The RealGirl Substack is FakeFake by The RealReal??!
Welcome to Wednesday, futurists.
In an industry drowning in predictive analytics and trend forecasting, we chose instead to become archaeologists of tomorrow.
Just two weeks ago we gathered ten brave leaders for The Future Now, our experimental roundtable series, which transforms commerce leaders into time travelers examining our present from the vantage point of 3025.
The latest expedition revealed real anxieties and tensions: our participants imagined hyper-localized economies and digital twin delegations, they simultaneously yearned for the friction and imperfection that makes life meaningful.
What emerged wasn't just speculation about commerce's future, but a mirror reflecting our present anxieties and aspirations.
Aman, founder and CEO of Ministry of Supply, imagined a hyperlocalized world of Newton Massachusetts requiring seventh-generation local manufacturing—today's Section 321 anxieties taken to their logical extreme. His 3025 historian could only lament the loss of Indian cuisine by imagining a future where such global connections were already forgotten—while we watch their potential unraveling in realtime.
We’ve never been closer to Mike Judge’s glimpse of the future: in our fictional universe, Costco is the only retailer left.
By crafting tomorrow's story, we better understand today's chapter. Which is probably why the “Totinos Pizza Rolls Presents the Gulf of America Powered by The Home Depot” doesn’t sound as much like a joke but a prophecy waiting to come true.
Do you want to join us at our next collaborative fiction event? Reply here or keep a close eye on our events page 👀.
— Phillip
NBA Vision Pro's Court-Side Revolution. Apple's spatial computing debut brings the hardwood home as the NBA introduces a groundbreaking tabletop view for Vision Pro users. Finally, a use case for the $3,500 face computer besides attracting the wrong kind of attention at the local coffee shop.
VR influencer Justin Ryan previewed the technology, dubbed NBA Tabletop, on his social media accounts, showing how video game aesthetics might impact the future of live sports.
The RealGirl Substack is FakeFake by The RealReal? In a delightfully meta twist, luxury resale platform TheRealReal launches a Substack newsletter masquerading as an obsessed customer. It's giving "How do you do, fellow kids?" energy, but with authenticated Chanel bags.
Our Take: It was only a matter of time before brands came for the distribution nirvana that is Substack. But the real challenge is whether people will tune in. Cultivating an illusory avatar brand voice is tricky; most people see through it.
It reminds me of the early Victoria’s Secret catalogs, which had the conceit that a woman named Victoria was a small-time entrepreneur running the business. Or that Hollister was founded by “John Hollister,” which was a corporate backstory.
Salesforce's Saudi Soirée. Silicon Valley's enterprise darling announces a $500M investment in Saudi Arabia to advance AI development and Hyperforce initiatives. Expanding into the region comes as tech firms navigate complex geopolitical waters while chasing growth markets, while luxury and retail expand into these markets.
Our Take: Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Riyadh, and Singapore all represent opportunity markets for venture capital and sovereign wealth investments. These “cities of the future” are seeing significant infrastructure investments and population booms. As risk capital moves away from Silicon Valley and technology businesses build in these regions, we’ll see more traditional Valley businesses make larger and larger investments in opportunity markets.
$500M is an early gesture that shows a serious commitment to a region.
The Thirst Quencher. Presented without comment.
Shopping at Work is Still a Daydream. A new chat-to-shop startup, Daydream, emerges from stealth with an interface that feels like Slack got an SSENSE plugin. It’s only available through a private beta, which is becoming a launch pattern with other AI shopping apps (like Doji) that rely on a social virality cycle to gain critical mass. The gatekeeping approach suggests we're entering the era of curated AI commerce… or that API calls are still quite expensive.
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