Category: 10 Things We Learned

Should we be paying attention to the impact data and algorithms are having in our society?

On October 9, Firma Talks raised this question by welcoming two experts in the field. Guillem Pons, Badi’s Chief Data Officer, and Ander Orcasitas, Iberian Director for AI startup Dynamic Yield, both offered their unique and contrasting perspectives. The debate comes at a time when U.S. legislators are currently introducing bills that could land Mark Zuckerberg in jail.

Here are our main takeaways from that night:

Let’s start with a fun fact. 70% of all McDonald’s sales in the U.S. happen through the McAuto drive-through. This insight is one of the reasons why McDonald’s acquired Dynamic Yield in March, for USD 300 million. It’s a fascinating story of food and innovation. Ander Orcasitas shared how they could help McDonald’s increase sales by personalizing items to customers. “We could now take public information, see past purchases, decide if the car is high-end or low-end, decide if the weather is warm or cold if it’s a rush hour or not, and based on that modify the menu items to your preference.” Yes, I will have that order super-sized with an extra side of data.

Here’s another fun fact. The top three companies in the world have no assets. Guillem Pons drew attention to this fact by pointing out the true value of Facebook, Google, and Amazon lies in the vast amount of information at their disposal. The amount of data gives these juggernauts the ability to predict behavior. “When you know a lot about a user, you can predict what they are going to do,” Orcasitas further added.

Giving your data to the government sounds like something out of an Orwellian nightmare, but it is actually part of China’s nationwide social experiment known as the Social Credit System. Imagine spending an afternoon on social media criticizing the government. The online behavior is tracked, and suddenly, your Social Credit is reduced, making it difficult for you to gain a better internet speed or worse, securing a good job or obtaining a passport. The Social Credit System will be put in practice by 2020, which sounds all futuristic but is really like two months away.

When did this Data Revolution begin? Pons pointed to the moment Steve Jobs announced the iPhone, and the world got all heart eyes emoji over it. With the emergence of the iPhone, companies gained the ability to track every activity and every behavior anytime and anywhere. Every time you like something, that’s one data point you’re giving to Mark Zuckerberg. Someone in the crowd said Instagram has 21 billion Daily Active Users, which is, of course, impossible, unless alien galaxies are using Instagram. But still, that’s a lot of data points to do business.

What has two thumbs and helped upend democracy? This Cambridge Analytica. We are all familiar with the scandal that brought Facebook to its knees. Pons emphasized the Cambridge Analytica story because it goes to the heart of the matter. At the time, Facebook gathered a lot of data about its users, but it also gave away a lot of that data to third parties. One of these third parties was Cambridge Analytica, which took advantage of the situation to run damaging campaigns in hopes of swaying votes in their client’s favor. Clients like Donald J. Trump, who you’ve probably heard of. But here is where the real issue is. Pon’s main argument is that we need to find a way to be able to use these products without having our information sold or misused by other organizations. To get there, he argued, we need greater awareness.

Maybe you have an idea for a company that aims to rival Facebook. It’s not something we recommend but if it were to happen, your best bet would be to cut off all the competition. For this, you would need the government to step in. By getting rid of competitors, government would act as a sort of protective cocoon, allowing your business to grow. Of course, creating a business to compete with Facebook is a bad idea, given that it’s virtually impossible to do. But the idea to protect smaller players through a framework would be ideal. This is one of the ideas brought up by Orcasitas. A general framework that would nurture smaller businesses to grow without having to rely or depend on the tech giants.

In the Q&A, Marc, Partner & Strategy Director at Firma, asked if we are all fools. “Are we fools for succumbing to these companies? Are we fools for giving away our information, not realizing what we are doing?” In response, Orcasitas pointed to Daniel Kahneman, the Nobel prize-winning behavioral economist who discovered heuristics and popularized System 1 and System 2 thinking. System 1 is your impulsive pleasuring seeking brain, constantly craving that dopamine kick that makes you check your Instagram feed. System 2, on the other hand, is slow, thoughtful thinking that allows you to get Ph.D.’s and Nobel prizes. Perhaps you’ve read this far in the article without checking your phone, that’s System 2 amigo. Or amiga. Orcasitas called on Kahneman to the point that GDPR and the terms and conditions are all designed to our System 2 thinking, which takes energy. So in conclusion, we are not idiots, but we do often give in too quickly to our System 1 thinking.

Data Minimalism is the latest digital detox trend to hit the streets, according to one of the attendees during the Q&A. Let’s call her Joanna, given that, that’s her real name. Joanna explained that Data Minimalism aims to give users greater control by doing things like clearing their search browser and opting for apps and services that don’t track and gather user data.

While this is undoubtedly a step in the right direction, Pons warned that change needs to happen from within. The companies who design these products we love to use need to separate the utility of their product, with the act of marketing and selling personal information to other companies. “The key here is awareness. Data minimalism, yes, but also have the right to choose.”

