Hi Friends! Welcome to the 100+ people who signed up last week. I’m excited to share this week’s “Designing Near Future” Newsletter with you.

Here’s the breakdown of what’s in store today

⭐ 1 Shift: How AI is transforming the business of influence

⚡ 1 Tip : A 3-Step System to evaluate your visual design language choices

💊 3 Resources: Creative resources for taking your work to the next level

⭐ Shift

How AI is changing the business of influence

Influence is kind of like a giant friendship web. It's about us liking who we see, wanting what they have, and feeling good about our choices. Traditionally, the influence business has hinged on the power of well-known personalities - (Remember Justin Timberlake x McDonalds?). As you know, the business of influence is prevalent across every industry from sports to Hollywood to social media.

But AI is creeping in. And that’s the theme of today’s shift.

To start with, The new Indiana Jones movie, releasing next week uses an AI system called FRAN (face re-aging network) to turn 81-year-old Harrison Ford back into his 35-year-old self. It is a proprietary Disney technology that combs through decades-old footage of the actor to de-age him. Although digital re-aging is a common technique in hollywood, it was majorly time consuming and performed by skilled artists until, well the AI boom.

And it's not just about looks, In a recent podcast interview, Tom Hanks said that because of AI and deepfake technology, he can now pitch multiple movies as a 32 year old and this would continue “even if he was hit by a bus, tomorrow.”

Digital Celebrities

A while back, Bruce Willis made headlines for 'selling' his look to become a digital avatar for an ad. He didn't really sell rights to his face, but he did enjoy how the tech let him work on the ad, even from a different continent. Check out this process video for the commercial, it's quite a watch!

Here’s more signals to suggest where this is headed:

1) New AI startup Forever Voices AI teamed up with social media influencer Caryn Marjorie to develop a “virtual girlfriend.” They had a waiting list of 15,000 people and today makes $70k+ every month.

2) Director, Joe Russo Predicts AI to Star Your avatar in Your Own Movie. He also talks about the scalability and longevity of what digital avatars enable.

3) SAG-AFTRA on the use of AI Digital Doubles in Media and Entertainment said that we shouldn't allow AI developers to use professional voices and likenesses without proper permission or compensation.

4) Anna Sullivan Founder of the The Creative Exchange says AI Influencers are Here to Stay - while real influencers aren't going anywhere, brands will be using this new tech within the next five years. The article also talks about how we have had virtual influencers for really long eg. Gorillaz, Alvin and the chipmunks and Hatsune Miku.

4 Businesses Extending human potential

In 2021, Metaphysic used AI to make a digital version of NFL star Deion Sanders for a Gillette razor ad. He looked just like he did in 1989, the night he was drafted. Jack Nicklaus, a golf legend, also let a company called Soul Machines create a 'digital' him at age 38, when he was at the top of his game. Soul Machines calls these creations 'digital people'. You can see how they do it on their website - it's pretty cool!

Another exciting startup is AI Foundation (raised $27M a couple of years ago) that’s advertising “building your own AI clone - Faces, bodies, eyes, ears, voices, emotions, cognitive & emotional intelligence that can be deployed in apps, web, live and in media.”

And lastly, Synthesia, a digital media platform that lets users create AI-generated videos (with ‘lifelike’ digital avatars and voice, has raked in $90 million from investors including Nvidia which puts their valuation at $1Billie! Oooof.

So what’s the shift?

AI is on stage with the A-List

Digital avatars, while not yet mainstream in the U.S., are big in Japan, South Korea, and China, featuring prominently in major brand campaigns. The big shift unfolding in marketing which was traditionally one-to-many, is going to become one-to-one. Influencers will be able to speak to you as if they were your friends. They can be present with you, and with thousands of others at the same time, this time they’ll take your name and understand your desires. Among other things, this unlocks -

1) Unlimited Scalability
2) Hyper Personalization
3) Longevity beyond life

Culturally, this will drive the perceived prestige of real humans even higher and unlock potential monetary advantages for the “influencers”. Now if this would result into a deeper connection with the common humans, I’m not sure just yet.

Exciting opportunities for building in this space:

1. Digital Afterlife AI: AI avatars based on the persona of deceased loved ones, using shared stories, home videos, photos, etc. This could change our experience of grief and remembrance and closure. I’m interested in seeing what this looks like for pets. Remember 7 in 10 Gen-Z would rather have pets than babies.

2. Digital Art Canvas: A digital canvas that shares art, thoughts or highly personalized content. Imagine Arnold Schwarzenegger pushing you to be healthy every morning, or getting a personalized Ed Sheeran concert on demand.

Super important to note that human’s are only one part of the business of influence. Franchises without any human endorsements have been wildly successful as well, look at some games for instance.

⚡ Tip

A 3-Step system to evaluate your Visual Design language choices.

The 12ft, 3ft, 1ft Read system

To truly evaluate the visual design choices in a product, it needs to pass 3 tests. What does the object look like from 12ft apart, 3ft apart and 1ft apart. This system is also great to put in a client deck to showcase your design choices in a methodical way. Here is the system in action -

12ft Read - Does the object have a strong recognizable silhouette? Does it have a strong brand color? Or is it meant to blend in? Does it entice you to come closer? Write that down.

3ft Read - Now you are looking at the object up close. Does it feel structurally sound? Or does it look delicate? Is it friendly to touch or hold? What do the details signify? Write that down.

1ft Read - Now you are holding the object in your hand. How do you describe the details? Is the object manufactured to the highest quality? What do the textures, labels, split lines signify? Write that down.