#20 The Weekend Download – Catching Up on What Matters
Essential insights you need to stay ahead
📩 Issue #20 – 05/07/2025
⚡ Quick Hits – What You Need to Know
🧰 Google adds “Gems” to Workspace
You can now create mini AI agents in Google Workspace to automate workflows and handle specific tasks.
Read more (Mashable)
🎥 Meta AI now scans your camera roll
Meta is integrating AI deeply into your photos, allowing it to "see" and analyse your camera roll for more personalised interactions, raising both eyebrows and privacy concerns.
Read more (The Verge)
📱 Google and Microsoft agree to age checks
Tighter rules are coming: Australia is pushing tech giants to verify users' ages before giving access to search and services.
Read more (Mashable)
🔥 Top Insights
🧑💼 Why business travel now feels... personal
Work-life balance is being replaced by work-life integration. Business travel is changing as professionals blend leisure, work, and wellness.
Read more (Wired)
🧠 How ChatGPT messes with your brain
MIT researchers show how interacting with language models affects cognitive load, decision-making, and your sense of agency.
Read more (MIT Media Lab)
💰 The stealth rise of virtual YouTubers
AI-powered virtual personalities – aka VTubers – are gaining millions of followers and raking in serious cash.
Read more (CNBC)
🧘♀️ Success is quieter now
Younger Americans are redefining what it means to “make it.” Think less hustle, more peace.
Read more (The Wall Street Journal)
📊 Numbers to Watch
🏠 Gen Z is buying homes – just not where you'd expect
Rising prices and remote work are pushing young buyers to smaller, unexpected cities.
Read more (CNN)
😶🌫️ The younger, the lonelier
Gen Z is the loneliest generation – even though they’re more digitally connected than ever.
Read more (TrendWatching)
💡 Something to Think About
📖 Hollywood's new favorite villain: AI
Forget aliens and evil CEOs – generative AI is becoming the go-to antagonist in films and TV. It's a reflection of our anxieties, power struggles, and the blurry line between tool and threat.
Read more (The Economist)
🧑💼 Startups are still raising millions – and announcing it on TikTok
Forget the press release. A growing number of startups are turning to TikTok to announce new funding rounds, embracing transparency, storytelling, and reach over tradition.
Read more (Business Insider)
🧠 Social media, birthdays, and stress
Even kids’ birthdays are now shaped by Instagram. Here’s how social media is making parties more stressful and performative.
Read more (Vox)
🎧 Why AirPods are now part of the uniform
Once rude, now normalised: how AirPods became acceptable in almost any social or professional setting.
Read more (The Wall Street Journal)
🧠 The emoji evolution
What started as cute expressions is now a full-blown communication system. Emojis are shaping how we speak, write, and even think.
Read more (The Atlantic)
🌀 Offbeat & Unexpected
🌍 Travel through ancient Earth
A stunning interactive tool lets you explore what Earth looked like millions of years ago – and where your city used to be.
Read more (Dinosaur Pictures)
🎶 Is your favorite indie band... AI?
Some Spotify artists gaining traction might not be human at all. AI-generated music is becoming more polished – and harder to detect.
Read more (Vice)
💌 Handwritten notes... from a robot?
Startups are using robots to mimic real handwriting for thank-you cards and personal messages, blurring the line between authenticity and automation.
Read more (Business Insider)
🌲 Superwood could replace steel
InventWood's “superwood” is stronger than steel and made from trees. It could revolutionize construction and materials science.
Read more (The Wall Street Journal)