We all know that the buffest Roman-era jocks were chosen to be gladiators but history has tended to ignore the emo kids who performed in front of much smaller crowds as sadiators.

Wow, what a crazy year that was. Thank goodness it's over!

Was The Original MAGA Cap a Chapeau? Hypocritical headwear is a hit in the heartland

Sorry to pollute the feed with this guy, but I've written about the history behind elites wearing red hats.

Everyone Loves a Quote, from Shakespeare to Spinal Tap Memes are just the latest iteration of an ancient social activity

My latest on Medium, my first for a while on Bluesky.

I'm off X

Summer’s Over. What a Relief! How about a little alienation with that autumn breeze?

Whose road are you following?
A short piece I published this weekend.

Author John B. Dutton Talks About His New, AI-Inspired Novel Will AGI create a utopia or dystopia?

Want to know what my novel, 2084, is about? I mean, beyond the marketing copy? Here’s my in-depth interview with Thomas Smith of The Generator.

2084 is now available at the wonderful Paragraphe bookstore on McGill College in downtown Montreal.

#author #novel #dystopia #satire #montreal

France's La Poste celebrates baguette with bakery-scented stamp The French post office unveiled on Thursday, the day of the patron saint of bakers and pastry chefs, a scratch-and-sniff post stamp, which costs €1.96.

Sharing this news item just so I can write:

olfactory philately

Digital representatives, robot sculptors, and luxury pineapples. (Plus my new novel!) Will deepfakes and AI scams help us move beyond the post-truth era? This newsletter looks at trust and authenticity in the age of generative artificial intelligence.

In the latest Discomfort Zone newsletter:
 
A Ukrainian spokesbot 🤖
An exclusive fruit 🍍
Robots who sculpt 🗿
And why software makes car repairs more expensive 🚗 💸

Plus an interview with Adam Morgan, who literally wrote the book on challenger brands.

Subscribe to receive the email version! 🙏

Sora-ealism Will Become a Defining Esthetic of this Decade OpenAI’s video creation tool would make Salvador Dali’s mustache twirl even higher

From my latest article for The Generator: "It’s ironic that what many commentators saw as Sora's strength — the realism of its videos — may actually turn out to be less important than how unrealistic and even surrealistic the imagery that it creates is."

Flying pigs, flying chickens, and not realizing you’re dead Today’s Discomfort Zone newsletter features Sora’s surreal videos, DeepMind’s soccer tactics, AI obituary piracy, and how Spotify hopes to become an education hub. Plus, the top 3 mistakes brands make...

In today’s Discomfort Zone newsletter:
 
Sora’s surreal videos 🎥
DeepMind’s soccer tactics ⚽
AI obituary piracy 💀
 
And how Spotify hopes to become an education hub. 👩
 
Plus a 1Qi interview with DEI specialist Sonia Thompson, who shares the top 3 mistakes brands make when showcasing inclusivity.

Today's weather in England, straight from my sister's mouth: "Less muddy than it's been for some time."

Who’s To Say that the Founding Fathers Were Even Human? Don’t Blame Gemini…. It’s been less than a month since we had a female Pope and black Nazis. What a time to be alive!

This is my most-read article on Medium.

Are we thinking about AI image-creation platforms the wrong way?

How should we address realism, historical accuracy, and avoiding bias?

Is AI a tool or a toy? The answer makes a big difference to how we react to its output.

Why the Wendy’s Dynamic Pricing Fiasco is a Great Lesson for Marketers We evolved to crave predictability. Negative emotions can be triggered by this craving. Too bad for one fast-food CEO…

People like burgers, not surgers.

Wendy’s woes, Kate’s no-show, and cute Korean carebots Today’s Discomfort Zone newsletter features: Wendy’s dynamic price debacle, Kate's fake photo fiasco, and cute Korean carebots. The 1Qi interview features professor Jordan LeBel, who explains the tou...

In today’s Discomfort Zone newsletter:

Wendy’s dynamic price debacle 🍔
Kate's fake photo fiasco 👸
Cute but cringy Korean carebots 🤖

And how the CIA intends to use AI. (Maybe just change its name to CAI?) ‍🕵️

+ an interview with Professor Jordan LeBel who explains plant-based marketing challenges.

