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Recommended Reading: Arrivo's unfulfilled promise to end traffic
How Arrivo got Colorado to back a wild-eyed highway scheme Aaron Gordon, Wired Futuristic transportation company Arrivo, cofounded by Brogan BamBrogan and Andrew Liu, sold Colorado Department of Transportation on a plan to build a system that would move pods and cars on sleds at hundreds of miles an hour along the medians of the state's highways. The company said it could do so without Hyperloop-esque vacuum tubes. It never happened. In fact, the project never really started. No feasibility study. No proof of concept. And then Arrivo shutdown at the end of 2018 due to a lack of funding with a lot of unanswered questions.
Samsung to develop real products with a fake Supreme
The Chinese launch event for Samsung's Galaxy A8s had a little surprise for fashion-conscious locals, as the company announced that it was partnering with Supreme. Samsung China's Feng En even invited executives from the popular fashion brand on stage to talk about the marketing collaboration. Don't get too excited about a potential Samsung x Supreme smartphone, however, because there's a catch.
Cambridge Analytica used fashion tastes to profile Facebook users
The Cambridge Analytica scandal blew the lid off Facebook's haphazard handling of user data earlier this year. More than eight months have passed since it came to light and we're still gleaning more info about the ways the now-defunct company -- with ties to Steve Bannon -- used the harvested data of some 87 million Facebook users for political purposes. One of its methods was "fashion profiling," according to Cambridge Analytica whistleblower, Christopher Wylie.
District app helps you shop thousands of fashion brands
It's no secret that the fashion industry dislikes Amazon, but it might have a relatively simple solution: put many of its brands in one place. Checkout network ShopRunner has launched District, a mobile shopping app that lets you buy from "thousands" of apparel and beauty brands (including Bergdorf Goodman, Cole Hann, Kate Spade and Neiman Marcus) using one cart, with free two-day shipping across the board. If you want to complete an ensemble from multiple labels, you don't have to complete sales one at a time.
YouTube will stream Rihanna's fashion show on September 12th
Paul McCartney isn't the only superstar to have lined up a live YouTube stream these days. Rihanna is broadcasting her Savage x Fenty brand's fashion show on Google's service at 7:30PM Eastern on September 12th. She's promising an "immersive experience" that, to no one's surprise, will showcase the label's lingerie and "intimate accessories" (which, of course, you can buy after the show). You might not want to invite your parents to watch with you, then.
Amazon poaches Heidi Klum and Tim Gunn for new fashion series
Project Runway is set to return to its original network, Bravo, after 11 seasons on Lifetime, but when it does, it will be without stars Heidi Klum and Tim Gunn. Instead, the two will be working on a new fashion-focused series for Amazon Prime Video. The duo will develop, produce and headline the series, according to Deadline.
After Math: What could go wrong?
It's been a week of risk in the tech world, and I don't just mean Elon Musk's recent Twitter-on-acid experiment. Best Buy is wagering $800 million on a company that teaches your grandparents how gadgets work, Saint Louis University is peppering its dorms with Echos for some reason, and Reebok is hoping folks won't be too tempted to eat their vegetable-based sneakers.
Tommy Hilfiger tracks, rewards you for wearing its smart clothes
How do you convince everyday people to serve as unofficial ambassadors for a fashion brand? Make smart clothes, apparently. Tommy Hilfiger is launching a Tommy Jeans Xplore garment line that uses embedded Bluetooth smart tags (connected to the company's iOS app) to provide "one-of-a-kind rewards and experiences" to buyers. The more you wear the clothes, the more points you earn -- basically, you're getting a handful of perks for becoming a walking billboard.
AI-enabled Guess store helps you create an ensemble
You can try Amazon's Echo Look if you want AI to offer fashion advice at home. But what if you're at the store, and would rather not hem and haw while you decide if that top goes with those jeans? Guess and Alibaba think they can help. They've worked together on an AI system, FashionAI, that uses computer vision to help you create an entire outfit while you're shopping. A smart mirror can recognize the color, style and traits of what you're holding (such as the neckline) and suggest other items that would be a good complement, including clothes you've already bought online. Can't style your way out of a wet paper bag? You might only have to pick one piece that strikes your fancy to create a full ensemble.
An infrared body scanner told me some hard truths
When you're overweight, you try to avoid buying clothes from fast-fashion retailers that you know won't cater to your size. Hell, even if you aren't too big, stores like H&M don't make it easy to buy clothes, since their sizes bear little resemblance to what you're expecting. And since nobody wants to be reminded that they need to shed a couple of pounds, they tend to avoid those stores, which is bad for business. It's a problem that TG3D Studio is looking to remedy, albeit by handing out some hard truths along the way.
Amazon needs to get a handle on its counterfeit problem
Chances are you wouldn't suspect that whatever you're buying from Amazon, whether it be clothing, sunglasses or a handbag, is fake. And, for the most part, that tends to true. But that doesn't mean you should trust that every product is legit. In fact, right now if you search for "Yeezys," a highly coveted pair of Adidas shoes, you'll get more than a thousand results that are clearly fake. Two dead giveaways are design flaws and an unlikely low price -- trust me, Adidas doesn't sell them for $20. The worst part is that some of them bear the seemingly trustworthy Fulfilled by Amazon (FBA) label. But all that really means is that the company is acting as the middleman between you and the actual seller.
