The Futures - No. 65

Green construction advancements / The disappearing Internet archive / Bullet vending machines

Jul 23, 2024

In this issue

The Quantumrun team shares actionable trend insights about innovative and sustainable building materials, the disappearing Internet archive, bullet vending machines, and an efficient way to build habitats on the Moon.

Future signals to watch

Supermarkets in Alabama, Oklahoma, and Texas are selling bullets through AI-powered vending machines that use facial recognition to verify buyers' identities and ages. These machines simplify the purchasing process by scanning identification and the buyer's face to dispense bullets.
OpenAI and Los Alamos National Laboratory are collaborating to explore the safe use of AI in bioscientific research, continuing the tradition of public-private partnerships in advancing healthcare and bioscience.
Northwestern University engineers have developed a soft, flexible device that mimics human muscles, demonstrated by an artificial bicep lifting a 500-gram weight 5,000 times without failure.
China is leading the world in renewable energy development with 339 GW of solar and wind power under construction, nearly double the rest of the world combined.
Ukraine is investing heavily in unmanned land robots and seeking billions in additional funding to boost its weapons manufacturing for various combat and support tasks, aiming to deploy more sophisticated systems against Russia within the next year.
Researchers and entrepreneurs are developing synthetic dietary fats, such as Savor's animal-free "butter" made from carbon, which doesn't require traditional agricultural resources and involves no biological processes.
A first-of-its-kind connected and autonomous vehicle (CAV) corridor in Michigan will test technology for a 40-mile driverless vehicle corridor between Detroit and Ann Arbor, with an advisory committee including Ford, GM, and Waymo.
Korea Institute of Civil Engineering and Building Technology scientists have found a way to build Moon bases using local lunar soil, avoiding the high cost of transporting materials from Earth. They developed a method to heat and compact the soil into sturdy blocks, which could be used for constructing future lunar habitats and infrastructure.

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Culturally // Trending

YouTube → Captain America: Brave New World // X → Shogun’s record Emmy nominations // Reddit → Parking lot solar panels // TikTok → Priced out of homes // Instagram → Balenciaga + Apple Vision Pro // Spotify → “Lies Lies Lies”

🏗️ Materials science is boosting green construction

The construction industry is on the brink of a green revolution, driven by breakthroughs in materials science that drastically cut carbon emissions. For example, researchers from the University of Cambridge have developed a method to produce low-emission concrete by recycling cement using electric arc furnaces, a technology traditionally used for steel recycling. This approach significantly reduces CO2 emissions from both concrete and steel production by reactivating used cement.

According to the Materials Processing Institute, this method does not add significant costs and can produce zero-emission cement if powered by renewable energy sources. By 2050, the Cambridge Electric Cement process could produce up to one billion tons of low-emission cement annually, addressing roughly a quarter of the current global cement production.

Alternatively, C-Crete Technologies is pioneering cement-free concrete, which uses industrial byproducts as binding agents, significantly reducing carbon emissions during manufacture. This material not only meets but exceeds traditional concrete performance standards, making it a viable alternative for large-scale construction projects.

But steel, the other foundational material of construction, is also experiencing a renaissance …

The push towards green construction is driven by global efforts to meet climate goals and the increasing demand for sustainable building practices. For instance, China has stopped approving coal-based steelmaking projects. Instead, it’s replacing them with electric arc furnaces, which melt scrap steel using electricity, to reduce the steel industry's carbon footprint (which contributes 15% of the country's emissions).

In the UK, companies like Tata Steel are transitioning to electric arc furnaces, a process that could cut emissions by 88% compared to traditional methods.

Meanwhile, MIT researchers have developed an electrochemical method to produce steel, eliminating the need for coal and releasing only oxygen as a byproduct.

Actionable trend insights as materials science boosts green construction:

For entrepreneurs

Home builders and general contractors may consider switching to sourcing greener materials to label themselves and their builds as green construction efforts to secure tax rebates, charge a premium, or both.
Entrepreneurs could focus on developing or investing in startups that create or enhance low-emission construction materials like cement-free concrete. They can explore niche markets where these materials can be immediately applied, such as eco-friendly residential construction or sustainable commercial buildings.

