Future Provocations

Spring 2019

Future-casting, trend research

Illustrations by Joyce Liu

This is a series of twenty-two social, economic, political, ecological and technological forecasts that will impact how we design the future. Based on themes of the Major Arcana of a tarot deck.

Let's design better futures.

End of life, digital legacy

The machines we interact with everyday have the potential to learn from us and become smarter over time. While we think about how this technology can improve our lives, how can we use this technology to outlive ourselves?

Each year, 2.5 million in the U.S. face the end-of-life. With death comes the loss of knowledge and wisdom. However, what is the future implication of access to a life time of data?

How will technology augment our ability to outlive ourselves? Can we design our digital legacy?

Environment, harmony

Environmental indicators, designed by scientists, are abstract and don’t reflect the relationship to the user. While personal indicators, in the form of health trackers, help us connect with ourselves, but don’t take into account our surroundings.

We are already seeing extreme weather events pose risks to our everyday life, and this is only worsening with increasing climate variability.

As implications of the environment grow closer to our personal wellness, how might we link the relationship between ourselves and the planet?

Shadow self, authenticity, freedom, taboo

Social media’s filtered perception of reality has become a platform for comparison to idealism. New movements based on self acceptance have given rise to showcasing insecurities once taboo, in favor of portraying truth over illusion.

Studies have linked social media use to depression, anxiety and lower self-esteem.

What if the technology we are developing starts to dictate what is possible or acceptable in our lives?

Post-truth society, fake news

The increasing prevalence of AI-generated content such as deep fakes and digital avatars has further complicated our ability to distinguish reality in our digital lives.

Once only the domain of media and information industries, the public increasingly participates in content creation and distribution, as social media has demonstrated an individual’s power to inform and educate in a shifting media landscape.

What new tools and platforms will validate content and who will be accountable for its accuracy?

Resilience, survival

Responding to pressures of 21st century living, consumers are seeking physical, cognitive and emotional transformation to escape social constraints, explore nature and overcome fear.

Political instability and poor economic outlooks are feeding into a culture of anxiety and distrust.
(Edelman Trust Barometer)

What new tools and skills will help consumers navigate an increasingly turbulent world?

Intuition, the unconscious, inner voice

Historically taboo, mental health is now in the spotlight as fading stigmas expose unmet needs and interest in new solutions that empower people and expand their access to treatment.

Depression and anxiety are skyrocketing. By 2030, it will be the number one health risk on earth, outranking obesity. [World Health Organization]

How might a community benefit from your product? How could habits and norms change?

Partnerships, relationships

Dating culture today puts the focus on first loves and early life relationships, but love's pursuit is life-long. What does it mean to look for love in the later years of life?

The Age Quake: By 2030, 1 in 5 people will be over the age of 65. Divorce rates have nearly doubled since the 1990s, bringing many seniors back into the world of dating.

What business models and services will step in to help older consumers navigate the new world of modern intimacy?

Reflection, reckoning

Beauty starts from within. Wellness consumers are looking toward a more holistic vision of beauty, as they increasingly value a deeper sense of wellbeing, beyond topical products.

Tech wellness solutions are becoming more precisely personalized to provide health and beauty treatments that work on a micro level.

What collaborations of science, technology and nutrition could lead to exciting new product opportunities in the beauty industry?

Suspension, indecision, surrender

The world today is characterized by uncertainty, complexity and ambiguity. Massive changes in climate, regulations, populations and international migrations are creating enormous pressure on traditional systems. The nature of conflict and warfare is also changing. How the future copes with these shifts is uncertain.

For young adults today, the future often looks much more uncertain than to the same age group 40 years ago. (U.S. Census Bureau)

How will these shifts play out in affecting future systems and altering future ways of life?

Technology, social isolation

Smart machines in our homes are able to learn our preferences, habits, and even our music taste. Our smartphones have become an extension of our mind and body. As we expect more from technology, are we asking less from people?

Loneliness has become a serious societal issue and economic cost factor in Western societies, spurred by digital communication technology.

How might technology services and products facilitate meaningful connection?

Mobility

As autonomous mobility becomes more viable, our sense of space and transit will become fluid.

Social, economic, and technological trends will create drastic changes to mobility, ranging from shared, seamless to autonomous over the next 10 to 15 years. [McKinsey]

What are the future implications of mobility as a service? What new industries, experiences, and business models will be created when the journey becomes part of the destination?

