment. Sit at your favorite place. Imagine the history before you. Live each moment as it was your last. One day, it will be.
Categories
Brilliant Research
Unlocking Shopper Reactions to Secured Products
60% of shoppers report seeing locked-up merchandise on a regular basis. More than a quarter of shoppers say a retailer loses their purchase when items are locked up. 62% of shoppers say they typically wait for assistance when they encounter locked up merchandise, and 9% say they order the item online from that same retailer. - From Numerator.com Read more
Smart Infographic
Retail Media: An Evolving Growth Opportunity that Won't Wait
Retail media is still surging. Ad spending with US retailers is growing 9X faster than traditional point-of-sale shopper marketing. - From Bain & Company
Insightful Videos
Why EV Leases Are So Cheap Right Now In The U.S. -CNBC
Automakers are offering steep discounts on electric vehicles, and especially on leases. In the first three months of 2024, less than a quarter of car buyers leased vehicles, but more than a third of EV buyers did. Read more