Orcasitas made an articulate and persuasive argument towards socializing data. We can call it Data Communism, but it’ll probably raise a lot of eyebrows, so let’s call it a Unified Data System. Although not as cool-sounding, a Unified Data System would make information accessible to all. It’s quite similar to learning #6, but this would give startups an advantage by relying on a network of information to create better products and services. But this also raises another issue, if we socialize all the data, who gets to manage this system? I don’t have an answer but I can’t wait for the day when we hear the words, “Mr. IT man, tear down that wall.”

Nudging is like hacking our System 1 to do System 2 things (see learning #7). It’s what designers did in an airport in Amsterdam by placing a sticker of a fly in the bathroom urinal to maintain clean bathrooms and save costs. Now apply that to the world of AI or Machine Learning, where models are getting increasingly better at knowing how you feel. Imagine if that information could be used for your betterment, by turning lazy or unproductive moments into something useful. This is the kind of future to aspire, where technology works in our favor, pushing us to do better to become better versions of ourselves.

We have no idea what scandals will be happening in 2050, or how data will be impacting us, but it is safe to assume that the models, the algorithms, and the predictive power of this technology will only get better. Whether we need to raise the alarm bells and hold these companies accountable to protect our rights, or whether we need unfettered access to data through a framework, will only happen by the actions we take today. Technology is fundamental to humanity, and the debate highlighted the need to integrate moral and ethical issues if we want the technology to work for us.

Imagine if we began treating every single piece of trash not as waste, but as a resource.


On June 26, Firma Talks invited three experts in the field of circular design–YesFuture, Sustainn, and Go Zero Waste–to tackle one of today's biggest challenges, our waste. We sat down and listened to Olga Rodriguez from YesFuture, and Carlos León from Sustainn address different angles of cutting plastic and generating less waste. 


With YesFuture, Olga is leading the Zero-Waste movement through bulk purchasing. With Sustainn, on the other hand, Carlos is helping businesses embrace circular business models to inspire better products and services. 
 
The talk was moderated by Oriol Segarra, the founder of Go Zero Waste, a circular economy consultancy based in Barcelona. Here are our main takeaways from that night: 

In a nutshell, a circular economy is a shift from a degenerative to a regenerative model. So let's say you make jeans. In a circular economy model, you would need to factor in the entire life cycle of the product to make your amazing jeans. This means considering the fabric producer who purchases the cotton from a farmer, and even the farmer himself. Where is the farmer getting his cotton seeds? Is it a major supplier? 
 
In a regenerative model, you've radically deconstructed the entire lifecycle of your product. Once you've done that, you can begin to consider alternatives to rescue the material after their use. That's the first (major) step. 

Steve Jobs perhaps best captures the "do what you love" ethos now common in entrepreneurial circles. But for Olga, her passion was born out of a conversation she had one night with her flatmate about the absurd use of plastic. So she started a supermarket. OG move Olga *cue Snoop and Dre music*.
 
 "At the beginning of 2017, suppliers said they couldn't send anything that wasn't in plastic." So we went to small producers who could adapt. Soon Olga's outraged snowballed from "let's waste less plastic" to "let's only work with companies that are also committed to not generating waste." By taking a pain point and using that to inform the core business strategy, Olga managed to convince suppliers to adapt based on what they asked. And it all began by questioning the status quo.

There's no planet B, which means we have to make the best use of our (finite) resources. Ownership of goods can be wasteful for the planet because the manufacturer has no incentive to make use of the resource again. A service, however, creates incentives for more efficient use of resources because the service provider is responsible for handling the material and making it useful again. 


So, the next time you hear someone make fun of Millennials, about how they're the "rent-over-own", "everything-as-a-service" generation, you can tell them to cool it, because they're the ones making a difference.

Put your patchouli away; a zero-waste supermarket is no longer a fringe bohemian concept but is rather evolving to be the next big thing. Yes Future's overarching aim is to encourage zero-waste living, but this doesn't mean having to sacrifice your way of life. This was one of Olga's more salient points, to build her business where zero-waste would complement, rather than substitute, the model. The focus shifted not only on saving waste but also contributing to something innovative. Olga emphasized this point, saying "we are adapting to new generations to be attractive for all sorts of people." In this case, the supermarket's appealing aesthetic invited the consumer in. By using that, she could explain the motive behind why they were doing it.

Contrary to what many think, getting started with zero-waste living is quite easy. When asked about how to cut plastic use and generate less waste, Olga had some pretty straightforward advice. "All you have to do is be aware of the waste you generate and find ways to reduce it. You can reduce a lot of waste in a short period." Instead of treating garbage disposal as some mindless activity, aim to be conscious of what you are throwing away. Willing to try things and to explore alternatives is all it takes. But Olga did emphasize that once you start being aware, cutting plastic use and reducing waste becomes addictive, in a good way.

