Tech Trends: Amazon's Grounded Drones, AI in Retail, and Activision's AI Missteps
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?? Amazon’s Delivery Drones Are Grounded. The Birds and Dogs of This Texas Town Are Grateful
The conversation around drone delivery, while highlighting the potential for increased efficiency and customer convenience, presents a valuable opportunity to consider the broader implications for businesses and brands. From a 'Do No Harm' perspective, it's crucial to consider potential misuses and overlooked problems of this technology designed for last-mile delivery.?This includes understanding the impact on local ecosystems, privacy concerns, and the overall perception of the technology by consumers. There is a need for proactive assessment and strategic planning to navigate the complexities of emerging technologies, ensuring that innovation aligns with both business goals and ethical considerations.?
Ultimately, it's about fostering a dialogue that anticipates and mitigates potential risks, while building trust and long-term sustainability.
Eduardo Hernández Vicario , Brand Strategy Lead, Designit
?? Self-checkouts: Have Shops Reached Peak Self-Scan?
The rise of self-checkouts and automation in retail is driven by efficiency, but as explored in BBC’s The Bottom Line, there’s no universal solution. While the vision of fully cashier-less stores remains, the most practical approach today is a hybrid model - combining self-service and staffed tills.
AI-driven checkout systems continue to improve, but challenges around cost, accuracy, and customer adoption show that automation alone isn’t the answer just yet.
Retailers will take different approaches, shaped by customer preferences, shopping habits and industry needs. Some, like Zara and Decathlon, are streamlining checkout with RFID and self-service stations, while others, like Jumbo, are prioritising human interaction with slow checkout lanes. The future lies in choice and flexibility—using technology to enhance, rather than replace, the retail experience."
Javier Velo Senior Designer, Designit
?? Feminist UX of AI
Nadia Piet's "provotype library," grounded in Feminist HCI, remains highly relevant to today's AI design debates. It challenges the black-box nature of AI, proposing alternative user interactions. Crucially, her "what-if" scenarios directly address the need for greater transparency and user agency. Imagine: what if we could see how an AI system "sees" us? What if end-users had access to in-app "model cards," demystifying algorithms? What if we could define our own optimisation goals, moving beyond default metrics like speed? What if algorithms warned against filter bubbles or explained outputs in ways tailored to diverse understanding?
These prompts are not just speculation. They are practical calls for a more ethical AI, one that prioritises user understanding and control.
Myriam Molitor , Service Designer, Designit
??Activision has announced Guitar Hero Mobile with an AI-generated ad
I've said it over and over again - AI is meant to be used as a tool by creatives, not as a replacement. Not only can the work turn out to be subpar, but even worse, brands get called out for being lazy and uncaring about their own products.
Activision fans are starting to recognise a pattern and it’s not a good one. AI is not a catch-all. It can help with various aspects of creative and marketing workflow, but when you treat it as a replacement for human creativity or as a shortcut to work worth putting out into the market, it may just end in tears.”
Stefan Hajek , Executive Creative Director, Designit
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