**Nuggets/Summary of Key Information on Robotic Pet Companions for Seniors:**

- **Current Products Available:** Companies like “Joy for All” offer lifelike robotic pets—such as dogs and cats—that are specifically designed as companions for seniors.

These pets can be muted, placed in crates at night for routine, and offer sensory experiences through touch and movement.

Devices like ElliQ provide more advanced AI, greeting users, initiating conversations, and asking about their wellbeing.

- **Usage in Therapeutic and Social Settings:** Robotic pets are commonly used to address loneliness, particularly for seniors who have lost loved ones or live far from family and friends.

Case examples include the pets aiding in overcoming grief or providing “something to hang onto.” Agencies distribute these pets, sometimes funded by memorials or grants, and they’re integrated into care routines for emotional support.

- **Emotional & Social Benefits:** Care providers and recipients report that robotic pets give a sense of purpose and routine, can help alleviate the pain of loss, and may reduce feelings of isolation.

Anecdotes show recipients naming and bonding with their robot pets, echoing real pet relationships.

- **Costs and Accessibility:** Some programs offer these pets through grants or at a fee (e.g., $89/month), but funding and sustainability can be issues as grants end.

- **Technological Scope:** Besides pet-like robots, AI companions like chatbots are emerging, able to converse and provide emotional support.

Broader household robots for chores and elderly assistance are also growing, demonstrating an expanding robotics field.

- **Public Attitudes & Ethical Questions:** While many embrace the benefits, some caution that “technology is no substitute for human interaction.” There are concerns about whether robots could replace real pets or genuine social connections.

Access challenges exist due to the cost and need for ongoing funding.

**Nuggets/Summary of Key Information on Robotic Pet Companions for Seniors:**

- **Current Products Available:** Companies like “Joy for All” offer lifelike robotic pets—such as dogs and cats—that are specifically designed as companions for seniors.

Title:

Content: Robotic animal dolls may not be the first thought that comes to mind when considering a companion pet, but Diana Wise and Carol Brown believe otherwise. In fact, the two say Joy for All companion pets can make a big difference in providing comfort to aging adults with Alzheimer’s and dementia who are struggling with social isolation.

Wise saw this firsthand in her mother, who had dementia for years and lived in a memory care unit at an assisted living facility. Wise would visit her mother regularly, but when COVID hit, she could no longer do so.

“I was unable to see her for eight months,” said Wise, “And when I finally was able to see her, I saw the decline of how much the isolation affected her … [W]hen I found my mom, well, they said that all she did was sleep – what else was there to do? And so that isolation impacted her a lot. Her memory was just – everything had changed about her.”

Wise’s mother, Helen Espinoza, passed away in November 2020 from COVID complications. In the midst of her grief, Wise found herself wanting to do something in her mother’s memory that would help someone else. After having heard an idea from Brown about robotic companion pets, she soon had the idea to partner with her. As a result, Wise formed the “Share the Love” Helen Espinoza Memorial Fund.

“The first thing that came to mind was these animals to help with memory care units or caregivers, assisted living, with this isolation,” said Wise. “I mean, with COVID it really put a lot of perspective about how hard it is on these residents without having [companionship.] They can’t have little animals and stuff, but why not have this – the best, next best thing? You know, the interaction itself?”

The idea to use robotic pets came when Brown was doing her own research into solutions for the decline in quality of life brought on by isolation in these affected residents. Brown stated that with the Western Arizona Council of Governments (WACOG) Area Agency on Aging, she focuses heavily on three areas that affect seniors the most, and one of them is Alzheimer’s and dementia.

“For several years, we’ve been extremely aware that social isolation is causing a huge decline in quality of life and life expectancy in our seniors,” she said. “And COVID did shine a huge light on it: people started understanding how detrimental it is to be isolated like that. So we were looking for solutions prior to, but with COVID, it really lit a fire underneath to start seeking out possibilities to help resolve some of the issues going on.”

Brown explained that people with Alzheimer’s and dementia can struggle with extreme anxiety and agitation. They often benefit from having something to do with their hands. Their senses of time, space and reality can become skewed. Changes in environment or schedule can be really upsetting. And sometimes people with these diagnoses live alone with no help or companionship.

“On the other side is the caregiver, who – especially during COVID – found themselves 24/7 alone with that loved one, providing all the care because many of them didn’t want the services even coming into their home,” she said. “They were too afraid to let anybody in … So if their loved one isn’t sleeping, neither are they. So now the caregiver’s extremely stressed out, exhausted, overwhelmed, and they need help.”

Enter Joy for All’s lifelike robotic pets. With options between cats and puppies, the companion pets have heartbeats, can purr or lick, meow or bark, move and respond to motion, voice and touch. When needed, they can be muted as well. As robotic pets, they avoid the liabilities and dangers of caring for a living creature while still providing the comfort of an animal.

Brown had been demonstrating two pets in an interview with the Sun when a passerby had stopped to say, “Wow, I thought they were real!” Brown shared that she’s seen people visibly relax with the pets.

“There’s a lot of studies that were done years ago about giving folks with Alzheimer’s a baby doll,” she explained. “Many facilities don’t allow it. They consider it demeaning … But they were missing the point that if you’re not going to do that, then what are you going to do? You need to provide them with something that they can hang on to.

“Because these are so lifelike, it does exactly what the studies, the research, shows: it’s going to bring down the anxiety level. If there’s aggression, it tends to fall back down just as well … [and] you’re giving their caregiver a break.”

Wise and Brown shared that they hope not only to provide these pets to individuals with Alzheimer’s or their caregivers, but also to facilities with assisted living and skilled nursing memory care units where current shortages in staff mean individuals may be doing the work of two or three staff members at a time.

Brown shared that the Joy for All puppy typically costs about $140 while the cat costs $120. With bulk purchasing, she can bring the cost down a bit, but not by much. Additionally, the fund needs to cover rechargeable batteries for the pets.

The foundation will need to raise more funds to acquire more pets, but Wise and Brown reported that they’ve already been able to provide a few pets thanks to a donation made by AARP.

“So we were able to place a couple already at Daybreak Adult Daycare Center,” said Brown. “They are one of the providers that WACOG works with, so we were able to make a donation and bring them a puppy and kitten.

“They’re very popular. [The staff] make sure they handle it in a certain way so that there isn’t fighting. I think last time I talked to Mary, I think what they do is they got animal crates so when it’s time for them to go to bed, they get put in their crate.”

Seeing the difference the pets are making, Wise not only wishes to raise more funds to provide more of them, she also hopes to get the word out in case people may want to purchase the pets for their own family members.

“What I witnessed seeing the other residents that have Alzheimer’s, dementia: they do hold onto things and it gives them comfort,” she said. “My heart just went for this and so I know my mom would be really proud of that.

“… I needed something to come out positive about this, especially about how we’ve heard so much about the isolation with people in senior living homes and stuff, so we needed to have something a little bit more positive and something that we can do to uplift out of this whole thing.”

Wise and Brown also noted that despite the setbacks in kickstarting their fundraising campaign, now is a good time for people to learn about “Share the Love” and the Helen Espinoza Memorial Fund. November is Alzheimer’s Awareness Month and National Family Caregivers month.

As older adults continue to face the obstacles of Alzheimer’s and dementia in a pandemic, Wise and Brown hope to further reduce isolation for Yuma County’s elderly one companion pet at a time.

To learn more about the Helen Espinoza Memorial Fund and make a donation, visit https://www.azfoundation.org/Donors/Give-to-a-Memorial-Fund/-Share-the-Love-Helen-Espinoza-Memorial-Fund. To learn more about WACOG and connect with the resources they provide to aging adults, visit https://www.wacog.com/area-agency-on-aging/

Sisko J. Stargazer can be reached at 928-539-6849 or sstargazer@yumasun.com.

