The Future Laboratory

I tuned into The Future Laboratory’s Future Five 2025 preview yesterday, and one thought resonated around: 💛 The currency of community and the need for richer, more meaningful experiences 💛 Yes. That’s the work I love most. Not just helping to build brands, but nurturing them. Not just delivering, but participating. Helping creative businesses deepen relationships; with clients, collaborators, even with themselves. Work is infinitely more joyous when there is kindness, thought and meaning involved. In a noisy, pressurised landscape, connection is everything. Less transactional. More transformational. I’ve ordered the full report (thank you Fiona Harkin) can’t wait to dive deeper. In the meantime - if this resonates with how you like to work too, I’d love to hear. #FutureFive2025 #CreativeBusiness #StrategyWithHeart #BrandRelationships #ClientExperience

Everything you need to know from Dutch Design Week 2025... A trend to watch is how artists at Dutch Design Week turned their attention to what makes us human and sets us apart from machines: our ability to play. Play has always been an important method of delivery at Dutch Design Week, used to break down the barriers surrounding serious topics and making them more engaging for the public. This year was no different, with Unfair Play, a gamified conversation starter about closing the health gap, sitting at the heart of Ketelhuisplein. Similarly, Our Future Is Somewhere Here by Ål Nik (Alexandra Nikolova), is a board game that invites players to create future scenarios around climate crisis, migration, technology and care. Curious about how kidult aesthetics can foster emotional engagement and collective learning in ways data-driven design cannot? Read the full article here: https://hubs.la/Q03Q2rY20 Our creative lead, Emily Rhodes, has been delivering daily updates of the trends happening at the event. From digital afterlives and making space for grief to slowing AI and fostering empathy, read more in our signals section of our trends intelligence platform LS:N Global: https://hubs.la/Q03Q2vrC0 Stay tuned for more in-depth coverage of Dutch Design Week 2025. #DutchDesignWeek #AI #KidultAesthetics #Gamification #Technology #ConsumerInisghts #Events #Foresight

The second edition of The Future of Sport and AI has launched.⚡ All eyes are on the Middle East when it comes to how AI will shape the future of sport in 2026 and beyond. G42 the Abu Dhabi-based technology group, has partnered once again with The Future Laboratory to create the second edition of The Future of Sport and AI – a strategic foresight report exploring how AI is reshaping the sport industry across Strategy and Tactics, Talent, Engagement, Health and Performance, and Design. This year’s report also moves from prediction to application, building on G42’s growing portfolio of real-world partnerships with the likes of Mercedes-AMG PETRONAS Formula One Team and UAE Team Emirates - XRG. These act as incubators for insights and tools that can then be shared industry-wide. Unlock access to the full report through our blog: Lab Notes: https://hubs.la/Q03Q02W40 #AI #Sport #FutureOfAI #FutureOfSport #ConsumerInsights #Foresight #MiddleEast

Today's daily round-up of Dutch Design Week 2025 explores digital afterlives and how designers are making space for grief. Check it out on LS:N Global ✏️ https://lnkd.in/eaCCCh2h #dutchdesignweek #ddw #dutchdesignweek2025 #pastpresentpossible #design #trends

🇮🇳 💄 The beauty market in India is highly fragmented. Our latest in-depth report, I-Beauty: The Next Beauty Powerhouse, by The Future Laboratory and Together Group, serves as both inspiration and a critical framework for international beauty and wellness brands looking to succeed in this lucrative market.   Accelerated by rapid scientific progression, the rise of data-powered customisation and the climate crisis, the beauty sector is undeniably entering a new era – one in which speed, complexity and cultural specificity are no longer optional, but essential. In this landscape, India is setting the pace.   To align with major beauty events this year, including Amazon Beautyverse, BEAUTY&YOU India, Professional Beauty India, and Cosmoprof India, we've identified five emerging futures shaping India’s beauty landscape.   Each future explores the forces driving innovation, personalisation and sustainability in the market:   : Frictionless Futures : Climate-Adapted Beauty : Cultural Continuums : Planetary Beauty : Decentralized Influence   It's fantastic read. Download the full complimentary report here: https://hubs.la/Q03PJ4LF0   With thanks to our voices, including Cindy Palusamy Supriya Dravid Shruti Thacker Radhika Ghai Avani Thakkar. #Ibeauty #IndianBeauty #IndianMarket #TheFutureLaboratory #Report #TogetherGroup