For corporate innovators

Large corporations can invest in research and development to pioneer new green construction materials existing ones. Forming partnerships with universities and research institutions can support the commercialization of cutting-edge materials science innovations.
They can transition to suppliers of low-emission materials, implement supply chain sustainability audits, and launch corporate social responsibility initiatives to demonstrate their commitment to green construction and enhance their brand's reputation.

For public sector innovators

Governments should implement policies that encourage the adoption of green construction materials, such as offering tax incentives for using low-emission cement or recycled steel. They can mandate the use of sustainable materials in public infrastructure projects to set an example and stimulate domestic market demand.
Governments can provide grants and funding for public-private research and development in materials science, focusing on innovations that reduce carbon emissions. They can also support pilot projects that use cutting-edge materials, providing proof of concept and encouraging wider industry adoption.

Trending research reports from the World Wide Web

In 2023, the GDP of Guyana rose by 33% and is expected to grow by another 34% in 2024, with oil royalties and exports significantly boosting government revenue and the national budget.
Venture capital firm Sequoia discusses the gap between revenue expectations and actual growth in the AI infrastructure sector, raising concerns about long-term value, investment risks, and the need for realistic expectations regarding AI's economic impact.
Deloitte’s Global Retail Outlook 2024 reveals that 80% of retail leaders are investing significantly in workforce readiness, with 20% making major investments in training, engagement, and diversity initiatives to align with new technology capabilities.
Harvard Business Review’s findings show that firms see significant KPI improvements when advancing from low to medium data analytics maturity, but the benefits diminish with further data maturity investments.
A study is challenging McKinsey’s claims that racial and gender diversity is good for boosting profits.

📄 Online content is disappearing

The sudden disappearance of digital content is creating an online black hole, erasing pieces of cultural and historical records overnight. For instance:

Paramount's abrupt removal of the MTV News website, which erased over two decades of music journalism and history, has sparked outrage among former employees and readers.
Sony's PlayStation Store is set to remove access to hundreds of Studiocanal movies in Germany and Austria, impacting customers who had previously purchased these films.
Warner Bros. Discovery decided to shelve nearly completed films like Batgirl, alongside removing back catalog titles from HBO Max.

These instances highlight a worrying trend where digital content, previously assumed to be permanent, can vanish suddenly due to corporate decisions. The primary reasons behind this trend include strategic realignments, evolving licensing agreements, and cost-cutting measures.

Paramount's removal of content from MTV News and other cable channels like Comedy Central and CMT is part of a broader shift to drive viewers to their streaming service, Paramount+. This move aligns with their effort to streamline operations and reduce costs amid declining profits. Meanwhile, Sony's decision to pull Studiocanal movies from its PlayStation Store follows the growing dominance of streaming services, which has reduced the profitability of individual movie purchases and rentals.

On a cultural level, this trend erases valuable historical records and undermines the work of journalists and artists. For example, the removal of MTV News archives means losing significant pieces of American music history and journalism. From a consumer perspective, it raises concerns about the permanence and ownership of digital purchases. Looking forward, there is a growing clamor for better digital preservation practices to safeguard cultural and historical content from corporate restructuring or financial considerations.

Actionable trend insights as media companies take down online content:

For corporate innovators

Companies can offer insurance policies that protect businesses and consumers from the financial loss of purchased digital content.
- For example, they can develop a policy where subscribers can receive compensation or replacement content if digital media they own becomes inaccessible.
They can invest in creating comprehensive digital archiving services tailored for large corporations to securely and economically store their extensive digital assets.
- For example, companies like Paramount or Warner Bros. could use this service to maintain their vast libraries of digital content, ensuring it is preserved and accessible for future use.

For public sector innovators

Governments can establish a publicly funded national digital library that archives culturally and historically significant digital content.
- For example, they can collaborate with cultural institutions, media companies, and educational entities to collect and preserve digital content that is at risk of disappearing.
They can facilitate partnerships between public institutions and private companies to co-develop digital preservation technologies and infrastructure. Alternatively, governments can mandate that media companies backup their content in a public database for preservation.

Outside curiosities

Musician FKA Twigs announced she’ll be using a deepfake of herself for online interactions so she can focus more on her music.
Nintendo affirms that its games will be mostly made by humans and not AI.
Etsy is requiring its sellers to specify their role in producing the items they’re selling (e.g., made, designed, sourced, or handpicked).
X is being sued by the EU for violating the Digital Services Act.
Spotify is planning to add comments on podcasts so listeners can interact with hosts.