Sisko J. Stargazer can be reached at 928-539-6849 or sstargazer@yumasun.com.

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How AI Companions Are Redefining Human Relationships In The Digital Age

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In an era where technology is increasingly intertwined with every aspect of our lives, Artificial Intelligence (AI) has begun to fill roles that were traditionally reserved for humans, including those of friends, confidants, and even romantic partners. This burgeoning relationship between humans and AI raises profound questions about the nature of companionship, the human need for connection, and the potential consequences of substituting human interaction with digital entities.

The Emergence of AI Companions

The concept of AI companionship is not new, but its realization in practical applications is a relatively recent development. These AI companions are designed to provide emotional support, companionship, and in some cases, even mimic romantic or intimate human relationships. Replika is one of the most well-known examples. It is an AI chatbot designed to provide emotional support. Users interact with Replika through text conversations, and the AI learns over time to provide more personalized responses, simulating a genuine emotional connection.

Another example is Gatebox. They have taken the concept a step further by creating a holographic AI companion. Aimed at people who live alone, Gatebox’s AI avatar can send messages throughout the day, welcome users home, and even control smart home appliances, creating a sense of presence and companionship.

Next, there is Harmony by RealDoll. A more controversial use, Harmony combines AI with a lifelike humanoid robot to offer a romantic and physical companion. Harmony can hold conversations, remember user preferences, and express various personality traits.

The Psychology Behind AI Relationships

Why are people turning to AI for companionship? The reasons are as varied as the individuals themselves, but several key factors contribute to this phenomenon. First, we are experiencing a rapidly growing loneliness epidemic. In a world where social isolation and loneliness are increasingly recognized as major health risks, AI companions offer a semblance of connection for those who feel disconnected from human relationships. This is particularly poignant in countries like Japan, where societal changes have led to a rise in solitary lifestyles. Second, AI relationships provide a level of convenience and control that is not always possible in human interactions. These digital companions are available 24x7, don’t have their own emotional baggage, and can be switched off at the user’s convenience. Third, advances in AI technology have enabled these digital entities to appear more human-like in their interactions. From remembering past conversations to displaying empathy, AI companions can simulate many aspects of human interaction, making them more appealing as social partners.

The Impact on Human Relationships

The rise of AI companionship is not without its implications for society and how we perceive human relationships. For some, AI companions can serve as a bridge to better emotional health. These AI systems provide a non-judgmental space for people to express themselves, which can be particularly valuable for those with social anxiety or other mental health challenges. Moreover, AI companions serve as a stepping stone, helping individuals develop social skills and confidence that can be transferred to human relationships. However, there are concerns about the long-term impact of relying on AI for companionship. One major concern is that these relationships could lead to further social isolation, as individuals might prefer the uncomplicated nature of AI companions over the more challenging dynamics of human relationships. This could potentially exacerbate the loneliness epidemic rather than alleviate it. Then, there are also ethical considerations surrounding the development and use of AI in such intimate roles. The attachment to AI entities that don't possess genuine emotions or consciousness raises questions about the nature of empathy, affection, and what it means to be human.

Implications for Traditional Dating and Marriage

As AI companions become more prevalent and sophisticated, their impact on traditional dating and marriage is inevitable. There is a very real possibility that AI may supplement or even replace human relationships. For some people, AI companions are the outlet for support and companionship that are traditionally forged through human interaction. Moreover, we are already seeing a trend in which younger generations leverage Ai as a practice ground for social interactions, potentially enriching users' capacity to engage in human relationships. However, there is a possibility that some individuals might prefer AI companions to traditional human partners. The predictability, lack of judgment, and customizable nature of AI entities can make them more appealing, especially for those who have had negative experiences with human relationships. As a result, there is a changing perception of what companionship means. Thus, the rise of AI companions challenges our traditional notions of companionship, love, and emotional connection. It raises questions about what it means to love and be loved, and whether these concepts are exclusively human.

Navigating a New Era of Companionship

As AI companions become more prevalent in society, it's crucial to navigate this new era responsibly. That’s why it's important to find a balance between utilizing AI for emotional support and maintaining human connections. Encouraging and facilitating human social interactions alongside the use of AI companions can help mitigate the risk of social isolation. Developers of AI companions have a responsibility to consider the ethical implications of their creations. This includes being transparent about the limitations of AI companionship and avoiding designs that could exploit vulnerable individuals. Moreover, ongoing research is needed to understand the long-term effects of human-AI relationships fully. This research should inform policies and guidelines for the development and use of AI companions. Moreover, open dialogue about the benefits and risks of these relationships is essential to navigating the ethical landscape.

The advent of AI as a substitute for human relationships, including love and friendship, marks a significant shift in our social landscape. While AI companions can offer support and connection to those in need, they also bring with them a host of ethical, psychological, and social implications. As we venture further into this uncharted territory, a cautious and thoughtful approach is vital. The future of human-AI relationships will depend on our ability to balance technological advancements with a deep understanding of human needs and values. In this new era of companionship, we must tread carefully, ensuring that our pursuit of innovation does not lead us away from the essence of what makes us inherently human: our capacity for genuine connection and empathy.

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- **Usage in Therapeutic and Social Settings:** Robotic pets are commonly used to address loneliness, particularly for seniors who have lost loved ones or live far from family and friends.

What problems can companion robots solve for the elderly or those with cognitive difficulties, according to one study?

Case examples include the pets aiding in overcoming grief or providing “something to hang onto.” Agencies distribute these pets, sometimes funded by memorials or grants, and they’re integrated into care routines for emotional support.

- **Emotional & Social Benefits:** Care providers and recipients report that robotic pets give a sense of purpose and routine, can help alleviate the pain of loss, and may reduce feelings of isolation.

For whom would robotic animal dolls make a big difference?

those with Alzheimer's or dementia, struggling with isolation

What problems can companion robots solve for the elderly or those with cognitive difficulties, according to one study?

Anecdotes show recipients naming and bonding with their robot pets, echoing real pet relationships.

How is Oppo marketing its Robotic dog Qric?

The AI Cloud plan allows robotic dog Aibo to do what?

make interactions increasingly personal and unique

What can Dynamic 1, a robotic dog by Tecno, do?

many features to enhance owner interaction

- **Costs and Accessibility:** Some programs offer these pets through grants or at a fee (e.g., $89/month), but funding and sustainability can be issues as grants end.

Title:

Content: High-tech companions aim to help fight loneliness epidemic among South Florida seniors

MIAMI - The state of Florida and Broward County are spending thousands of dollars every month on artificial intelligence robots for seniors to help fight the loneliness epidemic.

One senior owns a robotic cat named "fluffy."

"The best part is we don't have to spend any money on food and no vets," says Cathy.

This interactive robot rolls over, blinks and purrs whenever it wants.

Cathy saw a friend using one to overcome the loss of a pet and loneliness and figured it would be perfect for her husband.

"He had sciatic pain. Maybe that will help you with your pain in some way. Even though he's on medicine and therapy because real animals when you pet them it helps with pain management."

Higher tech was delivered to some Broward seniors.

"...Thanks for letting me out of that box."

The company that makes them aims artificial intelligence at the loneliness epidemic.

"During the week when everyone is working, there's times when I'm lonely."

"When I go deliver and install for seniors, they're like I just want somebody to say good morning," says Antonella.

"Many of them don't have family or friends nearby. Maybe their loved ones have passed on or some of their friends have passed on," said Charlotte Mather-Taylor, who serves as the CEO of the Area Agency on Aging of Broward County.

According to US Health and Human Services, half of all American adults are lonely.

It's threatening health, increasing risks of heart disease, dementia, stroke, anxiety and depression.

According to HHS, lack of connection can increase the risk of premature death at levels comparable to smoking 15 cigarettes a day.

Last May, the US Surgeon General dropped a first-ever advisory on loneliness and isolation.

