Zynternet is a portmanteau made up of Zyn and internet. If you’re reading this internet is self-explanatory, the Zyn in question is tabacco-free Skoal bandit type nicotine pouches. Zyn comes in a tin and has various flavours.
According to journalist Max Read, the Zynternet is a kind of 90s to early 2000s sports obsessed ‘lad’ type culture; but in the 2020s. There are shades of ‘white van man’ in there as well.
a broad community of fratty, horndog, boorishly provocative 20- and sometimes (embarrassingly) 30-somethings–mostly but by no means entirely male–has emerged to form a newly prominent online subculture.
Hawk Tuah and the Zynternet | Max Read
Despite Read’s definition defining it as a 20 to 30-something thing, the subculture seems to bleed into 40-something Dads and draws on creators like Barstool Sports. They’re less extreme than the Andrew Tate acolytes. They care more about sports and professional golf than they do about current affairs and politics. But they’ll be voting Republican. They like college sports, sports betting, light beers and Zyn nicotine pouches.
The culture has grown prominent on the laissez-faire Musk era Twitter.
Zynternet stretch
It would be very easy to point to the Zynternet audience and draw parallels to the ‘proles’ of George Orwell’s Nineteen Eighty Four. And then go down a dystopian k-hole.
I’ll leave the last words to David Ogilvy for those despairing about the Zynternet:
You aren’t advertising to a standing army; you are advertising to a moving parade. Three million consumers get married every year. The advertisement which sold a refrigerator to those who got married last year will probably be just as successful with those who’ll get married next year. An advertisement is just like a radar sweep, constantly hunting new prospects as they come into the market. Get a good radar and keep it sweeping.
David Ogilvy
TL;DR if you’re not reaching the zynternet, you’re probably not doing political marketing properly. More related content here.
Hawk Tuah and the Zynternet | Read Max.
‘Hawk Tuah Girl’ has our attention. Next, she would like our money. | BusinessInsider
How the Right Won the Hawk Tuah Girl | Slate
Business
Destructive investing and the siren song of software • Apperceptive and Goldman Sachs on AI: GEN AI: TOO MUCH SPEND, TOO LITTLE BENEFIT? (PDF)
Consumer behaviour
Changing Trends Due To Japan’s Ageing Population – Tokyoesque
Culture
Architect I.M. Pei never wanted a retrospective. How Hong Kong got to host one at last | South China Morning Post – iconic despite not teaching or having a theory, just by doing. What’s fascinating about the Hong Kong exhibition is how it looks to address the ‘Chineseness’ of Pei. The discussion goes somewhat along the lines of ‘Yes he had Chinese ancestors, but did he write or speak Chinese?’. We know that he at least wrote Chinese.
The Vogue Archive — Google Arts & Culture
Design
Longevity by design | Apple – interesting whitepaper on how Apple designs in reliability and physical resilience
A massive Lego theft ring was busted by the cops | Quartz – any form of value that can be resold will be taken
Energy
Generative AI is a climate disaster | Disconnect AI
Finance
Li Ka-shing’s CK Infrastructure considering secondary listing overseas | South China Morning Post
Gadgets
HP is ditching its bait-and-switch printer DRM — but only for LaserJets – The Verge
Can Samsung’s new Galaxy Ring smart device help its China comeback? | South China Morning Post
Health
David Beckham is ‘strategic investor’ in Hong Kong’s Prenetics to set up IM8 health brand | South China Morning Post – IM8 will focus on “cutting-edge” consumer health products, the Nasdaq-listed Prenetics said, without divulging the financial details of Beckham’s investment
How to
Marcus Byrne – Midjourney prompts
Innovation
Walmart delivery drones being shot by Americans | Quartz – only in America
Japan
Dami Lee on Akira’s Neo Tokyo.
