Celebrity Edge Magic Carpet
Celebrity Edge was named the best new cruise ship of 2018. That award was due to a raft of innovations and new features, including “Magic Carpet” — a deck that moves up and down the...
First Exoskeleton Suit Receives FDA Clearance
Marlborough, Mass.-based ReWalk Robotics has received clearance from Food and Drug Administration for the company’s ReStore soft exo-suit system designed for U.S. rehabilitation centers. ReStore is the only soft exo-suit with FDA clearance, and is...
Bird Launches Cruiser Electric Moped
Scooter-sharing company Bird will offer an electric moped in select markets this summer, called the “Cruiser,” the first to include a seat. Mopeds can be used like a bike, with the electric motor offering assistance...
Panic Playdate
Panic, a 20-year-old Mac software company, has made a major splash announcing its first hardware device. Playdate is a bright-yellow handheld gaming console with a monochrome screen that was co-developed with Swedish design firm Teenage...
Augmented Reality Retail Innovation
One of the standout innovations at SXSW was shown by Lush Retail, a U.K. cosmetics firm that sells, of all things, bath bombs. Lush runs an innovation division called Lush Labs that designed a mobile...
Deepfake
If the tech behind ThisPersonDoesNotExist.com is any indication, AI is going to disrupt the visual sciences. A few days ago, The New York Times wondered if ethical A.I. is even possible. That’s not a rhetorical...
Small Homes
Can you live in an 600-square-foot home? Many Americans will soon. U.S. homes are poised to get smaller, driven by a financial constraints and downsizing baby boomers.
InstaBeauty: How Social Media Is Transforming Makeup
The experiential nature of social media has had a significant impact on the $200 billion global cosmetics market. The popularity of selfies has turned social networks like Instagram into the new Tupperware party. I first...
Airtable, A Spreadsheet On Steroids
Last August, we bestowed an “Ubercool Innovator” award on Airtable. We love Airtable because its simplicity and ease of use completely upstage both Google Sheets and Microsoft Excel, while also delivering a blow to Apple’s...
KAGOY (Kids Are Growing Older Younger)
Modern technology and a shape-shifting societal landscape are conspiring to accelerate the maturity process of children, this is trend called — KAGOY — Kids Are Getting Older Younger.
Face ID and Animoji
Now that we know more about Apple’s new iPhone X, let’s delve into two truly outstanding iPhone X innovations, its Face ID face recognition system and animated emoji, dubbed “Animoji” The iPhone X discards an...
Saks Fifth Avenue ConBody
The Amazon Factor will lead to as many as 8,600 store closings in 2017. Retailers have three options: Close up shop, innovate, or change and become a discount retailer, which, as Costco and Ross Stores...
ZIIP
As you may have read, microcurrent innovation is all the rage in health and beauty. If you’re wondering when the day will arrive that your skin regimen involves using an iPhone app, wonder no more...
K-Beauty: DeepSkin Anti-Aging Mask
If you drive a Kia, own a Samsung TV, smartphone or perhaps a refrigerator too, you’re well on your way to living ”Gangnam Style.” The Korean invasion doesn’t stop there. You’re going to hear a...
ASUS ZenBook 3
A slender gadget that exudes ultimate sophistication; the ASUS ZenBook 3 ($1999) is a true marvel sculpted to perfection. This slender damsel in cocktail blue has edges adorned in golden, giving the laptop a hint...
Public
In 1982, Ian Schrager and Steve Rubell ignited the boutique hotel trend with the opening of Morgans on Madison Avenue, which boasted the design touches of French designer Andrée Putman. Schrager is once again disrupting...
Apple Watch
The “wearables” field was already on fire when Apple threw its hat into the ring in 2015. In classic Apple fashion, the company reinvented the category, from interface to Apple Pay, downright to the intricacies...
Airbnb
Airbnb has ushered in the concept of “home optimization,” offering homeowners the same opportunity to boost cash flow the major airlines have enjoyed for years, a disruptive innovation. The option of staying in someone’s private...
Ultimate Lightning McQueen
Sphero, best known for its two-year-old BB-8 gadget made famous by The Force Awakens, is launching an innovative remote car. Ultimate Lightning McQueen ($300) is another result of Sphero’s collaboration with Disney and is based...
How Do You Create A Winning Innovation Strategy?
Now that the concept of innovation is defined, its history covered and its current importance explained, it’s time to apply innovation to your business. An innovation strategy should be a crucial part of any business...
What Is Innovation?
We are in the midst of an era of sweeping change, with major challenges to address, such as poverty, and new planets to explore, like Mars. With all of the recurring talk of change and...
Technivorm Moccamaster
Disclosure, I was Dutch-born although now I’m a dyed-in-the-wool American, but despite that inherent bias, I will give you my dos centavos of the Technivorm Moccamaster, a highly rated and accomplished coffee maker born in...
Starbucks
Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz is a visionary man. His Starbucks vision has catapulted the company to the exalted position of the world’s No. 1 coffee retailer. Today, there are some 25,572 Starbucks stores worldwide and...
Amazon
Amazon has changed the way America shops. In September 2016, Bloomberg reported that more than half of U.S. online consumers begin their product searches on Amazon.com’s site or mobile app. That was an early distant...
Amazon Echo Look
One of the biggest challenges innovation consultants and speakers face is the “tyranny of the installed base” — as legendary founder of Ziff-Davis, Bill Ziff, liked to put it. Retailers eagerly listen to innovation presentations...
Devialet Silver Phantom
Major innovations in audio technology were last introduced by the likes of Bose, Dahlquist, Magneplanar and Quad in the 1970s. But a French company, Devialet is causing big bass vibrations throughout the audio industry with...
Four SXSW Takeaways
SXSW was, as usual, a spectacle to be experienced. Here are some key takeaways: Multitasking events – SXSW may remind you of the COMDEX conferences of yore, but with a twist. While there were many...
Top 10 Innovators
Like that year-end ritual where some organizations claim to be able to pick the hottest trends of the next year, some market watchers compile lists of the top (fill-in-the-blank) most innovative companies. As much as...
Pioneer Rayz: When Opportunity Knocks
Apple’s decision to remove the audio port from the iPhone 7 resulted in a public outcry of world-ending proportions. To some Apple aficionados, it was Armageddon meets invasion of the headphone port snatchers. But as...
When Did Innovation Catch On?
Innovation is at the top of everyone’s agenda these days. Why? Because the executive mindset changed markedly in the 1990s. Global competition, the internet, and the onslaught of more than 40,000 product launches each year...