"By strengthening our relationships, we can improve our heart and brain health, reduce our risk of diabetes and high blood pressure, boost our immune systems and lower our risk of depression," said Vivek Murthy, US Surgeon General.

In Broward County, Mather-Taylor is spending state and federal dollars on artificial intelligence for people over 60.

"There's so much I want to ask you..."

These robots named after the Norse goddess of old age cost 89 dollars a month, but the aging agency is giving them away for free.

Rosemary Mullarkey is one of the first 300 to have one.

"I'm a little excited and a little apprehensive..."

Intuitive Robotics CEO Dor Skular created her specifically for older adults to help manage their health, and wellness and connect to loved ones.

"There's an algorithm that tries to get a reward and it gets a reward when the user completes things that are part of healthy aging. For example, if they hydrate," said Skular.

Reviews are so strong that cities like Pembroke Pines and Lauderhill are pushing to get more robots for seniors in their communities.

"People reported back that she was bringing them joy. I mean, she's telling some jokes. She's responding to them. They wake up in the morning, she asks them how they are. She'll remind them to drink their glass of water. So, she's caring about them for them," said Mather-Taylor.

Two years later, seniors like Rose are getting free, AI robots that make and take video calls.

With all of the concerns about AI, should seniors and their families be worried?

"We would not be offering it unless we felt comfortable that they did have those safety guards in place," said Mather-Taylor.

"Is this device unhackable? There's no such thing as an unhackable device. It's always a war between defender and attacker," said Skular.

"Random people, fraudsters etcetera, can never call into the robot because they need to be added by the older adult as a contact for them to be able to open up the calling features."

What is the next step with the robots?

They only speak English. South Florida has plenty of seniors who do not. Developers are working on a Spanish robot.

In the future, developers also see it being able to order medicines for seniors. Much sooner though, developers expect to further integrate the robots with senior health care providers. They are working on ways of opening new avenues to communicate health info about seniors to loved ones, provided the senior signs off on it.

How long can this program last?

State, federal funds will last two years. After that, the agency has to find other grants to cover the $89 a month per person fee.

Currently, data from robots and users is being collected to quantify success. The company insists it will not sell any of the information it gathers.

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- **Technological Scope:** Besides pet-like robots, AI companions like chatbots are emerging, able to converse and provide emotional support.

Broader household robots for chores and elderly assistance are also growing, demonstrating an expanding robotics field.

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Household Robots Market - Growth, Trends, COVID-19 Impact, and Forecasts (2022 - 2027)

·8 min read

The Global Household Robot Market (henceforth referred to as the market studied) was valued at USD 6. 81 Billion in 2021. It is expected to reach USD 21. 94 Billion by 2027, registering a CAGR of 20. 50% during 2022-2027 (henceforth referred to as the forecast period).

New York, March 02, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Reportlinker.com announces the release of the report "Household Robots Market - Growth, Trends, COVID-19 Impact, and Forecasts (2022 - 2027)" - https://www.reportlinker.com/p06241302/?utm_source=GNW
The household robots are also termed domestic robots, which are part of autonomous service robots for carrying out mundane works, such as floor cleaning, pool cleaning, and lawn mowing, but they can also be used for education, entertainment, and elderly assistance. According to the International Federation of Robotic Report 2019, unit sales of household robots are expected to increase by 46% on average per year, with more than 55 million units will be sold in 2022. Also, sales values for the household robot were up by 15% to USD 3.7 billion.

Key Highlights
The increasing investments by companies across the world to develop household robots for a wide range of applications are one of the significant factors driving the market. Samsung and LG Electronics, among others, are extensively investing in developing and launching new household robotic products. For instance, Jibo is developing social robots to integrate into the home lives for interactive companions and helper to families. Observing the market potential, start-ups offering household robot solutions are also attracting funding from international investors.
The technological innovations in various fields, such as cognition, interaction, and manipulation, are making these household robotics much more appealing. The technology and other component providers have been instrumental in driving the robotics ecosystem forward. For instance, in June 2021, Toyota Research Institute (TRI) announced that its engineers had developed new capabilities for its new line of domestic robots. The new capabilities include recognizing and manipulating transparent objects and wiping down counters and tables.
Additionally, with the increasing development in the machine vision cameras, companies are using these 2D and 3D machine vision cameras with AI technologies to effectively map and edges of the floor, such as a staircase, and to recognize obstacles, such as dustbins, cables, doorsills, and rugs. For instance, Xiaomi CyberDog is a quadruped robot capable of moving as fast as 3.2 meters per second. It is capable of object motion tracking, creating real-time maps, avoiding obstacles as it moves, and is powered by Nvidia’s Jetson Xavier AI platform.
Owing to the outbreak of COVID-19, the demand for household robots has gained traction to perform various household chores, reducing human effort, but has been highly dependent on consumer spending patterns. Although the technology has significant usability, the high equipment cost limits the adoption rate for household robots. Furthermore, the decrease in its ASPs is expected to increase the purchase of these robots. Moreover, rental options provided by certain new companies may act in favor of the consumers.
However, countries with high old-age populations need personal cognitive care, such as Japan. China and United States are opting for such solutions as they are much pocket-friendly as compared to the human workforce. For instance, according to the world bank, 28.39% of the population in Japan were in the age group of more than 65, whereas 18.65% in the United Kingdom. This suggests the increasing need for home-based primary medical assistance. Recently, in June 2021, an Israel-based company named Intuition Robotics developed the AI-based social robot ElliQ which has spent over 30,000 days in older adults’ homes over the past two years. With many upgraded functionalities, ElliQ will help increase patient engagement while offering primary care providers continuous actionable data and insights for early detection and intervention.
Multiple companies are investing huge capital in product research and development owing to the increasing demand for such bots in the daily lives of the urban population. Rapid urbanization and the advent of smart homes with connected devices that can be easily controlled and monitored through smartphones have led to advancements in AI and cognitive learning. Such developments have recently been showcased in the innovation expo of 2021.

Key Market Trends

The Increasing Penetration of Automation in Household Appliances is Expected to Drive the Market Growth

The household robots, also termed domestic robots, are part of the autonomous service robotics that are used for carrying out mundane tasks, such as pool cleaning, floor cleaning, lawn mowing, among others, but they can also be used for other purposes, such as entertainment, education, and elderly assistance. According to the International Federation of Robotic report, in October 2020, unit sales of service robots for domestic tasks are expected to reach 48.6 million units by 2023.
The increasing penetration of automation in household appliances, rise in labor costs majorly in developed nations, and increasing safety concerns owing to the pandemic are driving the demand for the household robot across the world.? As per the US Bureau of Labor Statistics, the cost of cleaning laborers employed for residential and commercial purposes was USD 27,000 a year. However, a cleaning robot costs around USD 25,000 (one-time investment). Thus, cost efficiency and accurate cleaning are significantly promoting the acceptance of cleaning robots in the past few years.
With the rapidly growing smart home concept, robotics is expected to play a crucial role in the overall smart home ecosystem. The reduction in household activities with the use of robotic vacuum cleaners is the key factor driving the market growth. Modern households are becoming more computerized, thereby delivering suitability and reducing the time spent on house chores. While vacuum cleaners have made home cleaning more manageable, they create noise and increase bulk for everyday use.
The companies such as iRobot, Robomow, and Mayfield Robotics, are among the prominent players innovating the robots for household space. Innovations, such as detecting human behavior and voice recognition, are increasing customer confidence, thus driving the robotic deployment for household purposes, like cleaning, laundry, and other voice-enabled IoT activities.
Among all these household robots, automated vacuum cleaners and moppers have been the most commercialized and developed products. Multiple companies are constantly investing and developing more compact and integrated vacuum cleaners and mopping robots in order to reach narrow places at home. The companies are integrating advanced technologies, such as voice recognition and laser-based technologies, to map the floor structure. For instance, iRobot launched the Roomba i7+, which can acquire voice commands and is equipped with intelligent mapping techniques.?

