It’s easy to avoid these uncomfortable anomalies, because they create cognitive dissonance. But by embracing discomfort and attuning ourselves to weird signals, we can begin to spot unexpected and alternative realities that are vastly different from our current day.

“In an age of speed, I began to think, nothing could be more invigorating than going slow. In an age of distraction, nothing can feel more luxurious than paying attention. And in an age of constant movement, nothing is more urgent than sitting still.”

To spot weird signals, you need to go down rabbit holes. Follow your intuition. And remember, pursuing rabbit holes is not always an act of procrastination. Sometimes, it’s simply your mind telling you to follow your curiosity.

Weird signals can take the form of almost anything - snippets from articles and essays, images, social media content, a conversation on a podcast. Sometimes, it’s a strange meme that hints at an emerging shift in our collective mood, societal worries, and desires.

Instead, what I have trained myself to look for, more specifically, are ‘weird’ signals. Weird signals are behaviours and phenomena that feel strange or out of place. But importantly, they also tend to hint at unanticipated future cultural upheavals. As cultural futurist Jasmine Binaexplains: “weird signals usually give us a glimpse into the future... See more

research is the sacred ritual of excavating your own perspective

We are living through an era where trend cycles move at hyper-speed, compressed into 24-hour cycles. Every day, there’s a new shiny fad, a new viral moment, flocks of forecasters and oracles eager to crown them with a new catchy title, in an attempt to drive engagement and visibility in the feed. Yet, these isolated spikes flatten the story and... See more

LLMs will raise the standards for our trend research. Machine and human sense-making operating in tandem, expanding what’s possible and helping us break free from our filter bubbles.

AI offers breadth - it aids me in cross-referencing unprecedented amounts of disparate information sources and millions of data points. With Sublime’s ‘Chat’ function,... See more

collecting without connecting is just hoarding—a library full of signals collecting digital dust.