from Kia Design Center America #199 / March 3rd, 2023 (Fri) / Confidential |
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Taken this morning from a freeway near the Kia America Design Center in Irvine, California, this photo shows a mountain that is heavily covered in snow. Can you believe it? 🤨
Typically, from November to February, we only catch a glimpse of the lightly snowed Big Bear mountain, which is an hour's drive away, due to the rain. However, it typically melts quickly under the hot California sun. This winter, though, due to the continuous rain caused by the storm, we are witnessing a mountain that is fully covered in heavy snow for the first time in a long time. Moreover, this week, graupel (soft hail) fell at Disneyland in Southern California, marking the first occurrence in 36 years since 1987. |
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Driving northeast from the Kia America Design Center for about an hour in Fontana, we also experienced the 'piling up' of snow, just like in Korea. The sight of snow piled up on tree branches is truly a rare and beautiful sight. Although it was a very unfamiliar sight, it felt a bit bitter as it seemed to be evidence of climate change, which is being seen all over the world, even in California. While news of the drought being partially resolved by the recent rain and snow is spreading, it was a Friday where we also considered whether California's temperature would become similar to that of New York. |
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😉 Newsletter Summary
1. US Brand Trend - Chick-fil-A opens rest hub for food delivery workers
2. Consumer Trend - de-influencer
3. Automotive news this week
- Another thermal control tech-heated seat belt
- Tesla Investor Day 2023 summary
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Chick-fil-A opens dedicated rest hub for food delivery workers in NYC
Food delivery workers face a variety of challenges, including traffic, inclement weather, and the physical demands of quickly delivering orders to customers. In recognition of their hard work, Chick-fil-A restaurant chain has opened The Brake Room in New York City. This dedicated space provides a place for delivery workers to take a break, recharge, and warm up on cold winter days.
Situated on the Upper East Side, The Brake Room will be available until Thursday, April 13th, 2023, from 11am to 7pm, Monday through Saturday. Delivery workers can enter free of charge by presenting proof of delivery within the past week from an eligible third-party food delivery app. The rest area will provide attendees with access to bathrooms, bike storage, phone charging stations, comfortable seating, wifi, and beverages.
According to 2021 data, the worldwide market for food delivery has grown threefold since 2017, with delivery now contributing a significant portion of restaurant revenue and relying on gig workers who often work extended hours. In light of these conditions, it is only fitting that restaurant chains and delivery applications should provide delivery personnel with a comfortable place to rest, especially during the winter season. Although Chick-fil-A's project will only last for a limited period, it is high time for other brands to come up with a long-term solution not just in NYC, where over 65,000 food delivery people operate, but also in other locations around the world.
p.s) Chick Fil A Recommended menu: Chicken Deluxe sandwich+Waffle fries+chick fil a sauce
Where did the name Chick-fil-A come from? “chicken fillet,”, grade A which is Top quality |
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De-influencer
"While this skincare product may be good, it's a better deal to buy another product with the same ingredients that costs only $9."
American society, which used to believe that consumerism is a virtue and that more is better, is undergoing a change. Influencers who used their social media popularity to generate commercial promotion revenue are increasingly criticized for encouraging overspending, and their content is losing authenticity. On platforms like Instagram and TikTok, deinfluencers who criticize and push back against influencers who overhype unnecessary items and urge viewers to buy them now or risk dying out are becoming a new trend, urging them to "stop wasting money."
Although it's unclear how they started, videos with the #deinfluencing hashtag have garnered over 150 million views in just a few months. The videos all urge viewers to "not buy expensive items that aren't worth the price, but instead purchase cheaper alternatives with similar quality."
An SNS manager stated that this is a natural reaction to the overwhelming number of products promoted by influencers. Consumers who have become more modest and wise through inflation are expected to continue to grow their influence by voicing opinions similar to those of deinfluencers, who measure their goals and values.
#don'tbuyuselessitems
#Reviewbycoldhearted
#Nonotoexcessiveconsumption
#dislike tiktokmademebuyit |
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Thermal Technology - Heated Steering Wheel, heated seat, now Heated belt
As the world shifts towards the era of electric cars, the importance of thermal management has become even more crucial. To increase the driving range, which is considered the most important aspect of electric cars, efforts are being made to reduce energy consumption through the use of efficient heat pumps, motor heat reuse, and other means. Now, there is a growing trend among engineers to avoid the use of these technologies altogether.
One way to do this is to avoid using handle heating wires and heater systems that give a boiler-like feeling, as they consume more energy. ZF, however, has developed an innovative heated belt that can transmit warmth to the chest area, which was previously ignored. This technology, unveiled by ZF at the 2023 CES, can increase the driving range by up to 15% by raising the temperature to Fahrenheit 104 (Celsius 40), while not affecting the thickness of the belt despite the insertion of heating wires.
Just as wearing a heated vest during winter night fishing, along with a coat, can increase perceived body temperature and make hands and feet less cold, raising core body temperature to increase blood circulation temperature and maintain body temperature could be a practical solution in regions such as Eastern Canada, where the cold weather persists.
p.s) It would be great if a technology could be developed to consistently generate heat in the neck area, which is exposed to the outside and has less fat, and therefore feels the most cold and experiences significant heat loss in extreme cold weather. (Of course, there is the Heat Scarf, but it is not widely used...) |
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Tesla Investor day 2023 Summary
Despite the high expectations, Tesla Investor Day held yesterday did not provide any details on the highly anticipated "affordable" Model 2, but rather showcased Tesla's direction towards a sustainable energy transition through innovation.
1. Master Plan 3
Tesla presented its vision for a transition from fossil fuels to renewable energy and announced a $10 trillion investment in production facilities to replace the global economic base from petroleum to renewable energy. They emphasized the need for lithium procurement (emphasizing lithium refining over lithium mining) to achieve 240TWH of storage battery capacity and 30TWH of renewable energy generation. This announcement certified their leap from an electric car company to an energy company.
FYI
- Master Plan 1 (2006): Plan to expand electric car market share
Master Plan 2 (2016): Utilization of solar energy generation, new electric car lineup, and autonomous driving technology
2. New addition to the lineup
Without providing any concrete details about the Model 2, Tesla presented the Cybertruck and a private new product model to be released later this year. They announced a "plan" to reduce production costs by 50% and establish a perfect mass production process for cost-effectiveness. They also disclosed plans for a new Gigafactory in Mexico
Although some reviewers criticized Tesla for not delivering any information about the Model 2 and for providing only vague information, Tesla's announcements revealed a macro perspective of looking 20 years ahead and demonstrated their commitment to saving the planet through executable action plans that are relatively easy and inexpensive to implement, such as securing renewable energy and saving manufacturing costs.
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Kia Design Center America
Written by Jenna Chwee
Email: jchwee@hatci.com
101 Peters Canyon Rd. Irvine, CA 92606
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