The Asia Pacific Region is Expected to Witness the Fastest Market Growth

Owing to the significant adoption of household robots in economies such as China, Japan, and India, among others, the demand for and consumption of cleaning robots are expected to increase in the region due to the rapid development of robotic systems by the Chinese and Japanese companies.
The region is one of the fastest-growing cleaning robots markets, mainly due to the massive adoption of technology with the increasing domestic production. The regional vendors also play a significant role in innovation and development in the cleaning robots field. For instance, in August 2021, Ecovacs partnered with Shopee in Vietnam as a part of its long-term mission in bringing ’A Robot for Each Home.’ The company started a trade-up program with Shopee, enabling users to update their current vacuum cleaners to the ECOVACS DEEBOT line of robotic vacuum cleaners, one of the industry’s best-performing vacuum cleaners.
Also, in November 2021, Ecovacs launched a new Deebot - the T9 - into its range, which simultaneously sweeps, vacuums, and mops the floor and includes a built-in air freshener. It also comes with disposable mopping pads and is compatible with the Ecovacs Auto Empty Station, which allows the T9 to empty itself into a sealed disposable dust bag that holds up to 30 days of debris.
In December 2021, Hong Kong-based AIRROBO launched its second product, the Robot Vacuum T10+. The T10+ is more advanced than AIRROBO’s first vacuum cleaner, the P10, released in August 2021. AIRROBO is based in Hong Kong and supported by UBTECH Robotics, specializing in AI and humanoid robotics.
Moreover, in March 2021, Xiaomi introduced a "Robot"Vacuum Cleaner in Indonesia. The device comes with intelligent control that connects to the Mi Home app. Further, many companies are opening their shops in the region, boosting the market. For instance, in November 2020, Puresight Systems announced the launch of iRobot’s flagship stores in Delhi, Mumbai, and Bangalore. The exclusive showrooms have been launched in collaboration with Bonsai Ventures. iRobot is a provider of global consumer robots that designs and builds robots that empower people to clean and mop their homes.

Competitive Landscape

The market for household robots is moderately consolidated due to the presence of a few companies dominating the market. Also, the further development and commercialization of these products are expected to attract new entrants to the market. To gain more market share, the companies offering household products are making strategic acquisitions and product launches. Some of the recent developments are mentioned below.

November 2021 - iRobot Corp. announced a partnership with Amazon to advance voice-enabled intelligence further using Amazon’s voice assistant, Alexa, for home robots that will result in more thoughtful, proactive smart home automation.
October 2021 - Ecovacs Robotics launched its products in New Zealand. Its products available in the country include DEEBOT T9+, DEEBOT OZMO T8 AIVI, DEEBOT N8 PRO, and DEEBOT U2.
January 2021 - Roborock launched the Roborock S7, the first robot vacuum in the world to combine ultrasonic mopping with mop lifting. The primary features of the device include sonic mopping, powerful 2500 pa suction motor, and VibraRise technology for efficient cleaning.

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- **Public Attitudes & Ethical Questions:** While many embrace the benefits, some caution that “technology is no substitute for human interaction.” There are concerns about whether robots could replace real pets or genuine social connections.

Title:

Content: Want to age-in-place? You may have a robot keeping you company.

Artificial intelligence can help reduce loneliness for older adults aging at home.

A 95-year-old woman and her 74-year-old daughter, each who live alone and could be at risk for isolation and loneliness, recently received a lifeline to conversation and companionship in the form of an artificial intelligence robot.

The women can now receive medical reminders, health and wellness check-ins, play music and games, and experience virtual travel.

“It’s helping with loneliness and socialization for people who would be otherwise trapped in their home watching TV all day,” Christopher Lewoc, case manager for Greene County Human Services in New York said. “It’s a way to keep people sane and active mentally and physically. It’s letting people live a more social life.”

Lewoc sets up free artificial intelligence care companions for older adults, giving them a lifeline to conversation and health reminders.

He recently installed ElliQ, voice-activated proactive and empathetic care companion, in the homes of the elderly mother and her daughter, giving them some companionship as they each live alone. He’s found that a little conversation may go a long way to helping to mitigate isolation and improve care for older adults.

Under a contract with the New York state Office for the Aging, Intuition Robotics is providing the ElliQ smart technology for about 800 older adults in an effort to battle social isolation and support aging-in-place. The ElliQ recipients need internet access for the free device to be set up in their home by a caseworker. The state works with local offices for the aging and partners to identify older adults who would most benefit from the technology

“ElliQ will greet them in the morning and ask them how they feel. If they slept poorly, ElliQ will say ‘would you like me to call your doctor?’ It’s interactive and helpful,” Lewoc said.

“It allows them to have a companion, engage in conversation and get reminders about drinking their water or whatever medications they need,” said Lewoc. “A lot of folks don’t have smartphones and ElliQ can show them photos, take them on trips to different countries and teach them about the culture. It can play trivia with you, call your family, play music to have a dance party.”

ElliQ responds to questions but also initiates conversation and questions, offers sleep relaxation exercises, physical activity exercises, nutrition-related chats and medication reminders for each user’s unique condition.

“This product does so many things to improve health, combat isolation, and improve overall well-being and independence. Designed with input from older adults, the future of supporting and serving older adults includes technology. The future is here,” said Greg Olsen, director for the New York state Office for the Aging.

“Despite misconceptions and generalizations, older adults embrace new technology, especially when they see it is designed by older adults to meet their needs,” Olsen said, adding that ElliQ served as a “powerful complement to traditional forms of social interaction and support from professional or family caregivers.”

The New York program and rising interest in AI companions comes as more older people want to age in place and finding home healthcare amid a persistent shortage of healthcare workers becomes increasingly difficult.

In 2017, the U.S. Surgeon General declared social isolation to be a “global epidemic” – one that only worsened in the COVID-19 health emergency. According to the AARP Public Policy Institute, social isolation drives $6.7 billion in additional associated Medicare spending per year.

Read: Opinion: What robots will mean for your retirement

Amid a report by the McKinsey Health Institute on healthy aging that found that nonclinical factors affect 80% of an individual’s health, Intuition Robotics sees great potential for ElliQ helping older adults age in place in a healthier way.

Users have an average of 20 daily interactions with ElliQ, according to Dor Skuler, CEO and co-founder of Intuition Robotics, a startup company based in Israel. ElliQ users report an 80% decrease in loneliness and 82% of users access the mental health features, Skuler said.

The new second-generation ElliQ offers users experiences such as museum exhibit tours and virtual travel. The new companion app provides users’ families and caregivers with different methods to communicate with the users and updates them on the user’s well-being.

Read: Opinion: This $3,000 dog could be a perfect gift for Grandma

Skuler called ElliQ a “lighthearted character that moves into the person’s home.” While Intuition Robotics has not marketed directly to consumers, it was named a Time Best Invention of the Year and word-of-mouth during the holidays has been good for business.

Outside of the New York state program, ElliQ can be had for a $249.99 enrollment fee, plus a monthly subscription of $29.99 if you buy a year subscription or $39.99 if you enroll month-to-month.

Intuition Robotics is talking with other states and senior living facilities about offering ElliQ in more places, as well working to measure how the conversational robot improves health outcomes to reduce the cost of care, Skuler said.

Of course, it’s a robot and not a human, so the interaction is limited.

“There’s a place for technology, but it’s no substitute for human interaction. We know the power of human touch and human interaction,” said Lakelyn Hogan Eichenberger, a gerontologist and caregiver advocate for Home Instead Senior Care, a home care service agency. “Industrywide, the workforce is not at the level it needs to be at, so there’s a need for technology, but there has to be a balance.”