Blue skies, Gemini flies, and Sam Altman’s $7 trillion poker face Is Sam Altman bluffing with his $7 trillion bet? Twitter offshoot Bluesky launches to the public. Google’s Gemini AI gets more useful. Should corporations speak up on social issues? Plus a 1Qi intervi...

The latest edition of my newsletter features:
 
Bluesky’s bright future  🌤
Gemini’s genuine usefulness 💡
Sam Altman’s $7 trillion bluff ♠
 
& whether corporations should speak up on social issues.
 
+ an interview with songwriter Charlie Harding, who remains optimistic about the future of pop music.

Open AI’s video generation tool Sora was unveiled to the general public on Thursday. Will it (or any other AI) be used to make a movie or TV show anytime soon? No.
 
medium.com/the-generato...

The Surprising Link Between Charles Dickens and Leonard Cohen Great art happens at the intersection of darkness and light

This very short piece is about a surprising link I discovered between Charles Dickens and Leonard Cohen.

Why Context is the Most Undervalued Aspect of Marketing Original concepts and content creation are important but they never exist in a vacuum

As western monoculture splinters into what anthropologist Grant McCracken calls "gravity wells", the ability to understand context is becoming ever more valuable for marketers and anyone who wants to influence behavior.

Arsenal had scored more by halftime today than the Chiefs!

#Superbowl #NFL #dohashtagsworkonbsky

Today’s edition of my Discomfort Zone newsletter features:
 
Toothbrush attack 😮
Airport vineyard 🍇
Digital nomads 💻
 
And why context is undervalued in marketing 👑
 
Plus a 1Qi interview with London brand innovation studio Dalziel & Pow, who share their design methodology.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=shared&v=gISuCZUvzuk

Video teaser for my new novel: 2084

Get release info at johnbdutton.com/2084

Please share with anyone you think might be interested in a cautionary tale about where we're headed...

And don't be shy to ask me questions right here on Bluesky!

#speculativefiction #scifi

Music: purple-planet.com

3D-printed shoes, AI-fake news, and the cult of cute This Discomfort Zone newsletter features: cuteness overload, compostable shoes, Google's GenAI, and why hipster cafes all look the same. Plus an interview with public speaking coach Nausheen Chen.

Today’s Discomfort Zone newsletter features:
Cuteness overload 😻
Compostable shoes 👟
And why hipster cafes all look the same ☕
 
Plus a 1Qi interview with public speaking coach Nausheen Chen, who explains how to balance authenticity and performance when selling an idea.

Knock, Knock. Targeting here! Relentless, remorseless, and now fueled by AI, hyper-targeted marketing is about to invade your life

AI-generated advertising will use personal data to produce hyper-targeted marketing. Is artificial intelligence that knows us inside-out creepy or useful?

Slow Suicide by Coffee-Making Robot Humanoid robots don’t replace drudgery. They replace the will to live.

Tech company Figure released a video earlier this week showing a humanoid robot operating a Keurig coffee machine. So I wrote this piece about drudgery, laziness, and valuing the simple things in life. And people are reacting. 🤖

The big idea: should we abolish literary genres? Categorising fiction may help to sell books, but it says little about how writers write or readers read

Super interesting piece in the Guardian today about whether literary genres should be abolished. I totally agree, although I understand that they help book marketers. What do you think?

Latest issue of the Discomfort Zone dropped this morning at johnbdutton.substack.com

Has AI Created a New Literary Genre? My roller-coaster ride through the classic gothic horror feelgood action-drama bromance

Has AI created a new literary genre? 📖🤖

Follow my roller-coaster ride through the classic gothic horror feelgood action-drama bromance known as FrankenstAIn...

Tasty TikTok hits, AI poison pills, and design harmony Extreme Stereotyping I try hard not to put too much focus on artificial intelligence in Discomfort Zone. But it’s tough! Major advances are coming thick and fast while new devices are being released...

The latest Discomfort Zone newsletter features:

☠️ Should visual artists destroy AI using a poison pill?
🎸What will Billboards’s new TikTok music chart change?
👻How much do Americans spend/waste on Halloween cards?

Plus biomimicry in furniture design and a galling study on AI’s extreme stereotyping