Iterate Weekly - Issue 55

This week we're looking at digital avatars that live forever, breaking our addiction to meetings, smart kettlebells, VR boxing workouts, and listening to the Icons Club!

Welcome to issue 55 of Iterate Weekly!

Just a reminder that you can always reply to this email or leave a comment on the web version. I read all of them, and I appreciate the feedback, questions, and insights from all of you.

Let’s jump into this week’s stories.

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🤖 Tech

Create a Digital Avatar That Lives Forever

Somnium Space // Illustration by Kate Walker

One of my recent content recommendations was the show Upload. For those who still haven’t checked it out, it’s set in a not-too-distant future where humans are able to “upload” their existence to an idyllic virtual afterlife. This real-life story sounds eerily similar.

A company called Somnium Space is hoping to entice people to create a digital avatar that will live on long after they die.

This may sound creepy but not all that interesting. The story gets more complicated when the company asks for people to opt-in to allow an A.I. version of their likeness to be created.

They call it “Live Forever,” a feature “that allows people to have their movements and conversations stored as data, then duplicated as an avatar that moves, talks, and sounds just like you.”

So the more you interact with the avatar while you’re alive, the more data it will have to accurately replicate your tendencies once you’re physically gone. Ostensibly, your loved ones would then be able to throw on a VR headset and interact with the virtual version of you long after your death. Creepy? Innovative? Controversial? I’d say yes on all accounts.

Obviously there are many privacy concerns here. Somnium Space CEO Artur Sychov says that Somnium does not collect any user data unless users explicitly allow and pay for it: “We are a decentralized world,” Sychov said. “We don’t want to know your name. We don’t care about who you are.” Users are also free to both stop and restart the VR data collection process whenever they’d like and can totally pull the plug and delete all of their data too.

Does this appeal to you? Can there be noble (non-creepy) uses for this technology? Right now you can signup for yourself to pay $50 per year to start recording your data with hopes of an A.I avatar ready for action by next year.

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🎓 Education/Art

Breaking Our Addiction to Meetings

Photo by Marvin Meyer on Unsplash

I’ve been a big opponent of meetings for years. Most meetings don’t need to take place. They could be replaced by some sort of asynchronous exchange of data (email, shared doc, direct message) or just skipped altogether.

I wanted to give a shoutout to Byron Saltysiak a fellow writer over at the Better Humans publication who recently published a great piece about breaking our addiction to meetings.

Here are a few key takeaways that really connected with me.

1. Don’t let time zones dictate meetings - We live in a dispersed world of work these days. Many meetings pair folks from all around the world. Time zones can be confusing and disruptive. I usually say that I don’t really care which time zone colleagues are located in. Whenever possible, we should create an asynchronous way for ideas to be exchanged so people aren’t forced into meetings at odd hours where they’re not in their best mindset.

2. Meetings aren’t work - Some people feel like they aren’t working if they aren’t in meetings. And that’s a big problem. Every role is obviously different, there are positions that require a certain amount of managing, but a meeting shouldn’t be the only answer. A synchronous meeting should be a last resort to tackle a problem. And each person who gets invited to the meeting should be absolutely essential to solving the problem.

3. Define your meeting type - While I think that most meetings can be avoided, if you’re going to have a meeting, be specific about it! Online scheduling software Calendly (which I use, and highly recommend) defines The 6 Most Common Types of Meetings. Be intentional here. Choose one of these meeting types and make it concise and effective. Don’t just randomly schedule people for a time slot and hope for the best!

Here’s to an asynchronous world of work with better (and fewer) meetings!

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♻️ Health & Environment

Jaxjox Smart Kettlebells

Photo Courtesy of Jaxjox

I’m always looking for new, innovative ways to workout. It’s no secret that kettlebell swings are one of the most simple and efficient ways to activate a majority of our muscle groups at the same time. I used to keep a kettlebell on my front porch and swings were a regular part of my workout.

But there really is nothing sexy about the humble kettlebell. It’s heavy, oddly shaped, and not always easy to train with. And once you have one weight, that’s it. You can’t increase it or decrease it depending on how you feel that day. That’s why I was excited to see a smart kettlebell on the market to revitalize this old-fashioned workout routine.

It comes from a company called JAXJOX (yeah, I hate the name too). It can be used as part of their full Interactive Studio home gym, or just on its own as you’d use a regular kettlebell. The magic lies in its ability to easily increase or decrease weight. There are small weight stacks that you can increase from 12-42 lbs.

In addition to the flexible weight options, it connects to an app to smartly track all of your kettlebell workouts. Seamlessly keep track of how many reps you did at which weight setting.

I haven’t personally tried the Kettlebell Connect yet, but I think it’s a great concept to breath new life into my stale kettlebell workouts. There are some questionable reviews of the app (which is common in the fitness space) but people seem to love the build quality of the product itself.

It’s definitely a nice option to checkout if you’re a fan of kettlebell workouts.

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🛍 Grab Bag

Supernatural VR Workout

Photo Courtesy of Supernatural

Let’s keep the innovative fitness discussion going shall we?

Recently, I did a virtual boxing workout using an app called Supernatural on my Meta (Oculus) Quest II.

You’ve probably seen their TV commercials that have VR-headset clad workout fiends jumping around their living room punching at the air with pop music playing. Honestly, it didn’t really look like my cup of tea. But I’ve been looking to mix up my home workouts lately and have been intrigued by Peloton’s boxing options. I thought, why not give the VR version a try too?

After several of the intro sessions on Supernatural, I was pleasantly surprised. The workouts were fun and just challenging enough. Yeah, I felt a little silly holding VR controllers while throwing upper cuts in a virtual landscape. But it got my heart rate up and made me feel like I was getting personalized training from the virtual coach on screen.

The subscription isn’t particularly cheap. I suppose it’s expensive for software but affordable compared to the world of boxing gyms and personal trainers. It starts at just under $15/month depending on the details of your plan. We’ll see if I make it a regular part of my routine, but even if I do it a few times per month, I could see the subscription having value. Also note that they offer some meditation and mindfulness classes in addition to the boxing content. They’re next on my list to try.

I do love seeing clever uses for VR that go beyond gaming. Kudos to Supernatural for trying something new.

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💬 Quote of the Week

“Success is a result of consistent practice of winning skills and actions. There is nothing miraculous about the process. There is no luck involved.”

- Bill Russell

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🎧Content Recommendation

Icons Club

Courtesy of Ringer Illustrations

This week I’m recommending a wonderful narrative podcast series called “Icons Club”.

It comes from The Ringer and longtime sports journalist Jackie MacMullan. MacMullan examines the history of the NBA superstar. From the humble beginnings of Bill Russell and Wilt Chamberlain (whose games were barely televised on live TV) to the modern stars of today who live 24/7 public lives on social media.

Basketball fans will certainly love this but MacMullan’s style is entertaining for non-sports fans too. While I love the subject of basketball, this style of exploration on any topic is fascinating. It’s an 8-part series that I quickly consumed over the course of a few dog walks. I highly recommend it.

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Thanks for reading, I’ll see you next week!