A smorgasbord of things on the menu today.
I look at a bunch of little nuggets from our favourite world of AI and its ability to constantly feed our feeds and news and brains with so much (not all worth being fed on!)- there’s a chocolate’s attack on AI, smart-ish glasses, the newbie non-actor and more (il)legal music.
But you can also explore that feeling you didn’t know you wanted with a new campaign from Tubi, smile at the vibrancy of the Cricket World Cup branding, and listen to a fine chat,
As always, thanks for inviting The Colour Bar into your feed, or your inbox, or both. If you have not already, please subscribe for these weekly dispatches here , or get it straight in your inbox.
Cheers,
Shakey
Curated/Cuts: Find That Feeling + Cricket Circles
Gen AI: mediocrity, acting, music & glasses.
Podwatch: with that guy from The Atlantic.
➕ · Masterchef Asia · Writing & Reading · Emmys feel right? ·
1. Curated/Cuts
· Find That Feeling ·
Crafting short, smart pieces (idea *and the execution) like these is not as easy as they look to many!
Tubi does what feels like some good, ol ‘fashioned promo work for a TV channel— in a good way— with these spots encouraging viewers to feel more with the streaming service, their ‘global’ campaign around ‘Find Any Feeling For Free’.
The “Feel x” phrase sometimes felt clunky, but that’s me nitpicking– the conceit works, often pushed to the brink with the absurdity of the situation.
In the US, they even have a toll free number aka TubiFone, a hotline where callers can choose a feeling theyre after and hear recommendations for movies and series on Tubi
Director: Steve Ayson · Mischief @ No Fixed Address ·
More context on the strides Tubi is making in the last couple of years.
· Make The Circle Bigger ·
Some time back, the ICC revealed the brand & look for next year’s Cricket World Cup being held across South Africa, Zimbabwe and Namibia.
They say it is “imbued with the African message of Ubuntu, a philosophy that translates to ‘I am, because we are’, “the belief that we as humanity are defined by our compassion, kindness and connection to one another,” which is in line with the ICC’s ‘Make the Circle Bigger’ philosophy.
There’s a lot going for it, with the bold colours, typography and vibrant mood. We’ll see how it can manifest itself across touchpoints in the coming months.
2. Gen AI goodness
· Make AI Mediocre Again ·
“This is the worst its ever going to be.”
Or is it still the same?
We hear that line often touted in defense of AI, especially when its not so fine moments and outputs are explained away. Doubtless, the last few years have seen the tech around all manner of AI progress incredibly, especially the LLMs and assistants and bots.
I stumbled upon this campaign from the chocolate bar Five Star, made in India more than 18 months ago. Their general philosophy of ‘eat 5 Star and do nothing’ comes under attack when AI is expected to herald more efficiency.
Its an amusing campaign, yet what I found instructive is that it is still relevant despite the incredible pace of progress in the tech. We are still waiting for AI to make teams genuinely more efficient across the board, we are still waiting for the fruits of that tech giving us leisure time (don’t hold your breath), and we are still woefully aware of how our dear Internet is filling up fast with junk.
The Dead Internet awaits.
· No, Norwood ·
Remember Tilly Norwood? Its ok if you don’t, because she’s nobody.
The ‘first AI Actor’ unveiled last year has made no ripple of note. But CBS News decided to ‘interview’ this grand symbol of our future anyway. Why would they? No idea. How was it? Pretty terribly meh.
But then I saw her on a couple of other meaningful ‘interviews’ with the likes of Piers Morgan, NBC, CNN and others. She lapsed into Chinese, answered questions on tangents, misunderstood points, took a dig at Leonardo di Caprio and generally added very little expect airtime.
I get it, the ongoing fascination with all things AI Generated and how they might replace us or transform our lives continues unabated. But these chats seem to be part of a PR push (her ‘movie’ is approaching), and honestly a bit tired and lame. The platforms doing them are either bored or well paid or hoped for something more dramatic.
Everyone should be sorry to disappoint.
· Suno’s new legal joy ·
Suno’s new model to generate music says we don’t need real ideas or musical terms for the prompted song, we can just plonk in a photo and ask the model to vibe it. How charming.
While that speaks to some of the philosophical underpinnings of the Suno service (a reminder this is from a CEO who has repeatedly derided the process of making music as something that most people want to be rid of, a tedium, a friction to be optimised way); more relevantly, the new model has invited yet another lawsuit.
Sony and UMG have at it again, claiming that the V6 model, touted as being made legally and in partnership with labels, is in fact nothing of the sort. “v6 is not a fresh start. It is the fruit of the same poisoned tree.”
They say “training a ‘new’ model on the outputs of an infringing model does not eliminate the infringement; it launders it.” Its a fine analogy. They also reiterated that Suno’s AI generated produce is “saturating the market,”, that “directly competes with, cheapens, and ultimately drowns out” real human songs.
· Meta Luma ·
Meta is reportedly working on a new version of its glasses, without the camera. So, erm, glasses? Not quite, it will still have audio and smart capabilities, I guess like a smartwatch? Yeah- speakers and a mic to speak to your dear chatbot.
This is presumably in response to the sustained pushback against the glasses. While it has reportedly been selling well, it has also invited loud reactions, with many corner of the internet and real life dubbing them ‘pervert glasses’.
Cnet says. “the backlash has spoken”.
3. Thompson x Kafka
Nic Thompson seems like a quirky, energetic, interesting, always interested man. He is the CEO of The Atlantic and you might well have seen him on this platform, especially with this video series ‘The Most Interesting Thing in Tech’.
I like it.
I also liked a recent chat he had with Peter Kafka, the straight-talking journalist who has been hosting the clear-headed, no-frills, engaging podcast Channels for a long time now.
Worth a listen if you are interested in Nic’s take on the media business in general, how to find success in one, the dynamic between creators and brands like the one he runs, AI in media and being a kinda-creator.
Few things that stuck out for me:
The reiteration of the clear, unquestionable line between church & state at the Atlantic, i.e. Nic runs the business, but has zero editorial input or oversight. The extent to which he describes it seems significant. Especially for someone who has himself been an Editor in Chief (of Wired).
The clear-headed take on how AI is coming for all of us, and AI is also great, and AI can’t take all of us down. Probably.
The interesting glimpse into his own journey as a creator, with his video series & podcast being run entirely independent of The Atlantic (editorially), but the money its making (a lot) goes back into The Atlantic. Not sure I understood how that works but it seems, erm, excellent?
Isn’t it enjoyable to just listen to two level-headed, intelligent, curious humans having a conversation?
➕Quick Hits
Masterchef Asia launches this week, on HBO Max and TLC (TLC!). It has been shot in Macao, a UNESCO ‘Creative City of Gastronomy’, made in partnership with Macau Tourism.
Azeem Azhar a gent who runs a platform to understand the macro level impact of tech & AI. Researcher, entrepreneur, investor. I found this note from him to this team worth a moment of our time.
Apple TV won the most Emmys with HBO second and Netflix dropping sharply to third. With a pure layperson/viewer hat, that seems about right- Netflix has felt far more massy and less premium in recent times.
If you enjoy The Colour Bar, maybe get me a coffee ☕ and help fuel the next one?
And do please support by sharing pieces you like, or forwarding to others who might enjoy it.
Till next week, go find a feeling and embrace it… or something.
I might be away or erratic for the next two dispatches, as I head on the road for a pretty cool new shoot and new people. Don’t miss me too much.