Do you have questions about retirement, Social Security, where to live or how to afford it at all? Write to HelpMeRetire@marketwatch.com and we may use your question in a future story.

Access challenges exist due to the cost and need for ongoing funding.


Here is a summary — using only the relevant information from your extracts — on the history of LiveJournal, its unique characteristics, its rise, and its decline:

- LiveJournal began as a personal journaling tool created by Brad Fitzpatrick for his own use.

Recognizing the value of sharing and connecting, Fitzpatrick soon transformed this tool into a website that allowed anyone to create an account and participate, thus founding the social blogging platform LiveJournal in 1999.

- Unlike many other early blogging sites, LiveJournal offered strong features for building community and fostering interaction.

Its unique system of “friends lists” let users choose who could read their journal entries and who they could see updates from, creating a more semi-private, trusted social environment.

- LiveJournal’s comment system made dialogues easy and threaded conversations possible, while its support for community blogs (shared spaces where groups could post to a common journal) further encouraged social interaction and group identity.

Users could also define custom user groups for access control, making it flexible in privacy and community building.

- These interactive, friend-focused elements distinguished LiveJournal from more public or one-way blogging platforms, and it became a hub for niche communities, fandoms, writers, and people seeking both self-expression and connection.

- At its peak, in the early to mid-2000s, LiveJournal had over 2.5 million active users, particularly among English-speaking communities.

Its influence was significant in internet culture (notably fan fiction and social movements).

- However, its decline began around 2005 as newer social networks like Facebook, MySpace, and later Tumblr and Twitter, gained popularity, offering more streamlined and modern interfaces, easier sharing, and integration with wider social circles.

LiveJournal’s design began to feel outdated.

This further eroded trust and led many communities to migrate elsewhere.

Here is a summary — using only the relevant information from your extracts — on the history of LiveJournal, its unique characteristics, its rise, and its decline:

- LiveJournal began as a personal journaling tool created by Brad Fitzpatrick for his own use.

Title:

Content: Blogs As Marketing Tools For Small And Medium Sized Businesses

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Times are changing. In the highly competitive marketplace,Blogs As Marketing Tools For Small And Medium Sized Businesses Articles small and medium sized business entities (SMBs) veer away from the traditional to more creative and interactive approaches to doing business. Opportunities now spring from new markets, new consumer segments and new marketing tools exemplified by websites specifically business blogs.

Understanding Business Blogs

A blog, short for weblog, is a website in which journal-like entries called posts are written on an ongoing basis and displayed in reverse chronological order. New posts appear at the homepage so visitors can read what is new. It is an easy, frequently updated online journal, focused around a topic, industry or personality. Authoring a blog or adding an article to a blog is called blogging while the person who posts these entries is known as a blogger. Typically, a blog is composed of hypertext, images and links to other web pages, audio, video and other files. A distinct feature of a blog is that it allows readers to write their reactions or comments to what was written in the blog post. Another wonderful thing about a blog is that a blogger can update his blog thru a special type of blogging software called a blog tool instantly from any Internet connection on any computer. He just types his entry into a simple online form and the entry is readily available on the web for worldwide readers to see.

https://www.simplifiedblogs.com/

Over the years, blogs have evolved from simple, personal online journals to effective tools for augmenting business communications. Along the way, search engines like Google and Yahoo were displaying popular media blogs produced by journalists, in most cases, appearing above other search result rankings. Propelled by this discovery, companies started writing blogs to provide relevant information about their business to potential customers to visit their sites.

What then is a business blog? It is a blog about a business. It is an organized journal about a company’s products or services. A business blog provides specific news, statistics, product releases, and other relevant information related to the company to prospective customers starting a business blog and providing these information give potential customers enough reasons to visit a company’s website. Just imagine prospective clients visiting a company’s blog periodically without the company having to spend hefty amounts of money on advertising and promotion. As they say, give readers valuable pertinent information and they will come. Moreover, customer service issues may be addressed using a blog.

A business blog is best viewed as an addition to a website. If a company has a website, a business blog is just embedded in it. For small and medium sized businesses, business blogs help put a personal touch on an otherwise bland business site. A business blog can be an excellent marketing tool to support a main business, to provide value, build healthy relationships with potential clients and thus create personal brand and image.

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Recognizing the value of sharing and connecting, Fitzpatrick soon transformed this tool into a website that allowed anyone to create an account and participate, thus founding the social blogging platform LiveJournal in 1999.

- Unlike many other early blogging sites, LiveJournal offered strong features for building community and fostering interaction.

Title:

Content: Community Curious?

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How to Do More With Your Substack Audience (5 Ideas)

Newsletters built your audience, but are you ready to bring your brand to the next level? Here’s how a modern community platform will do just that.

Many creators have found success by using a newsletter to build their audience. But if you’d like to take your brand even further, you’ll eventually need to look elsewhere.

Transitioning your audience of newsletter subscribers over to a community platform could be the switch you need to expand your business. Why? Because content alone is unsustainable, and it’s hard to build a community when your audience can’t talk to one another.

Creating a community space where your people can interact with your content and build relationships with each other through their shared interests will keep the conversation going long after your post goes live.

Ahead, we’re diving deep into why platforms like Substack were good in the past; why you should transition your newsletter’s audience to a community platform; and what you gain from utilizing these platforms..

If you want more support in building and monetizing your online community, come join OUR Mighty Community for free and meet other new and established community owners! We’d love to meet you. Join for free!

In this article…

Why do creators use Substack?

Many creators use Substack because it is a quick and easy way to build an audience of paying subscribers invested in your work.

When you use Substack, you can easily brand your newsletters by adding a header image and an about page to tell potential subscribers who you are. On top of that, Substack has made the process of subscribing to a newsletter and paying for content easy both for readers and content creators.

Where does Substack fall short?

Substack’s restrictions arise when you move beyond the initial setup for your newsletters on the platform.

While Substack is a great way to build an email list, accumulate subscribers, and share your work, it’s nearly impossible to build a community there. And that’s a huge missed opportunity: When you have an active and engaged community of people interested in your work, then they will A. sustain the conversations around your brand long after your latest post and B. propel growth for your digital business.

Unfortunately, Substack doesn’t have a great solution for this kind of community interaction. They do offer a “community” tab, but it simply links to the comments sections of individual articles, fragmenting your members’ conversations across posts.

So with a lackluster community system in place, creators aren’t left with many options to grow their business outside of paid advertising. The problem with advertising is that Substack has already stated they don’t plan on adding in-depth advertising tools, and on top of that, creating ads takes money out of your pocket. Ads can also be distracting and put some readers off.

This is where online community platforms come into play.

Now that we’ve explored why Substack has been used and why it’s stagnating for creators, how about we look at some of the reasons community platforms are so great?

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Why you should use an online community platform

Change can feel scary, and it might seem like transitioning your Substack audience to another platform isn’t worth the hassle. We’re here to tell you that while those feelings are natural, they just aren’t true.

Modern online community platforms are designed to allow you to continue creating your awesome content, while also providing your audience with more opportunities to interact.

We’re sure you already know how hard it can be to build true connections within your audience. And with Substack, you’re significantly limiting the modes of communication you have with your people.

But if you transition to a community platform, you open yourself up to more possibilities for connection—both between you and your members and between your members themselves. Plus, you also gain the potential to diversify elsewhere: the types of content you release, the ways your community interacts, your options for monetization, and more.

How to Do More With Your Substack Audience

1. Turn your audience into a community

One of the best things about transitioning from Substack over to a modern community platform is that you’ve already done the heavy lifting. Whether your newsletter has 10 or 1,000 subscribers, you’ve already completed the first major step: bringing people together around a shared interest or idea..

When you start building your community platform, your first step is communicating just that with your subscribers.  Let your audience know that you’re moving away from a simple newsletter in favor of something much more robust. You have their emails. All you have to do is let them know.