Facebook and Nike just gave hypebeasts a reason to use Messenger
Nike hasn't been coy about how much it loves using augmented reality to sell hyped sneakers, since the technology can be used to fight the bots (automated systems) that are so beloved by resellers. And today, at the F8 developers conference, Facebook revealed a partnership with the sportswear giant that will let sneakerheads buy limited-edition pairs through the Messenger app... in AR. To show this feature off, Nike dropped a pair of Kyrie Irving signature shoes during the F8 opening keynote, which were dubbed the "Red Carpet" and sold out within minutes after the Facebook announcement.
Adidas' NYC-inspired shoe was designed using data from runners
When I woke up this morning, I didn't imagine I'd spend part of my day inside a massive shipping container on a parking lot right under the Brooklyn Bridge. But that's exactly what happened earlier today. The occasion? Adidas invited members of the media to an event where it showcased its latest running shoe, the AM4NYC, a New York City-inspired silhouette that was designed using sensor data and feedback from local runners. Not just that, but the sneaker was actually made at the company's robot-staffed Speedfactory in Atlanta, an automated assembly line that combines craftsmanship with speed to create custom footwear.
Amazon appears to be expanding its Prime Wardrobe service
Last June, Amazon announced a clothes-by-mail service so Prime customers could try out new apparel without committing to buying it ahead of time. The service has been in beta ever since, but TechCrunch reports that it has now reached more customers. A number of people have tweeted that they have received an invitation to try Prime Wardrobe and an Amazon employee tweeted that the service had officially launched -- though that tweet has since been deleted. Additionally, the Twitter account for the University of California, Irvine's Prime Student Brand Ambassadors encouraged students to try out Prime Wardrobe in a tweet posted yesterday.
Levi's uses lasers to give your jeans an eco-friendly finish
You may like the thought of jeans with a worn-in finish, but that look frequently comes at a steep cost. It not only takes a long time to finish jeans (two to three pairs per hour), it frequently involves thousands of chemical formulations. Levi's thinks there's a faster and more environmentally responsible way. It recently introduced Project FLX, a system that uses lasers to finish denim. The technique involves taking photos of the jeans and illustrating them-- the laser then gently marks the jeans based on that illustration to create the simulated wear. This cuts the finishing time from several minutes or more to just 90 seconds, and whittles the number of necessary chemicals down to a "a few dozen."
Nokia made a smart, fashionable jacket for first responders
Nokia has been creating unconventional products for years, like that weird touchscreen made of ice from 2010. And now, at MWC 2018, the company is showing off a new, offbeat project that's in the works: the CHASE (connected health and safety equipment) LifeTech FR (first responders) jacket. This smart garment was designed in collaboration with Kolon, a South Korean fashion brand, and GINA, a software developer from the Czech Republic. While the CHASE LifeTech FR may look like a traditional bright piece you'd see on a cop or firefighter, there are a few things that make it different than your average first-responder jacket.
Buzz Aldrin wants you to buy this $150 solar backpack
Buzz Aldrin: revered engineer, astronaut of our time and now, the face of high fashion backpacks. Bag brand Sprayground has released a new collection, "Mission to Mars", and the campaign sees Aldrin playing the role of a flight coach, modelling the collection's pieces as he hangs around Mars surrounded by attractive astronauts going about their space business. At the center of the collection is a limited edition solar backpack which comes with a power pack, so it's as useful as it is futuristic looking, which you'd expect for its $150 price tag. Aldrin has been increasingly vocal in recent years about his plans to get astronauts to Mars, so at least we know they'll look good when they get there.
Nike’s 'PlayStation' shoes make hypebeasts out of gamers
It's not often we see a shoe that appeals to both the sneakerhead and gamer communities. But Nike managed to do exactly that with the PG2, the second signature model of professional basketball player Paul George, which features a design inspired by Sony's PlayStation console and its DualShock controller. Nike says that George, who plays for the NBA's Oklahoma City Thunder, worked closely with PG2 designer Tony Hardman to create an on-court shoe that would represent his love for gaming and, specifically, the PlayStation.
Nike’s ‘PlayStation’ PG2s are like a DualShock for your feet
Nike has never been afraid to use different technologies to experiment with its sneakers. After all, this is the company that brought you the Mag and HyperAdapt, two shoes powered by auto-lacing mechanisms. And while its latest basketball silhouette isn't as tech-forward as those, there's still plenty to like here, especially if you're both a sneakerhead and an avid gamer. Meet the PG2, Paul George's new signature shoe, which Nike created in collaboration with Sony and was inspired by the PlayStation. Sorry, Xbox, maybe next time.
Amazon patent describes mirror for trying on virtual clothes
Amazon's next move in the fashion world could be a mirror that shows how outfits will look on you without you having to actually put them on. GeekWire reports that the company has been granted a patent describing just that sort of technology. Using mirrors, screens, displays, projectors and cameras, the system is able to combine a person's likeness with virtual images and present a blended-reality reflection that shows them in a variety of virtual background settings and wearing virtual outfits.