So let's say you go full Zero Waste. No more plastic. No more waste. Problem solved, right? Well, unfortunately, not really. Where the Zero-Waste movement has the most to gain is with large retailers, that produce high amounts of waste. The good news is retailers are already experimenting with programs to diminish their waste. For instance, TerraCycle, an initiative that aims to serve products like Tide and Hagen Daaz in reusable packaging, is already carrying out a few pilot projects in Paris and NYC.


Similarly, supermarket giant, Carrefour, is doing something similar with its bio-product line. While the circular economy movement remains in its infancy, retailers are catching up. And hopefully, others will too.

"If we create something so good, we don't see it as an obstacle. The power lies in creativity, so now that we are in a creative agency, we can be part of the solution." This was one of the remarks from one of the audience members in the Q&A, and it speaks true to how we feel about the responsibilities we have as creatives. 


For us, the challenge lies in persuading consumers to embrace practices that generate less waste. But this often implies a sacrifice of some sort. Either you have to organize your materials if you are purchasing in bulk. Or the idea of a bio or eco-friendly product often means sacrificing your wallet to afford it. But here is where our creativity comes in handy. We need to address these pain points so that these so-called sacrifices are not seen as sacrifices. To do so, we need to make the product so enjoyable that we no longer see it as an obstacle. The key here is creativity, aka our "thinky pain."

A lot of companies obsess over balance sheets, and this is a problem. Because companies focus too much on balances, they end up giving little to no percentage of their resources to explore more sustainable solutions. This is a point Carlos brought up in the discussion, pointing out that if firms would commit 80% of their resources to exploitation, and 20% to exploration, then we would see meaningful changes. 


Unfortunately, what ends up happening is companies ignore exploring alternatives and opt for trendy labels to improve their image to gain a competitive edge. Ignoring longer-term needs are often sacrificed for the goal of selling more and reducing costs. It doesn't require a drastic commitment, only allocating resources to explore alternatives, not a strategy to sell more. But to get there, we need more control and transparency.

 "What's better, bio/eco or local?" Is the question Marc, Firma's co-founder, raised in the Q&A session. The response? It depends. If it's for you or the planet, it all depends on how we see it. Olga mentioned that a local product is preferable, but if the land has been exploited to the point that it is no longer useful, then it is not better. Ecologic will be healthier, but if it comes from the other side of the planet, then it is also not ideal for the planet. In the long-run, however, the ecologic product will be better for our environment as well as for health because it minimizes damage on the soil/land.

I like to save the best for last. In my opinion, the biggest takeaway of the night came from Carlos when he said: "waste is a design flaw, and everything around us is a resource if we design it to be that way." We can introduce a new generation that treats waste entirely different. All it takes is a shift in perspective and a commitment to work towards a world we would like to live in. To think that every waste we've generated doesn't need to end in a landfill. It seems like a radical departure to have to rethink everything from scratch. But if we can treat waste as a flaw, then we can uncover more effective ways of dealing with it. 


Plastic is not the problem. The problem is the use we give it, mostly single-use. On the one hand, the discussion drew attention to the painful realities we are facing. On the other, the debate gave insight into what we can do and what individuals are doing to get rid of waste. Simple awareness of how we consume can inspire us to make better decisions, and hopefully, impact businesses to do so as well.  

On May 8, Apart of Firma hosted two pioneers in the field of industrial design, Andreu Carulla and Curro Claret. The title of the talk, “Your Trash, My Treasure”, drew attention to the items we often discard or don’t value after their use and, by shifting our perspective, can transform these into useful or symbolic pieces for society. Here are some of the main takeaways of things we learned from the speakers (and the audience):

Carulla began by exploring the iterative process of working with the Roca brothers. Some ideas fell flat. For instance, in one meeting at Can Roca, Carulla noticed clients were eager to meet and shake hands with Roca, causing a constant distraction in his meetings. Carulla proposed, half-jokingly, a mechanical bear that clients could hug and whisper well wishes as they bid farewell to the restaurant. But this idea didn’t go very far. It shows that to be creative without limits, one must not shy away from bad ideas. Embrace the mechanical polar bear.

Andreu Carulla began by sharing his experience with Roca Recycles initiative, a collaboration between Carulla and the Roca brothers at the three Michelin star restaurant, Can Roca Cellar. Through this collaboration, Carulla designed stools from the fish containers the restaurant receives every day, six to be exact, which equal to 120 boxes per month. This shows the union of forces and the concern about excessive use of non- degradable materials is a concern that even top players are looking to address.

On the other hand, Curro Claret introduced his projects by drawing inspiration from a cookbook his mother had left him called “Monastic Kitchen: Culinary Secrets from the Clarissa Sisters” (if you must know).