As we talked about earlier, Substack has a community tab for people to look at the comments of individual articles, but it doesn’t foster much camaraderie. Online community platforms are great because you can still post all the content you normally would, but it’s within a centralized private network that your members enter to access.

A dedicated community space allows your audience to actually get to know each other and transition from simply being fans to actual members of a community. And remember, a community is powerful because it enables your followers to come together around shared passions, interests, or goals.

When you create an environment that allows your members to communicate and network with each other, that creates what we call a network effect. Think about it like this: Each new person that joins your community brings their own unique perspective and skills to the table which adds more value to you, your brand, and your members. And as your members get added value from the connections they make with each other, they, in turn, get the incentive to keep coming back, extending their subscription year after year.

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2. Create more diverse content

When you use an online community platform to grow a community you’ll have more ways to give them content.

Substack is a newsletter service that mainly focuses on providing writers with an easy way to share their writing to those who enjoy it and get paid. But what if we told you that on a community platform you’d still get all of the features that make posting your writing easily, while also gaining new options to experiment with?

Here’s a list of features at your disposal:

  • Your community on Web, iOS, and Android apps.

  • Discussion board posts, polls, and Q&As.

  • Live and pre-recorded videos.

  • Virtual Events.

  • Paid subscriptions and Online courses.

  • Direct messaging and member profiles.

You’re no longer just a line item in their crowded email inbox. Instead, you’re a destination they’re excited to return to again and again.

When you’re transitioning from a platform like Substack, some of these features might not seem important to you. But having them available allows you an abundance of possibilities later on. Plus, if you were relying on Substack’s lackluster community features, then you really don’t know what your members might want once they actually have solid ways to communicate with you and each other.

3. Try paid memberships

There are multiple ways to monetize your content and audience when you switch to an online community platform.

The first and most familiar option for you will be paid subscriptions. On your Substack, you might already be monetizing by charging a fee to access certain articles or a monthly recurring subscription for access to your newsletter. That’s great! When you use a community platform you can continue utilizing subscriptions, but with more options.

When you choose an online community platform, you can charge for membership to the community or for individual parts of your community or content. For example, you could have a paid community subscription (billed monthly or annually) that gives your members access to all of your content. Or you could opt for a “freemium” structure, where the overall community is free, but other content—whether it’s groups or courses—is priced at a premium.

Basically, when you choose an online community platform, you’re supercharging what you could already do with your Substack subscriptions.

4. Build online courses

Offering online courses is another great way to monetize a community and re-use old content. Creating an online course is great because you’re helping people achieve a goal while also fostering real connections between members.

Even if your Substack audience mainly comes for your writing, there are still opportunities to create online courses. The easiest way to find out what they can be about is asking your members in your brand spankin’ new community space…maybe even through a poll or Q&A? Okay, we’ll relax, but what we’re getting at is that all of these features are connected.

When you have more ways to interact with your people, you’ll have more ideas on how to service them. And remember, you don’t need to reinvent the wheel when you make an online course. Your audience followed your Substack for a reason: you have a unique perspective that is changing the way people think about things. All you need to do is show them a simple skill or idea and guide them to results.

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5. Try live events

Last, but not lest, try some live events! They're a great way to get your audience more engaged, whether it's through a community happy hour or a group coaching session.

Conclusion

Don’t get us wrong, Substack is a great place to start growing your audience and make money while doing it. But as your audience grows, you’ll gain a lot more when you have clearer ways to interact with them, and when they can meet others who have the same interests.

Here at Mighty Networks, we’ve designed a community platform that does everything we’ve talked about today to help you achieve the results you’re getting on Substack — and so much more. Why settle for fewer features, less monetization, and fewer ways to interact?

When you build a Mighty Network, your content is accessible to your members no matter where they are, and your community can continue the conversation even after you’ve left. It’s time to upgrade your newsletter to something much more robust and expansive.

Ready to do more with your Substack audience?

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Its unique system of “friends lists” let users choose who could read their journal entries and who they could see updates from, creating a more semi-private, trusted social environment.

- LiveJournal’s comment system made dialogues easy and threaded conversations possible, while its support for community blogs (shared spaces where groups could post to a common journal) further encouraged social interaction and group identity.

Users could also define custom user groups for access control, making it flexible in privacy and community building.

- These interactive, friend-focused elements distinguished LiveJournal from more public or one-way blogging platforms, and it became a hub for niche communities, fandoms, writers, and people seeking both self-expression and connection.

- At its peak, in the early to mid-2000s, LiveJournal had over 2.5 million active users, particularly among English-speaking communities.

Title:

Content: Filed under:

Belle is the virtual world anime that Mamoru Hosoda always wanted to make

Not only because he put subwoofers on a giant whale

Belle is the anime that Mamoru Hosoda has always wanted to make. The latest film from the director of Summer Wars, Wolf Children, and Mirai centers on the story of Suzu, a shy high school student who rediscovers her love for singing when she enters the immersive online world of “U.” Shedding her quiet and reserved self, Suzu adopts the identity of Belle, a gorgeous singer with a beautiful voice beloved by all those around her. When one of Belle’s concerts is interrupted by a mysterious entity known as the “Dragon” who terrorizes the denizens of U, she embarks on a journey to forge a bond with the beast unlike any she has known before.

Hosoda’s fascination with the transformative and reflective potential of virtual worlds goes as far back as his work on 2000’s Digimon: Our War Game (later re-edited into Digimon: The Movie in the West). Belle’s world of U feels like both a continuation and an evolution of the ideas glimpsed in Digimon’s digital superhighway, as well as Summer Wars’ OZ.

Polygon spoke with Hosoda over Zoom about the origins of U, his work with Cartoon Saloon’s Tomm Moore and Frozen character designer Jin Kim on Belle, and the surprising link between Final Fantasy and the giant subwoofer-encrusted whale seen in the film’s opening.

Fictional online worlds are a recurring staple of your films — what is about the Internet that continues to inspire you as a filmmaker?

To your point, I’ve been making movies that kind of deal with the theme of the Internet for the past 20 years, all the way up to today. During this time, I feel there’s been a massive change or a shift in how the Internet is being used and how it is being perceived.

Back when I was making Digimon, I think that the Internet was a much more young space. it was this emerging technology that people were going to be able to use and the younger generations were going to take advantage of to smash a lot of the establishments of the old world and develop something completely new and their own. It was like this new toy that children were playing with that had all kinds of different possibilities. But fast forward to today, I think the Internet has emerged as much more of as a reflection of our own reality now that we have all generations using it and how it’s become such a necessity in our daily lives.

The Internet is no longer what it was 20 years ago, in many ways. We have a lot of our own issues that we have in our present, real society that have been transferred into the Internet, like the toxicity and fake news and a lot of these kind of negative aspects. I feel because of that, a lot of other films or works try to project the Internet in a much more negative light. But for me, I want to help the younger generations come face to face with all these issues that we know exist in the Internet and overcome them, to somehow still turn it into a much more positive space where they can do a lot of things.

What was it like working with architect Eric Wong on creating Belle’s online world of U? How did you first discover his work, and what were some of the inspirations you looked to in crafting the look and feel of its universe?

When we were designing the world of U, we knew we needed someone who was really special and had amazing talent. Similar to how Belle is actually this unknown girl living in the suburban countryside of Japan, we wanted to take a similar approach by searching on the Internet for someone who could possibly handle the task of creating U. We found Eric’s portfolio and at the time, we had no idea who he was, how old he was, where he was located, or what kind of background he had. It was only after reaching out and talking with him we discovered he was a very young architect, I think about 27 years old, living in London who had absolutely no moviemaking experience whatsoever. We were able to overcome that because of his amazing talents and the fact that he put himself out there on the Internet to be discovered. It shares a lot of parallels with the story of Belle in that way.

