The Non-Obvious Insights Blog. Non-Obvious Insights
The Non-Obvious Insights Blog.

Dedicated To Helping Readers
Be More Interesting
Since 2004.

As Featured In:

Can Seaweed Mining Become the Next Billion Dollar Industry?

Can Seaweed Mining Become the Next Billion Dollar Industry

A tiny branch of the US Department of Energy focused on high-risk projects just awarded $5 million dollars to three startup ventures that are each independently “investigating whether seaweed can serve as a practical source of critical materials, such as platinum and rhodium, as well as rare earth elements, including neodymium, lanthanum, yttrium, and dysprosium.”  … Read more

What Would You Put In the “Forever Library” to Archive Human Existence for a Billion Years?

What Would You Put In the Forever Library To Archive Human Existence For a Billion Years

Several million years from now when future civilizations or aliens or whatever is around then look back on human existence, at least they will know how David Copperfield made the Statue of Liberty disappear back in 1983. That’s just one of the archives of humanity that is part of the Galactic Legacy Archive–a library of … Read more

Playing Happy Reef Sounds Could Bring Coral Reefs Back to Life

Playing Happy Reef Sounds Could Bring Coral Reefs Back To Life

A happy and healthy coral reef has a sound. The various “snaps, groans, grunts and scratches that form the symphony of a healthy ecosystem” are not just a symbol of a thriving reef. Underwater scientists have begun testing using these sounds in areas with degraded reefs and are finding the sounds attract coral larvae to settle. … Read more

Augmented Reality Comes to Sports, Thanks to Wrestlemania

The-Rock

Last weekend The Rock made his return to wrestling and a “new era” for the sport was on display at WWE’s Wrestlemania 40 event. The event itself was largely what fans of the sport probably expected, but the use of augmented reality technology in the broadcast stood out because of how integrated it has become. While other … Read more

Aruba Becomes First Nation to Use the Internet Archive to Back up Their Entire History

Aruba becomes first nation to back up history

The Indigenous population of Aruba was first colonized by the Spanish, and then the Dutch – which has given the Caribbean island a diverse history. As archivist Stacy Argondizzo also explains, “they were one disaster away, basically, from losing everything.” Back in 2018, the Internet Archive first began discussions with the country about helping them preserve … Read more

The App That Recreates Social Media’s Dopamine Hits Without Actually Letting You Post Anything

App that recreates social media

One of the irresistible allures of social media has always been the dopamine hit from people engaging with the things that you post. Getting likes feels good. What if you could create that same feeling without the toxic repercussions that come from just posting to chase this engagement? A new app called Palmsy offers an interesting solution – letting … Read more

This Bereavement Startup Shows the Hopeful Human Potential of AI

This Bereavement Startup Shows the Hopeful Human Potential of AI

Dealing with the passing of a loved one is hard emotionally, but the paperwork and procedures involved can make it far worse. A startup called Empathy has made it easier for more than 40 million people and just landed a new round of funding to expand their offering. The need for the tool is clear. Apparently according … Read more

Mapping Apps Are Getting “Smarter” … That Might Not Be Good News

Mapping Apps Are Getting Smarter

Waze announced several “improvements” this week including the ability to warn you about emergency vehicles ahead, warnings for sharp turns coming up and alert you about which lane you should be in as you enter a roundabout. In other words, they have launched features to help distract drivers who are paying attention to the road to look … Read more

How AI Might Be Getting “Lazier” And What to Do About It

How-AI-Might-Be-Getting-Lazier-And-What-To-Do-About-It-

What if you had to “convince” ChatGPT to give you a better or more in-depth answer? Some users are suggesting a “winter break hypothesis” to explain why AI sometimes seems reluctant to do hard work. While the claims are unproven, OpenAI acknowledged the criticism from several users via Twitter and noted that they are “working on … Read more

What You Should Know About Apple’s New Vision Pro Headset

What You Should Know About Apple's New Vision Pro Headset

The early reviews of Apple’s latest flagship metaverse-fueling headset are already mixed. Some say it “lacks polish and purpose” and dismiss it as “spectacular and sad.” More optimistic reviews called it a “revolution in progress” and it is at least delighting financial analysts who already believe it’s a “game changer” when it comes to the … Read more

The Non-Obvious Insights Newsletter. Non-Obvious Insights
Layer 97
The Non-Obvious Insights Newsletter
Layer 118

Skip the obvious and anticipate the future with our weekly newsletter. Join over 25,000 subscribers and start receiving the stories (and insights) you’ve been missing.

All Books

#1 WSJ & USA Today Bestselling Author

In addition to Non-Obvious Thinking, 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.

Contact ROHIT

Have a Question or Inquiry?

Just fill out this form, and we’ll get back to you within 24 hours!

Contact

About You

What Are You Contacting Us About*:

Your Message