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AI Disproportionately Affects Women. We All Need to Fight Back.

AI Beauty Pageant

This week, the “world’s first Miss AI” digital beauty contest was announced with $5000 prize awarded based on beauty and skill using AI tools. One tech expert predicted that the AI girlfriend industry could hit $1B in revenue soon despite multiple reports of how the creators of these digital companions may be hoarding your private data. While these issues could … Read more

The Dark Side of “Sharenting” (And Why You Should Avoid Posting About Your Kids On Social Media)

European telecommunications giant Deutsche Telekom launched a campaign using deepfakes to scare parents into being more careful about what they share online. The effort is meant to illustrate the dangers of “sharenting” (parents oversharing photos of their kids online). The video showcased is a disturbing imagined future where kids are suffering from identity theft, exploitation and … Read more

When Influencer Marketing Goes Predictably Wrong

When a fast fashion retailer often criticized for negative environmental and labor track record wants to recast its brand image, it is not a good strategy to rely on the vapid commentary of social media influencers enjoying an all-expenses paid junket to your headquarters China. This week, retail giant Shein created their own predictable self-imposed controversy when … Read more

Understanding the Woman-Led Backlash Against the “Lean In” Movement

If you are a professional woman, do you identify with this idea of “leaning in” as the right way to build your career, or do you feel that this expectation that it is your responsibility to assert yourself underestimates the cultural and institutional barriers that stand in your way?

How Japan’s “Culture of Cute” Traps Japanese Women

Last year I went to Japan for the first time and experienced the inescapable presence of “Kawaii” culture. It is a word that describes the overwhelming cuteness of icons, mascots and media that focus on pastel colors, large rounded imagery and anime characters with big eyes and (often) short skirts. In many cases, it overlaps … Read more

5 Non-Obvious Megatrends Changing Our World In 2020

For the past ten years I have gone through an annual ritual of publishing a book about trends that describe our shifting culture and business environment. Over the past decade, my team and I have identified and written about well over 100 trends covering everything from the rise of the #metoo movement (a trend we … Read more

Inside India’s First Brand For Curly Haired Women

India has some baggage when it comes to women with curly hair: “The Indian ideal for beauty prizes long, straight hair. For the most part, curly hair is considered ugly, unnatural and indicative of women likely to cause trouble and break rules.” An entrepreneur named Asha Barrack is trying to change these stereotypes and inviting … Read more

How Millennials Became Workaholics, Japan’s Big Hacking Experiment and Why People Believe Tabloids | Non-Obvious Insights 01.31.19

Millennials Glorify #Hustle,Take Unhealthy Workaholism Mainstream As we live through the rise of “#hustle culture,” this article provides a much needed reminder that we need to stop celebrating workaholism among Millennials and instead describe the workplaces which foster this culture for what they are: toxic and inhumane.   Japan Hacks 200 Million Devices In Pre-Olympic CyberSecurity Test  To prepare … Read more

Is the Body Positive Movement Really A Good Thing?

Today there are plenty of examples of campaigns to help people become comfortable with their own bodies. Yet some have criticized this body positive movement as perhaps keeping people from admitting they are obese. One Newsweek article worried that people may use it as an excuse to justify their weight. This movement has also gone far beyond only body … Read more

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#1 WSJ & USA Today Bestselling Author

Rohit is the author of 10 books on trends, the future of business, building a more human brand with storytelling and how to create a more diverse and inclusive world.

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