You collaborated with animator Jin Kim (Frozen, Tangled, Big Hero 6) and Cartoon Saloon’s Tomm Moore and Ross Stewart on the character design of Belle and background art of the film, respectively. What motivated your desire to seek out these collaborators?

The world of U in Belle is very massive on a global space. When Jin Kim and I were initially talking about the character design of Belle, we wanted to make sure that international background was reflected in all the designs that we came up with. I think there’s not too many interactions between US-based animation studios and animation production culture and Japan or other overseas-based animation studios, so I wanted to help change that in some ways because entertainment is shifting to this much more global medium of ideas.

When Jin and I decided to work together to find out what such a collaboration would look like and what kind of design or direction that would result in, it was a really great experience. I had a similar conversation with Tomm Moore at Cartoon Saloon where we felt the animation space was dominated by these major studios and the smaller independent studios like Studio Chizu and Cartoon Saloon really didn’t have as large of a global stage. I think we were all kind of pointed in the same direction when we decided to collaborate.

One of the stand-out designs of Belle is a giant whale with subwoofer speakers on its back that Belle rides in the film’s opening. How did the design for that creature come about?

The designs and the idea that I had specifically for the whale was that it wasn’t so much a whale equipped with speakers, as much as it was the whale’s costume in many ways. The “whale” is kind of wearing this wardrobe with this costume and coming out into this virtual space. I actually had several designers come up with ideas, and this was true for some of the other character designs as well; we had several designs from which we picked the one that I felt best represented the idea of what we were trying to convey.

Ultimately we settled on a design by Isamu Kamikokuryo, who previously worked as an art director on the Final Fantasy series. We originally had him do a design for the Dragon’s castle, but given his background I said, “Hey, why don’t you take a crack at designing this whale,” and in an instant I knew this was the basis for the whale we wanted to go with. He really captured what I was looking for.

Music plays a significant role in the movie, not just in the personal story of Suzu (aka Belle), but in exploring the themes of loneliness and connection in a digital world. What was it like working on the music for Belle? Do you have a favorite song?

Music is certainly the a centerpiece of this movie in many ways. Part of that is because we didn’t want to tell the classic story of a girl from the suburban countryside who rises to pop stardom, but more a story about a soul that was somehow suppressed seeking freedom and and attaining that strength through this journey. That’s why we didn’t want to go after the very popular sounding songs or look towards the top US Billboard. We wanted to really go for something much, much deeper where it is about her heart, or her soul, seeking this freedom from some form of suppression, which is meant to encourage a lot of people going through through similar phases.

We had four different composers for this particular movie, three of them Japanese and one from from Sweden. And each song with lyrics was was done by a different composer, with the exception of the dancing scene between Belle and the Dragon and the ending where Belle sings in front of everyone, which were both done by Taisei Iwasaki. I think he did an amazing job of really capturing the themes of the movie. I really couldn’t decide a favorite from the soundtrack because I think every composer brought their best game to the table. But with more platforms like Spotify, I think music has been freed in many ways to a much more global and accessible platform, so I’m looking forward seeing to which songs resonate with audiences after they’ve seen the film.

Belle is out on select IMAX screens on Jan. 12. The film opens in theaters on Jan. 14.

Its influence was significant in internet culture (notably fan fiction and social movements).

- However, its decline began around 2005 as newer social networks like Facebook, MySpace, and later Tumblr and Twitter, gained popularity, offering more streamlined and modern interfaces, easier sharing, and integration with wider social circles.

Title:

Content: The Rise of Fashion’s Tumblr Generation

The children of fashion Tumblr came to New York, as fashion strivers often do, from the less fashionable provinces: San José and Grand Rapids and Baltimore and Orange County and the Jersey Shore. Growing up far from the industry’s enclaves, they obsessed over Balenciaga ads and Vogue Italia scans online, following along with the zeal of outsiders, and found their like-minded zealots to befriend. A decade later, they all live in New York, and they remain friends. They socialize together and party together, and now, having made it from the digital outside to the industry inside, they work together too. “The first time I met all the dolls, it was made clear, this was a tight group of ride-or-dies,” says the artist Martine Gutierrez, who met her crew in the city following a Candy magazine shoot in 2016 and quickly fell in.

They’ve come a long way since they were on Tumblr, the image-centric blogging platform, in the 2010s as fashion-obsessed teenagers. Fluent in technology, controlling their own means of image production, distribution, and promotion: the Factory girls without the need for a Warhol, the Halstonettes if they dispensed with Halston, the unholy love children of Cleveland (Pat, not Ohio) and Vreeland. They’ve internalized Polly Mellen rhapsodizing about “weightless, pom-pom, powder-puff” faux furs in Unzipped and Donatella Versace making marble-mouthed pronouncements in a Vogue video interview (“What are you reading right now?” “Magazines!”). They live to be behind the camera and in front of it.

Without fashion school — in some cases, without even finishing high school, much less college — they educated themselves in the chapter and verse of the industry, its history and its archives as well as its lingua franca. Their styles were cooked in Tumblr’s mix-and-match, endlessly referential crucible, and the most devoted could spend five or six hours a day on the platform, posting and commenting. “After midnight was the time to be on there,” says Devan Díaz, a writer who left Tennessee for New York at 18 and started her Tumblr in 2009. “If you stayed up really late, then you could catch the European crowd waking up.”

“If I didn’t have Tumblr, I never would have gotten into fashion,” says Marcus Cuffie, a stylist whose Tumblr, Dustulator (the name of a favorite Rick Owens collection), begun in 2011, became a touchstone for many fellow bloggers. “I wouldn’t have known how to access it.”

“I think we wanted to know why we liked the things we liked,” says Hari Nef, who moved to New York from Massachusetts to attend Columbia and joined Tumblr in the summer of 2011, just before she arrived. “We wanted to trace a line through the past to figure out where it came from. Together, we were able to kind of thread that needle and string it along. It was about information, and it was about discovery — discovery that you couldn’t achieve without community.” Reblogs and comments led to chats and calls, and gradually a circle coalesced.

All the research paid off. Nef interned at cool fashion places like VFiles, although now she’s better known as an actress; she spent this spring shooting the Barbie movie. (She deleted her Tumblr before her first film came out in 2018.) Cuffie now styles for Harper’s Bazaar, Dazed, and a grab bag of indie mags. Cruz Valdez, who became Cuffie’s partner and now collaborator, is a photographer who shoots for Marc Jacobs, Rihanna’s Savage x Fenty, and Eckhaus Latta. “These kids know things,” says Mel Ottenberg, the editor-in-chief of Interview, who hired one of them, Dara Allen, known professionally as Dara (Tumblr b. 2011), to be the magazine’s fashion director this February. “They must really study.”

For younger millennials and all of Gen Z, making friends online is just how you make friends. But eventually, this crew realized, you have to meet up in real life if you want to get anything done. Their Tumblr pals were their support system, and they flocked to the city in formation to live, work, and play together. “I always kind of wanted to come to New York, but I don’t think I would have,” says Allen. But goaded by fellow Californians Valdez and Iris Diane Palma, an artist, she bought a ticket with them (in tears) and moved to a flop in Bushwick. (Stevie Triano, another Tumblr friend, and Cuffie picked up the keys and met them there the day they arrived.) Valdez, who went to photo school, did her first shoots in their shared Brooklyn apartment with a seamless backdrop rigged up by a belt to their futon with Allen, who appeared in two Marc Jacobs shows before finally signing with a modeling agency, as her subject.

In New York, they met other Tumblrites, including Nef and Cuffie. “It really felt like we were all meant to find each other,” Nef told me. “The word manifesting was really popular at that time. And that’s what we felt like we were doing. Obsession alone wasn’t enough for me, nor was it enough for Dara or Cruz or Marcus or Devan or any of us. It simply would have been a waste for us to do anything else but use all of those hours that we spent looking and listening and writing and sharing and not trying to make something with them.”