Luxury
Content or couture? Balenciaga’s 30-minute dress becomes the flashpoint of the season | Vogue Business – “It feels a little like a fast fashion iteration of haute couture,” says Victoria Moss, fashion director of The Standard, of the swirling mass of black nylon. “This feels at odds with what fashion at this level should be, which is exquisitely made pieces that somewhat justify their extreme pricing.” She adds that many invest in couture to have garments perfectly fitted to their bodies — and made to last for years.
“Is it beautiful? That’s debatable. Is it impressive? Not really. Is it brazen? Absolutely. Is it a meditation on the creative process? Maybe. Are we bored of these kinds of gimmicks at Balenciaga? Clearly not, as Demna’s work continues to be both a lightning rod and a conversation starter. “Call it ‘pret-a-polarize’,” says fashion journalist and ‘Newfash’ podcast host Mosha Lundström. “To my eye and understanding, I see this look as content rather than couture.”
Why Peter Copping Is a Good Choice to Lead Lanvin – Puck
Materials
A New Age of Materials Is Dawning, for Everything From Smartphones to Missiles – WSJ
Marketing
In Singapore, McDonald’s new metaverse unlocks perks for Grimace NFT holders | Trendwatching – while crypto and NFTs were seen as a flash in the pan by western marketers, they seem to have had a deeper longer-lasting resonance in Singapore.
Opinion: Why Oracle Advertising Is Really Shutting Down | AdWeek
Playbrary – by national library board of Singapore. It uses text based games (think Dungeons and Dragons) to introduce Singaporeans to classic books
With AI-generated videos, Cadbury’s helps Aussies and Kiwis celebrate sporting volunteers – production-wise it is Jib-Jab vs. generative AI
Media
Paramount CEOs Say ‘Business As Usual’ After Merger, As Layoffs Loom – Business Insider
Lonely Planet exits China, sparking nostalgia among netizens | Dao Insights
Online
Google considered blocking Safari users from accessing its new AI features, report says – 9to5Mac
How Influencers and Algorithms Are Creating Bespoke Realities for Everyone | WIRED
OpenAI Faces More Lawsuits Over Copyrighted Data Used to Train ChatGPT – Business Insider
U.S. says Russian bot farm used AI to impersonate Americans : NPR and DOJ seizes ‘bot farm’ operated by the Russian government | The Verge
The trouble with age-gating the internet – POLITICO
Retailing
Fast fashion frenzy: 62M Zara items on Vinted reveal the paradox of recommerce | Trendwatching
Security
Japan declares victory in effort to end government use of floppy disks | Reuters – yes stories like this are funny because ‘modern’ Japan with its flip phones, fax machines and floppy discs are an anachronism. But there’s a few other things to consider. There might be issues in terms of investment a la the NHS and critical systems that for whatever reason can’t be ported on to modern systems (like the problems had with security based on ActiveX).
Dumb systems also have security benefits, you can’t steal nearly as much data on even a compressed floppy disk as you can on a USB stick.
How Apple Intelligence’s Privacy Stacks Up Against Android’s ‘Hybrid AI’ | WIRED
Software
Interesting use cases for generative AI in China which sounds like a plot line from Ghost In The Shell.
Baidu – World No. 1? – Radio Free Mobile – is Baidu ERNIE really the number one generative AI service? It depends on if the numbers are true. 14 million developers, 950,000 models within the eco-system
Alphabet Shelves Its Interest in HubSpot (GOOGL, HUBS) – Bloomberg
Technology
China plays down importance of lithography tools in semiconductor challenges – Interesting report from Taiwan’s DigiTimes semiconductor trade magazine: China seems to be deliberately playing down the importance of lithography tools as it identifies the challenges for the development of its semiconductor industry in a recently published dossier.
Telecoms
Starlink Mini is now available for anyone in the US to roam – The Verge
Tools
Cassidy | The AI Workspace for your team
Wireless
Germany orders ban on Chinese companies from its 5G network | FT
Switching from Google Photos to iCloud will soon be a lot less painful – The Verge