Thanks to COVID-19, we’re all much more familiar with video conferencing. This is a note about the kit I’ve been using, and some suggestions on improvements. This is my set-up: Lighting Lighting is the single most important thing to get right. There are many tutorials on YouTube. I like these videos from Epic Light Media. Continue reading “Kit for video conferencing”
Author Archives: Lorenzo Wood
The anatomy of innovation
There are many ways of running innovation processes and programmes. The following describes a broad approach — the result of many years, and many mistakes — that has been successful.
CES 2019 round-up
I gave a talk to the Innovation Stories conference in London with my round-up of CES 2019. This is a summary of what I talked about. Please get in touch if you would like a version of this talk or the detailed write-up. Getting good If you’re unfamiliar with CES, it’s an annual trade showContinue reading “CES 2019 round-up”
Deciding that there are things that computers will never do is bad for you
TL;DR — As the buzz about the threat to jobs from automation grows, I hear people claiming that computers will never work collaboratively, be creative or have intuition or empathy. Therefore, we are told, focus on these human skills and your employability is safe from the machines. This is bad for you. It’s bad forContinue reading “Deciding that there are things that computers will never do is bad for you”
Voice: the rising value of delegation
Voice is the natural medium for delegation, but today’s voice assistants do not substantially offer it. Google’s announcement of Duplex is a step towards assistants that are good at delegation. The prospect of large audiences who are in the habit of delegating to machines creates a new surface for influence and trust. It is bothContinue reading “Voice: the rising value of delegation”
Changing our relationship with shopping
A version of this article appeared in a BIMA publication. With the opening of the first Amazon Go store in Seattle, unattended retail is suddenly headline news. For some retailers of course this technology may still seem like something out of The Jetsons, but it highlights an important truth about the modern retail experience thatContinue reading “Changing our relationship with shopping”
Sleep at CES 2017
Technology for sleep, in evidence last year, grew enough to get its own zone for the first time in 2017. Monitoring has matured past wearable devices, and has kept up with the shift from reporting to coaching. Many more products can now intervene during the night, claiming to improve the quality of your sleep. ThisContinue reading “Sleep at CES 2017”
Problem roadmaps
I’m a big fan of problems. Innovation efforts often focus on ideas. They’re exciting, right? Wouldn’t it be amazing to create this widget or that service? We can sketch ideas, embellish them, prototype them. We can make compelling presentations that convince holders of purse strings to fund them — and, in the process, convince ourselves.Continue reading “Problem roadmaps”
Why are RATs not more popular?
Our core approach to developing novel products and services it to model value from the outset. Such a model starts with huge unknowns, but this nothing to fear: use a tool that copes with uncertainty like the excellent Guesstimate, in which each spreadsheet cell can be a probability distribution. Armed with such a model you canContinue reading “Why are RATs not more popular?”
Digital assistants: how not to fall off the edge
A version of this article appeared in Campaign. As assistants integrate with messaging channels and our interaction moves from focused to ambient, brands need a clear strategy. Digital assistants — a staple of science fiction, from Hal to Jarvis — now promise to be genuinely helpful to millions of people. After a shaky, over-promised start,Continue reading “Digital assistants: how not to fall off the edge”