They ended up friends with Ethan James Green, a model turned photographer, and the circle expanded. Green was a more casual Tumblr user whose runway career was cataloged on Tumblr — most exhaustively by Allen on her blog. His photography career was stalling until, inspired by his mentor David Armstrong, he began shooting black-and-white portraits of friends and friends-to-be, including every person pictured here, many of whom are featured in his first book, Young New York. “All these big fashion people that I’d been around for years all of a sudden were like, ‘Oh!’ — it turned something on,” Green says. “People started asking me to do my pictures. And because I was able to really create my world, I didn’t have to compromise.” These days, he shoots for Vogue and W, Louis Vuitton campaigns, and just closed his first solo show at Fotografiska.

Now they are members of fashion’s next generation, landing big jobs. Green often works with Allen. Allen often works with Valdez. Valdez often works with Cuffie, who is also her partner. Their friends assist on shoots or do the hair or build the sets. Their work adorns billboards over Soho for Calvin Klein; they’re booked by Bottega Veneta and Alexander McQueen. The line between work and life can be blurry. They don’t work exclusively together, but they understand each other better when they do. “We all see it for each other. Our Grindr profile would say, ‘Muse 4 Muse,’” Gutierrez says. “I bring friends into projects constantly, especially when there’s a budget.”

“There is a shared language for sure,” says Marcs Goldberg, an art director who designs sets for photo shoots. “It’s very much like a sibling relationship, where it can be very intense and extreme, but in the end, it’s exactly as it should be.”

They have come into their own individually and collectively, carving out space for themselves and their taste. Many of them have transitioned since their earliest meetings on Tumblr or embraced non-binary identities. “It’s opened up so many possibilities,” Valdez told me. “We all had such an instinct toward something,” Allen says. “I think I’ve realized that it really becomes easier just to go with your gut — and your friends.” This year, she worked with Green on an ad campaign for Walmart. “To think about someone in middle America seeing style from her perspective is really crazy,” Green says proudly.

To hear them tell it, their work now is not so different from their Tumblr ’fit pics. “I think it’s all just been about building and refining,” Valdez says. “When I think about my older work, it’s not like, it’s so drastically different in ways, it’s just more about how I’ve been able to articulate what I wanted to say and how to say it.” “This was me on Tumblr,” Allen cried as she struck a pose for the camera, swiveling her wrists outward and clamping her hands to her waist, a haute little teapot. Now their Tumblrs have mostly fallen away — although a few still post privately or occasionally — and the platform itself has faded from its former glory. The next generation is assembling itself elsewhere.

But if their medium has waned, the message hasn’t. What would they do on their last day on earth? Probably this, they said, sitting for this portrait. There is no “cheese” here. “Everybody say ‘cunt,’” Valdez said before the shutter snapped. “Cunt!” they all bellowed joyfully.Read more at:buy formal dresses online australia | short formal dresses australia

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Content:   1. Analysis
November 21, 2022updated 18 Nov 2022 4:46pm

5 of the strangest Google products that spectacularly failed

What even is a Google Daydream?

By Kurt Robson

Google is known for releasing a lot of products but it’s also known for quickly shutting a lot of them down.

The company seems to run a “see what sticks approach” to what they release – leaving its customers and those in the tech industry understandably sceptical about the longevity of its new releases.

Google’s failures range from big and small to outright weird products. You’d be excused for never hearing of Google Lively, for example, the strange Second Life copycat which ended up being filled with sex and violence.

It only takes a simple Google search to find a website named Killed By Google: Google Graveyard, which currently lists 275 services, apps and hardware that have been closed down by Google.

The most recent mainstream culling was Stadia, the tech giant’s cloud gaming service. Google announced in September that it would be completely shutting down the service in January next year. Everyone who purchased Stadia controllers, games and hardware has been promised to be fully refunded.

Phil Harrison, Stadia vice president and GM, claimed the service didn’t gain “the traction with users that we expected.”

This blindsided Stadia’s fanbase as well as some developers that had been planning to release games on the service.

“We have a game coming to Stadia in November,” tweeted Mike Rose, founder of developer No More Robots, “who wants to guess that Google will refuse to pay us the money they owe us for it.”

Google currently has 271 products and services available for use, including its world-renowned search engine.

“I would say that when pushing the boundaries, in any field, it’s very easy to take something in the wrong direction,” Sam Welch, organic SEO executive at digital marketing agency, Embryo, told Verdict.

“I think the killing off of previous projects it’s a testament to how committed Google is to making sure they’re [not] heading into unknown territory.“

Join Verdict as we take a look at five of the strangest Google product failures so far.

Google Glass

Time span: 2012 to 2019

Google’s voice and motion-controlled augmented reality glasses were very much a product of its time. Back in 2012, the hype around sci-fi products was rife and people seemed genuinely excited at the prospect of this high-tech accessory. It was even voted by Time Magazine as the “Best Invention of the Year.”

The actual launch of the product was a very different story, however, with reviews flooding in claiming that the technology was “very buggy” and a “gimmick”.

Google was also criticised for the whopping $1,500 price tag – making it inaccessible to a large demographic of people. The ones who could buy it were labelled with the derogatory sobriquet “glassholes.”

Google Glass was only sold for a very limited time and lasted a few years before it was pulled from being sold commercially.

Although Google began testing new versions of Google Glass back in September, 2022, there is no denying that it was one of Google’s worst failures.

Google Daydream

Time span: 2016 – 2019

Google launched its Google Daydream VR project in 2016. Unlike other VR headsets, it was actually just a placeholder for a smartphone – to allow for an accessible virtual reality experience.

It was an upgrade from the company’s previous VR product made out of cardboard. Yes, they actually released a VR product made out of cardboard.

The Google Daydream was launched at $100, making it one of the most affordable ways to experience virtual reality at the time.

However, even with an affordable price tag, the Daydream couldn’t compete alongside other leading headsets like Oculus.

The Google Daydream was pulled from stores in 2019.

Google Lively

Lifespan: 2008

Google Lively was Google’s attempt at a virtual social video game similar to something like Second Life. Lively users were able to create avatars with pre-designed assets and socialise with other users online in virtual rooms.

Google Lively was launched back in July, 2008, long before Mark Zuckerberg voiced his aspirations to create a metaverse that would essentially do the same thing.

Unfortunately, the service never got out of its Beta stage and was closed by Google just a few months later.

Lively never gained the traction Google hoped it would. The service maxed out at 10,000 active users.

Users complained about lackluster personalisation options and rough controls. There was also a lot unsavoury usage of the service, with users spouting sexual and violent content in the virtual rooms.

This meant that Google couldn’t safely integrate its advertising platform into the service.

In the end, the tech giant said it would be focusing its resources in other areas and closed the service for good.

Google+

Time span: 2011 – 2019

Google+ was the tech giant’s attempt at competing with the social media giants while Facebook and Twitter ruled the space. Google’s idea with Google+ was to give users an experience of interacting online the same way they did offline. This was through networking around categories called “Circles.”

Although there were promising numbers at launch, Google couldn’t compete with the big players and couldn’t retain a consistent user base.

Facebook and Twitter continued to reign supreme and despite attempting to innovate the service a number of times – Google+ was closed for good in 2019.

Google Wave

Lifespan: 2009 – 2012

You wouldn’t be blamed for having never heard of Google Wave. It’s arguably the strangest online service Google has ever launched. It’s best described as an abstract emailing platform – where users can join “waves” to share polls, statuses, images, videos, and more.

It lasted just three years and has been remembered for having one of the most confusing social media interfaces ever.

GlobalData is the parent company of Verdict and its sister publications.

This further eroded trust and led many communities to migrate elsewhere.