Glasses protect users from facial recognition
Spotted: Facial recognition is no longer just for spies and secret labs. It is being used for everything from monitoring classrooms to airport security. Now, for those who do not want their every move tracked and recorded, Chicago-based eyewear designer Scott Urban has developed glasses that can block facial recognition systems. Most facial recognition systems,…
Hydrogen fuel-cell bike gets extended range
Spotted: Last year, Pragma Industries announced that it had begun producing the world’s first mass-production fuel-cell-powered ebike. The bike includes a lithium-ion battery and a fuel-cell powered by a hydrogen gas cylinder. Now, the company has announced a 50 per cent increase in the vehicle’s range, from 62 miles (100km) to 93 miles (150km). At the same…
Fintech startup automates financial services for freelancers
Spotted: New Zealand-based startup Hnry is providing financial services for the self-employed. It automates tasks like billing and paying taxes using predictive analytics software. Hnry assigns clients to a bank account. The program then uses predictive software to calculate taxes and other expenses that should be deducted. After this, it issues a payslip for what…
Fuel plant to produce hydrogen from plastic waste
Spotted: Researchers at the University of Chester and Powerhouse Energy have developed a way to use plastic waste to heat homes. The process takes unsorted, unwashed plastic and rapidly heats it to 1,000C. The heat causes the plastic to release hydrogen and other gases. The hydrogen is then trapped and can be compressed and used…
The world’s first fully-electric tugboat
Spotted: The Dutch Damen Shipyards Group and the New Zealand Ports of Auckland have created a fully-electric tugboat. The tug, known as the Damen RSD-E 2513, builds on Damen’s experience building hybrid vessels. The Damen RSD-E will be as strong as the port’s strongest diesel tug, the company says. The creation was inspired by Ports…
Dutch villa makes ‘forest therapy’ accessible in the city
Spotted: According to a Japanese study carried out by Chiba University, spending time in forests, or “forest therapy,” decreases cortisol levels, blood pressure, and heart rate. But how could the benefits of forest therapy be made accessible to everyone, including people who work in offices and do not have access to green areas? That is…
T-shirts made with protein fibres from sour milk
Spotted: Los Angeles-based startup Mi Terro is manufacturing t-shirts with the help of sour milk. It is able to turn it into fibres, which are spun into yarn. Creating fibres from milk is not new. The process has actually been in use since the 1930s. The fibres are made from the protein casein, which is…
Online resource aims to increase diversity in UK’s design industry
Spotted: Design Can is an online resource and campaign tool aimed at increasing diversity in the design industry. Not Flat 3, a multi-disciplinary design collective, launched the website last week. The rationale behind the campaign is that the ethnic and gender stratification of the UK’s design industry is not representative of its customers. According to…
App lets users rent out empty parking spaces
Spotted: Kazakhstan startup TuraQshare has developed an app that allows users to register and rent out their empty parking spaces. The concept was created in July 2018 for the Astana Innovations Challenge, a startup competition aimed at incentivising young developers to solve urban technological problems in Nur-Sultan, the capital of Kazakhstan. TuraQshare’s founders, Askhat Sharipov…
Swedish startup recycles Nespresso pods into bicycles
Spotted: Vélosophy is a Swedish bicycle and lifestyle brand that makes bicycles from recycled aluminium coffee capsules. The latest model, RE:CYCLE, is a collaboration with Nespresso. The bicycle project aims to encourage Nespresso drinkers to engage in the company’s pod recycling scheme. The bike has various design features that reference Nespresso. These include a plum…