The nun’s advice included “not necessarily the most delicious plates are made with the most expensive ingredients. A simple tortilla can be exquisite if we surround ourselves with kindness and love from our family and friends” and “what draws us to food is not only the taste but also the way it smells and looks... the greatest chefs are experts in this field.”

These bits of wisdom allowed Claret to open up and deepen his involvement in the Gaudi film awards and Surf City Barcelona, among other projects.

Following the example from upcycling (see takeaway #3), Claret met with fishermen in Barcelona for the Surf City project. By collecting discarded fishnets, Claret cleaned the nets in a waste management facility and designed comfortable seats for the event. But there was a, dare we say, stinky problem. The smell of the nets was intolerable. Faced with this obstacle, they thought about how to eliminate the smell for the event until Claret’s genius kicked in. “We had this realization, like no no no, this is fine. This is the reality. This is our shit. Suddenly what was a problem for us, maybe only us, also became part of the project.”

One of the nun’s advice (see learning #2) was “in the kitchen, we must be brave and act with imagination. We can all be “innovators” of simple places and even more complicates ones. The majority of our most treasured dishes come from amateur chefs with an innovative spirit. Claret relied on this advice in redesigning church benches. For centuries, churches have opened their doors to offer a place to rest for people who didn’t have a place to sleep. Instead of creating something entirely new, Claret redesigned one element and transformed the bench into a bed.

The question began with “what Claret project would you liked to have put your signature? And why?" Carulla responded by expressing his admiration for Claret’s focus on the social aspect. “You always include people, I mean it”, recognizing the nexus in all of them, from the Surf City installation sending a message of how this is the world is going to smell if you don’t take care of it. Carulla finished by saying, “I would like to have that social side in all of your projects. The stools are also incredible.”

We took up cycling and took it to its primitive state, washed off some common misconceptions–subcycle and recycle is not upcycle–and returned it to its original definition. During the Q&A session, Andreu Carulla turned to the audience to ask “what exactly is upcycling? Do we say something is upcycled if you see the form of the product reused and still recognize the previous product with the new one?”

To this question, an audience member stood up and gave a response that seemed almost rehearsed. “Upcycling has more to do with the value of the material”, he said. If the value of the material is higher than when it was a product, then it is effectively upcycled. This means taking the residue or discarded material and rinsing it through a chemical process to bring the material back to its original state, thereby raising its value. For example, in the Surf City project, Claret gathered fishnets collected by local fishermen in Barcelona, “yes, they still exist” exclaimed Claret. If one were to take the nets, made from nylon, and do an upcycle, one would have to wash the nylon in a chemical process and bring it to its primitive state, this would turn the material into a polyamide. By returning it to raw material, one can indefinitely conserve the value of it, making it possible to use the polyamide to make fishnets or sunglasses. This is an upcycle.

When discussing a product, Carulla emphasized the role of designers in the world. As designers, the goal is to generate value, to differentiate yourself, and to recognize that what you are doing contributes to something. A responsibility to differentiate and to add value, to have conversations and reflect. One of the criticisms launched was the herd like behavior of design, where everyone is essentially copying of one another. The Nordic style is so often overused, and everyone wants to be ahead of the curve that they sometimes forget to express their creativity and own originality to separate themselves from the pack. This is something both agreed felt was missing in the mainstream conversation.

When Carulla asked, “what do you think is the biggest change over the last decade with the largest positive impact?” Claret responded by being hopeful about the emergence of “self-sufficiency” in our society. We are entering a world where the multinational no longer has all the control, and we can generate our own energy; to have less dependence on resources from other parts of the world and a higher conscience over natural resources and energetic use.

In another question, Claret asked, “what is the worst advice you see currently being propagated out there?” Claret also gave an amusing response with regards to recycling. “In the world of the consumer”, he said, “if I throw a bottle in the right bin it’s ok because I’m already doing what I’ve been told to do. Fine, you are less nasty, but that’s the bare minimum.” Recycling is fine but we can do a lot more.

At the end of the talk, both were able to dig in a little deeper about their upcoming plans and what they hope to see in the future. One of the more promising ideas discussed was the evolution of Roca Recycles initiative. Carulla would first like to see the financial investment from the Roca brothers covered. Once this is done, the project can open up and invite anyone who has trash and transform the material into something of personal use. “I would like to open up the platform, and anyone who wants to come with their waste can come and leave with the stool. So you only pay for the coating, and you have 6-8 molds to choose from. That would be the second or third step.”

It was a night filled with energy, enthusiasm and a lot of laughs. Join us for our next event on June 19 as we continue expanding ideas that push innovation forward.

- Curious for more? Check out some of the highlights of the event.

- Want to know more? Check out the complete video of the talk.

- Here is Carulla&Claret’s interview that inspired us.