When streaming turns into shopping

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In focus

• Peter Cowan on video commerce and the creep of consumption.
• Robotics careers without an engineering degree
• A crypto winter colder than ever?

Hello reader,

I’m pretty blessed to be a member of a family of spectacled nerds. Each year, gift-giving is easy – I just buy everyone a book.

This is great for me, as I don’t enjoy shopping one bit, even if I do like getting loved ones gifts they appreciate. Part of my dislike for the activity comes from how bombarded we are to consume – from advertisements on billboards to YouTube adverts that now evade AdBlock; it’s incessant.

Image credit: Timmy Loen

That made our story about Indonesian video-streaming unicorn Vidio stand out to me. The article dives into how the company has allowed users to buy products that appear on its shows directly on its mobile app. This is done via a partnership with Shopee.

Personally, watching my favorite sports and getting pushed to buy merchandise sounds awful, but the early results show it’s working: between August and October, Vidio’s order volumes more than doubled.

Dig into the full story and decide for yourself whether this is convenience or creeping commercialism. Our top picks this week aren’t all dystopian, though. In fact, there’s a surprising source of cheer: robots.

Guest writer Jonathan Ng offers a fresh perspective in this article, which explains why you don’t need an engineering degree to make a difference in robotics.

As he puts it, what matters most is the desire to solve problems.

And if you believe robots can solve a lot of human problems, then you’ll be happy about the news that Cortex AI has secured US$6 million in funding. Miguel has the details on Carousell co-founder Lucas Ngoo’s new venture.

May your gifts be easy to find, your ad targeting merciful, and your robots genuinely helpful.

Peter Cowan, engagement editor

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