That's a wrap on 2024
Or your Christmas reading list in one email
I’ve written on substack about once every other week during 2024, and what a lot’s changed in a year.
Highlights for me:
It started with a conversation with Justin Evans from the Data Story at CES about how we anthropomorphize AI and large language models. Later in the year, there was a lot more of this.
The big news for me this year was William Wang finally getting his exit on Vizio to Walmart. I was cynical about whether the deal would close, but I was finally proven wrong in the year's closing weeks. Congratulations to everyone on both sides of that deal. I’ll be fascinated to see how Walmart leverages the fabulous data assets they’ve acquired.
I’ve written several times about brand vs performance advertising, and I still think the industry is ripe for a resurgence in brand advertising, or maybe we’ll start talking about" “brandformace” as a new category. Either way, we’re too focused on only buying what we can measure.
AI is the more significant trend, and the increases in speed, performance, and cost have opened up AI to the masses. I’ve created some creative videos and even copy-tested them to see if people can tell the difference between real and AI videos. Oh, and make sure you listen to the AI-generated podcast if you haven’t already. Just please be ethical about how you use AI.
The market research industry is changing to follow suit. MX8 Labs, the AI research company I’m involved with, is growing nicely.automate manual processes seems to resonate. However, The proposition of using AI to I remain cynical about replacing consumer research with AI, and it also seems we’re not quite ready for voice to replace online surveys.
Finally, I’ve been getting back involved in Broadcast TV through Run3TV, a company central to enabling smart broadcasting on the next generation of TVs currently rolling out across the USA. Most of the industry is so focused on streaming that they miss a big opportunity. What’s not to like about free football?
I’m now nesting away with the family for Christmas. Like 2024, 2025 will start at CES. I hope to see many of you there.