The rise of truth seeking travel. Dark tourism is no longer a niche curiosity; it’s a growing global phenomenon. This form of travel is about seeking understanding, empathy and reflection. From Hiroshima to Robben Island, travellers today are exploring history to connect deeply with human stories and confront uncomfortable truths. 📈 Market insight: The global dark tourism market is projected to reach £29.9bn by 2032, driven by younger travellers craving meaningful, educational and immersive experiences. 💬 Voices from the experts: “Visitors often feel they’re carrying the memories of those who suffered, a memento mori that reminds us to live intentionally, fear less and love more deeply.” - Dr Chad Scott, Psychotherapist & Author “We are living in what some call a thanatopolitical culture… tragedy has become something to experience, document and share.” - Dr Nitasha Sharma, Assistant Professor, University of Alabama ⚖️ Ethical Tourism in Practice: Tours are shifting from voyeurism to respectful remembrance. Digital storytelling (VR/AR) allows deeper engagement without exploiting suffering. 🙏 Massive thanks to the incredible professors I interviewed for this report: Dr Nitasha Sharma, Dr Chad Scott, Dr Duncan Light and Dr Craig Wight. 📖 Explore the full insight and analysis of the dark tourism market on The Future Laboratory, LS:N Global now: https://lnkd.in/egHSrmW7 Curious to know: Which historical site would you visit to truly understand the past? What lessons could we learn from experiencing history firsthand? How do you balance curiosity with respect when visiting tragic sites?

One of our most anticipated reports: Future Five 2026 is now LIVE! As we are living through the great re-evaluation - economic instability, attention-zapping technology, loneliness, inequality and misogyny - brands need to assess the impact of on-going change to stay ahead in 2026 and beyond. Our Future Five report offers the insight to help you do just that... It builds on five themes from the Topics section of our intelligence platform LS:N Global, which is dedicated to tracking the key consumer landscapes where we believe brands and businesses should be focusing their attention. Explore the five following themes through exclusive insights, foresight, case studies and strategic suggestions: : The Cost of Living Crisis : Mobility : Identity : Future Spaces : AI The report is available to purchase for £95 via our online Shop: https://hubs.la/Q03PSgq-0 If you’re an LS:N Global member, you can download it along with our entire report library and unique intelligence. Not a member? Book a demo with our team: https://hubs.la/Q03PSgvW0 #FuturesReseach #Planning #Report #ConsumerInsights #Foresight #AI #TheCostOfLivingCrisis #EconomicInstability #Mobility #Idenity

NEW FREE REPORT ALERT 🚨 India is setting the pace for the future of beauty, creating a scalable, culturally intelligent model that blends heritage with science and local insight with global ambition. To align with major beauty events this year, including Amazon Beautyverse, BEAUTY&YOU India, Professional Beauty India, and Cosmoprof India, The Future Laboratory in partnership with Together Group has identified five emerging futures shaping India’s beauty landscape. Each explores the forces driving innovation, personalisation and sustainability in the market: : Frictionless Futures : Climate-Adapted Beauty  : Cultural Continuums : Planetary Beauty : Decentralised Influence Download the full report here: https://hubs.la/Q03PQWC-0 #Ibeauty #IndianBeauty #IndianMarket #TheFutureLaboratory #Report

We're all deep in 2026 planning... But planning alone won't set you apart from your competition? At The Future Laboratory, foresight is what we do best. True success comes from anticipating the forces that will shape the world of 2030 and beyond, and preparing for them today. 🚀 This year, we’ve helped some of the world’s most influential businesses answer exactly that, through bespoke foresight projects tailored to their needs and ambitions and bringing expert opinions and insights to their live events. Here's a couple of bespoke projects we have done in 2025: : After a successful first look into the future of sport and AI last year, G42 came to us again for a deeper exploration, this time uncovering not if, but how AI will redefine the future of sport. : A global e-commerce platform used our foresight to reposition its brand around emerging consumer values, shaping its strategy around authenticity, inclusion and cultural resonance. The result: stronger connections and higher-impact marketing activations.  Want a piece of the action in 2026? Get in touch here: https://hubs.la/Q03PrwSl0 #StrategicForesight #Planning #ConsumerInsight #Bespoke