The Hype Cycle, Vol. 4
A quick note: I’m shifting the Hype Cycle volumes to a monthly cadence. I want to devote more time to a weekly deep dive on a single topic, and I want to allow for more stuff to percolate throughout a month to make this series even better. So there you have it… and your feedback is welcome! Email me at kyle@theundercurrent.io and tell me what you think - just please be brutally honest.
OK, on with the show…
Three Things, My Thoughts.
Some topics from this week - with my own 🔥 (or 🥶) takes:
AI Overload
TechCrunch has an article out today digesting whether we have too many AI models in the market right now. There was a nice writeup in The Wall Street Journal last year about how the deluge of AI products and features was overwhelming IT pros. When you start running down the list TechCrunch put together of the 11 models updated/released just this week, it starts to make your head spin a little. For one, who has time to evaluate all of these tools? For two, they all kinda sorta do similar things (for real - how many $%$@ing AI assistants do we need?!).
MY TAKE:I am going to do a deeper dive into AI within marketing soon, but I think we’re bypassing the “trough of disillusionment” on generative AI and I think that’s a bad thing. It seems like the industry has already decided this is necessary, and as such I don’t the pace slowing anytime soon… now, having said that a big problem on the horizon is what data exists to continue upgrading AI models. My guess is the big players will consolidate the market in the next 12-18 months and a core few suites of tools will emerge.
Tesla Tumbles With a Recall
Woooooops… so Tesla recalled all Cybertrucks for a faulty accelerator pedal. Yep - they recalled them all. Every. Single. One. I don’t know what’s more stunningly sad for Tesla - the recall or the fact that they’ve sold less than 4,000 Cybertrucks so far. Now, Tesla doesn’t release sales figures by model, but for context, this would represent only 1% of total sales for Q1 2024. That’s… pretty weak for a company that needs innovation to hit in order to keep pace with accelerating competition.
MY TAKE: Tesla might be in trouble. Massive price cuts are driving down the value of its more popular models - likely caused by weakening demand. As a Model Y owner, it’s annoying. What’s more annoying is that my Tesla seems to have more bugs (music buffering, OMFG) than it used to. Elon Musk seems entirely distracted with X - a dumpster fire of his own making, btw. Keep this up and once-loyal owners like myself will start eyeballing Rivian’s R2 and R3 models like this fella below…
Is the Agency Model Broken?
Taylor Morrison CMO Stephanie McCarty had her feed and DMs blown up by a LinkedIn post recently. She then followed that missive up with a provocative article in Adweek that excoriated the advertising industry for its insistence on driving work with what she sees as duplicative to what the client team offers, and at the expense of good ideas. It’s a powerfully written manifesto on the state of affairs in advertising.
MY TAKE: I get where Ms. McCarty is going in the main, but I disagree with her position as a blanket statement about all clients and the entire agency landscape. Taylor Morrison might have developed great intel and a sharp strategy with internal resources, but I’ve had first-hand experience where that is not the case; we relied on the agency not only for creativity, but to give us backing and blueprints for the ideas to get executive leadership on board. “Outsider perspective” doesn’t need to be limited to just ideas.
Two Good Resources.
I found a couple of recent 📖🎧📺 I found to be particularly good:
What’s Your Premise? I enjoy reading Jay Acunzo’s work. I never miss his newsletters. I found this one to be highly beneficial. Not just for newsletter or blog writing, but for marketing development in general. The general premise is that we’re too focused on marketing vs. mattering. I wholeheartedly agree. The marketing industry in general suffers from a misguided push to be “the best” instead of being the most-liked. Give the article a read, and then in your next briefing or brainstorming ask yourself, “what is the premise?”
The Fifth Column: This is an excellent podcast because I have fundamental disagreements with some of the things these guys say. Read that again. Society at large seems to covet bubble-based living, and I challenge you to pop your bubble. Often. This podcast delves into the intersection of news, politics, and culture in ways that sometimes make me think, “WTF NO!” but I always walk away having learned something and seen a new angle on a topic.
One Great Quote.
I leave with you some words of wisdom:
“Wants are often based on the prevailing winds. Needs, however, are based upon intelligent design.” - Alan Weiss
Encore!
Music that’s moving me this week. Go crush the weekend!
