RJ's Profile

Liz, great article and superb info on how additive manufacturing will transform the auto industry. One concern that I would have is regarding jobs. Having machines creating many of the required pieces, a great concern would be that people would lose their jobs. This is a concern that others have addressed with universal basic income as the answer. How could companies like Toyota rise up to the challenge of passing on certain profits to a UBI fund to offset the lost jobs in an industry? Should they?

I laughed reading the microphone paranoia part. Many of us have had this conversation and I am guessing people have also asked you about the Echo and whether it listens all the time. One of the issues from these technologies, especially if the APIs are open is that hackers can get their hands on them, so even if companies don’t use them for their own profit, you could still run the danger of having your home watched, recorded and uninvited guests over. Facebook and Alexa are great, but it only takes one incident as anonymous commented above.

As someone who bought a Fitbit, I agree that it has changed my perception of several aspects in my health. I can only imagine if every person on the planet had access to their cumulative data and to services that could empower them to improve their lifestyles. I have not often seen Fitbit contacting me to offer upgrades on the services I can use my information on. Maybe their strategy is to be less aggressive about it, but I would definitely think about buying these services more if I was shown what new ones have come out. Maybe the answer to win share back is showing what more we can get out our health trackers.

This sounds like a great solutions to reduce costs and timelines significantly especially in remote regions. I wonder, however, if there is any risk when an outpost or base that possesses this new technology is captured. Would the technology then, designs and printing capability, fall into enemy hands? This could prove to be a huge national security issue for the US. How could the Marine Corps and the DoD bullet-proof any such threats?

Very interesting article on the application of open innovation for creating more ideas to provide support with. One concept I struggled with was why Facebook was chosen as a proxy to potential outbreaks. I had read a couple of years back that studies had been done using Google data and CDC information on when certain searches for symptoms and diseases had been done versus when outbreaks occurred. I had also heard CNN mention Twitter as having the same predictive potential being able to predict outbreaks even 6 weeks in advance. This is less helpful if we consider that most communities in the countries that would be turning to the UN for help might not be using Twitter, Google or Facebook on a daily basis, if at all. What options do you think are worth exploring to deepen this well of data? Would pushing for digitization in developing countries for this purpose be ethical?

I agree with Mark’s concerns on the side of the customers not always knowing what they want. I would also like to know which customer age groups are providing this feedback. I remember loving LEGO blocks as a kid, but I am hesitant as to whether the feedback they are getting today is from kids as some of the ideas seem more as coming from adults (architecture does not sound like a child’s ask). If this were the case, I would be concerned that we would be neglecting the very customer base that has made LEGO a favorite toy brand. In this case what would you think would be the appropriate channels to ask for children’s feedback? Do you think balancing a “creative director’s” input and a customer’s suggestion would yield better toys for the future?