Why creatives will be happy to work faster

Though I don't always subscribe to Ilya Pozin's point of view, I think this small article is worth reading. But I would like to add another aspect to the debate on planning versus doing.

The war against the machines starts in kindergarden

As you may have heard, Google owned Motorola has launched a new smartphone that incorporates a quite intelligent voice control interface. Though I am generally excited to try and use new technologies, I have strong doubts that they, if just let loose, will take mankind to a better world. Why? Because most people, including myself, cannot yet use new gadgets properly.

Isn't it great? The two campaigns winning the most Cannes Lions have nothing in common.

Last week lots of ad people went to party and learn at the Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity. Judges set the bar again for a year concerning the highly subjective question of what is a creative idea. I was very happy in 2012 (when my concept got two shortlists), but I am also glad now that two of my favourite things have been considered as great work: Fun and Smartness. Let's see why they can be called opposites.

The most important invention of the 21st century?

The Wyss Institute at Harvard announced that it can use 3d printing techniques to produce lithium-ion microbatteries that may help finish lots of small scale devices that were parked in labs in the last phase of development basically because there was no battery small enough to fit them. We can certainly expect a soaring number of medical applications but I think there will be much "bigger" consequences of this announcement which might change our lives soon.

When you work on an idea for a year

Some smart friends of mine and myself have just launched a new communication consulting startup called Memelab. We have our first two offices in Budapest and San Francisco and we are all very happy this dream has come true. Our goal is to replace the Brand Positioning model with something else that will be a better foundation for communication campaigns in the coming decades. If you are interested, check out the intro presentation.
But the reason I am writing this post is not only the actual model, but also the timing of its development. I have never thought that I would be able to concentrate on a task for a year.

Farewell to Sliced Carrots

I have recently had an inspiring chat with my colleagues at umbrella.tv. We talked about how the changing media landscape and consumer behavior influences communications strategy, and how that drains down to creative and finally production. Quite a lot of brands have already embraced the idea of a new digital era and they are ready to focus their communication strategy on integrated efforts. But the closer we get to production itself the more we witness a need for old-school structures and fossil-like methodology. So we decided to start a conversation about this by saying goodbye to sliced carrots.

Speaking Ads vs. Google Glass

As covered by MIT Tech Review, Nuance created a tool that enables customers to interact with mobile ads by voice, in other words, from now on you can speak with ads. I guess artificial intelligence still has a long way to go before we face the famous dilemma of Blade Runner (human or not?), so don't expect complicated conversations from this platform. But some consequences can definitely be drawn, one of them possibly influencing the future of Google Glass and similar gadgets. And the key to this issue is the difference between your car and the subway.