THE FUTURE IS FASHIONABLE
Ready for it or not, the concept of clothing is changing.
We are going through a tremendous turnaround from humans being kind of asleep to being awake. Our generation is super lucky to be here, to explore the unknown. Fashion business is embracing technology today. Does Pebble steel design the best smart watch? Can Nike make its fuel band even sportier? Will Google Glass ever look normal? While everyone is concentrating on consumer electronics world, the Fashion industry is stepping in. Jackets and pants that alert you when you forgot something from designer Asher Lavine who works with likes of Beyonce and Lady Gaga. 3D printed shoes, that yes, you can actually walk in from Continuum Shoes. Some are more subtle, like Ministry of Suppy classic wear. Its special fabric acts like a battery, absorbing and releasing hit depending on the environment, but looks and feels just like your favorite dress shirt. Technology here is a toolbox from which the ideas can arise. Designers now, can experiement and produce these, faster and cheaper. Some of the ideas that we once saw only in Science fiction are now starting to become a reality. The line dividing tech and fashion is rapidly blurring. Form vs function was the question, but today the questions is why not both?
Studio XO is a laboratory in London where science meets style and where the boundaries of wearable tech are tested. Their inventions were called by various music artists like Lady Gaga, Fergie.
Their studio is filled with 3D printers and sewing machines, the artistry is there, but for XO it's all about making science fiction science fact. Nancy Tilbury is one of the pioneers in merging fashion and technology. Together with her team she works hard to develop digital couture experience. In other terms, interacting and evolving garmets. Her ultimate goal is to bring these ideas and concepts to the streets. As a first step they are creating extravagant gowns for the likes of Lady Gaga and Black Eyed peas.
Studio XO created this performance art dress which Lady Gaga wore for the party after the performance and as she was leaving, Studio XO dress animated release of bubbles.
“I am always interested in solution driven. I am very happy that I am old enough that I danced at Studio 54 and young enough to join digital revolution. I love everything that is digital. I sleep with my iPad. I know a lot of people in technology, had great opportunity to show google glass in public thanks to my good friend Sergei Brin. For me it’s important to stay feminine, practical, effortless, sexy and on-the-go.”
The bar has been raised when it comes to technology and design; engineering is no longer enough to create real market desire. But luxury and technology need to develop a new language, and new understanding if they are going to change perception and purchasing behavior on a global scale.
FASHION SHOW IN SILICON VALLEY
WHAT IT'S LIKE
Fashion and technology are slowly but surely coming together. While fashionistas are often portrayed as really really good looking people , techies are rarely seen making statements in fashion. But, the 2016 Silicon Valley Fashion Week shows what happens when the two collide.
Designers and tech companies came together in San Francisco to exhibit their latest creations. Designed with CAD programs, extruded from 3D printers, controlled with smartphones or drones, lit with LED lights, each piece incorporated modern technologies. Check out the gallery below to see some of the most jaw-dropping examples from the show.
Tinsel modeled its new Shot headphone-necklace hybrid. Photo: Andrew Tarantola
Singer Jasmin Cruz opened the second night with her hit single and backing vocals by two Beams telepresence robots from Suitable Technologies. Photo: Andrew Tarantola
The smartphone-controlled CAT Clutch, is a programmable LED handbag. Photo: Andrew Tarantola
Heidi Lee's Echo Hat stole the show on opening night. And fully defends against people trying to sneak up on you. Photo: Andrew Tarantola
Will these things one day replace expensive models?
Great stuff for the start, but there is work and work to be done before it reaches the perfection.
Silicon Valley A.I.
The beginning of the Star Wars Era
The new shiny thing for Silicon Valley today centers on artificial intelligence and robots and it does not require a "like" buton.
As much as human kind avoids accepting the fact is computers are starting to speak, listen, see, do, move. The world is changing.
The shift was evident as you enter Stanford shopping center. Standing at 5 feet tall and weighing 300 pounds, Knightscope K5 looks like it came straight out of the sci-fi film Stars Wars. But the crime-fighting robot is actually a new breed of security guards roaming Silicon Valley.
Or this Bossa Nova Robotics silently glides through the aisles using computer vision to automatically perform a task that humans have done manually for centuries. It move out of the way of shoppers and avoids unexpected obstacles in the aisles, alertss people to its presence with soft birdsong chirps. Gliding down the middle of an aisle at a leisurely pace, it can recognize bar codes on shelves, and it uses a laser to detect which items are out of stock.
Not to forget and mention this Boston Dynamics creation by the name of SpotMini ( mini version of the Spot robot) designed by the company.
Financiers and entrepreneurs from Silicon Vallery are digging into artificial intelligence with remarkable exuberance. Without noticing, we are entering the Star Wars Era. Let's just hope that this new technology works with us and not against.
Soon We’ll All Love Robots
TODAY JAPAN, TOMORROW THE WORLD
If to you robots seem eerie and creepy, Japan seems to love them despite all the imperfections and faults. They have a long ongoing love affair with humanoid robots. So what you ask. Well, like it or not, robots are a glimpse of the future.
The more human-like, the more positive we'll respond right? The robots get more and more human-like and soon our acceptance will rise. Japan moved into a robot valley a while back.
Let's take a look at a couple of present-day examples of robots in Japan. Take a look at the Toshiba’s Aiko Chihira, which has worked as a receptionist in Tokyo department stores.
Here is another example where Dr. Yoshio Matsumoto presented a test involving putting their Actroid F twin androids in doctor’s offices as support for patients during consultations. The results showed that patients generally felt their doctor was more sympathetic, better understood what they were being told, and generally felt less anxious when the android was in the room with them.
Japanese people are generally more exposed to robots today than anyone else on the planet. The exposure is partially why Japanese people in general find robots acceptable, including the eerie ones. People living in Japan encounter robots and other kinds of automated systems — in their day-to-day life way more than most people. It seems robots are viewed more positively there. Japan is busy deploying robots for many different tasks. It is, in fact, an initiative that the government believes will help revitalize the Japanese economy. Robots are already used in health care and in elder care. One interesting fact is that elderly people, sometimes happily use the robots as conversation partners.
While Japan is aging rapidly the same can be said for many parts of the rest of the world. Silicon Valley investors are catching up. How about Anybot? Virtual Presence that utilizes the Internet to transmit audio & video between the pilot and his QB avatar.
As history evolves and cultures change, exposure to robots will increase. Part of the reason why this seems to be going smoothly in Japan is that Japanese people have been exposed to robots more than most other people on planet.
The results indicate that once you get to know them, they really are not that creepy at all.
"It is time for me to move on”