Privacy, surveillance

Our right to privacy and the nature of ownership are shifting in the digital age. Who has access to our data and for what purpose is no longer clear, prompting the desire to take back control of our lives and interactions.

59% of younger Americans are willing to pay for products and services that protect their digital privacy (Cassandra, 2017).

What new products and services will emerge to protect consumers’ digital lives?

Urban society, transformation

While increased urbanization challenges our quality of life, cities are testbeds for innovation. Through the collective efforts of government, the private sector, and the public, and through transformative technologies and policies, we can realize the potential of future cities.

By 2030, 60% of the world’s population will live in cities. Billions of additional people moving into cities creates the need for new policy making.
[World Economic Forum]

What future infrastructure and services will transform life in cities?

Balance, harmony, meaning

The number of Americans who don’t identify with any religion is growing rapidly. However millennials still seek meaning, community, and ritual in the absence of organized religion. Institutions like Soul Cycle and Cross Fit cater to this demographic with spiritual and social physical experiences.

One third of adults under thirty say they don’t identify with a religion, yet many are still looking for elements of a religious experience. (Pew Research)

What new models and rituals will we create to facilitate community and meaning?

Global warming, optimism

Our planet is reaching environmental overload as we wrestle with the impacts of climate change. The fourth industrial revolution presents an opportunity to fix environmental issues, as Silicon Valley technology and the private sector play a greater role in reducing environmental impact.

Mitigating climate change will require new policies, business plans and technologies to reduce greenhouse gases. [World Economic Forum]

How will we use smart technology to not only improve our lives, but our planet?

Lunar space tourism

The potential for space tourism not only extends the freedom to travel into space, but also presents a market to develop the vehicles necessary to expand life throughout the solar system.

Today, civilian space travel is reserved for the elite, as several private companies are developing sub-orbital tourist vehicles.

Space tourism may lead to large numbers of people traveling to space in the next few decades. How will hospitality and the service industry support this emerging industry?

Government, systems

Private companies are entering the public space, as traditional institutions fall short. As brands and tech giants move into infrastructure, urban design and healthcare, there is opportunity for brands to offer not just retail, but to act as societal forces.

Traditional policy development lags behind technology innovation, though citizens increasingly expect public agencies to take more innovative approaches. (World Economic Forum)

What is the future of public institutions?
If brands own cities, how will democracy work?

Rejuvenation, aging

Older Americans are living busier, more satisfying lives, seeking opportunities to continue learning, give back and deepen their relationships. An awakened sense of possibility, fueled by curiosity and optimism, makes 50+ the “age of wonder”.

Aging is positioned to become one of the most significant social transformations of this century, affecting nearly all sectors of society, including workforce, financial markets, housing, transportation, social protection, and family structures.

What new lifestyle products and services will support this extended ‘third age’?

Human enhancement, bio-technology

As the desire for self-optimization intensifies, biological modification is becoming deeper and more extreme. Modifications and enhancements of natural abilities are raising questions about what it means to be human.

Unequal access to performance enhancement could stir social tension and complains of unfair competition.

What are the future implications of human enhancement? What policies will be needed to be designed to prevent social inequality?

Conventions, ethics

Portrayals of gender, age and work increasingly reject traditional norms, blurring boundaries and creating new identities.

Gender fluidity becomes the norm rather than an exception among many millennials and Gen Zers. When it comes to aging, companies are relying on an incorrect story about who older consumers are.

How might shifting cultural movements impact consumer attitudes? How might new products or services support new cultural habits?

Change, disruption

Disruption has implications for every aspect of our lives, as visionary start-ups identify unexploited niches in the market, unseating corporate giants and changing consumer habits.

A major shift in thinking has placed Artificial Intelligence at the heart of business strategy. The growth of the ‘as-a-service’ model has resulted from changes in corporate and consumer needs. Organizations across sectors are experimenting with blockchain technology.

What unmet needs will create the next market?

Sex education, fertility

Gen Z and millennial attitudes on love and dating reflect a quickly evolving sexuality spectrum. However, sex education around the world lags behind changing societal norms.

Sex today is becoming more about self-expression, not reproduction. Sexual orientation is moving beyond the labels of homosexual, heterosexual or bisexual, as presented in the Kinsey scale.

What new services will fill the knowledge gap left by taboos and underperforming youth education?

Future Provocations

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