• China's Muslim minority, the Uighurs, are subject to harsh surveillance, with many interned in prison-like detention camps and forced to work.
• Beijing justifies this crackdown as a counterterrorism measure, and calls the internment camps "free vocational training."
• Countries in the Muslim world have largely avoided confronting Beijing over this crackdown in the past, but the tide is turning.
• More and more Muslim countries are openly calling out China over its human rights record.
• Human Rights Watch's China director says the next step is for the countries to take action to persuade or punish Beijing.

More and more countries are standing up to China over its oppression of the Uighurs, the country's majority-Muslim ethnic minority.

Beijing is accused of interning up to 1 million Uighurs in prison-like detention camps, forcing them to renounce their religion and native language, and even pushing them into forced labor with little to no pay.

Activists have found evidence of Chinese authorities tracking Uighurs' cellphone activity in their home region of Xinjiang, also known as East Turkestan.

Others say Beijing has demanded demanded the Uighur diaspora hand over personal information, and threatened their families if they do not.

Chinese authorities say the policies are a counterterrorism strategy, and that placing Uighurs in internment camps is "free vocational training."

Read more:China is locking up its Muslim minorities, and pushing Islamophobia to get Europe to do it too

Until now, countries from the Muslim world have largely avoided bringing up China's Uighur crackdown.

Experts say this was because countries feared economic retribution from China, or because many Arab states didn't want to draw attention to their own poor human rights records.

But the tide is turning.

The crumbling wall of silence

In September, the federal minister for religion in Pakistan — China's closest economic ally in the Muslim world — openly criticized Beijing's regulation of Uighur activity, saying that the crackdown actually "increases the chances of an extremist viewpoint growing in reaction."

A month later, Malaysia — another major economic ally, and home to many ethnic Chinese — ignored Beijing's requests to deport a group of Uighurs imprisoned in the country.

Most prominently, the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation —  a consortium of 57 countries which calls itself  "the collective voice of the Muslim world"— noted in December "disturbing reports" of China's Muslim crackdown.

It said it hoped China "would address the legitimate concerns of Muslims around the world."

Read more:Jailing Muslims, burning Bibles, and forcing monks to wave the national flag: How Xi Jinping is attacking religion in China

In countries where world leaders haven't stood up to China, there are prominent protests.

Prominent politicians and religious figures in Indonesia — the country with the highest proportion of Muslims in the world — are urging the government to speak up. It has so far refused to do so, saying it that it didn't "want to intervene in the domestic affairs of another country."

Muslim groups in India, Bangladesh, and Kazakhstan also staged multiple protests over the Uighur detentions this year.

People have been particularly vocal in Kazakhstan, as many ethnic Kazakhs are said to be imprisoned in the China's camps. The government in June said"an urgent request was expressed" over the welfare of Kazakhs detained in China, but there have not been any significant updates.

Western powers like the US, UK, and UN have criticised Beijing over its actions in Xinjiang in the past.

But the criticism of Muslim nations shows a turning tide in the world's attitude to China, said Sophie Richardson, Human Rights Watch's China director.

China has long batted away Western criticism, with state-run Global Times tabloid describing Western critics as "a condescending judge" earlier this year. China's foreign ministry said a reported investigation by western diplomats into the Uighur issue was "very rude."

Richardson said: "When governments like Indonesia or Malaysia ... or organizations like the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation speak up, China can no longer dismiss concerns about Xinjiang being some kind of Western conspiracy."

"That's very encouraging."

The world is paying attention

The rising tide of outrage against China comes as more and more of the country's human rights record was brought to light this year.

This summer journalists, academics, and activists were taken aback by the disappearance of the Chinese "X-Men" actress Fan Bingbing, who Chinese authorities detained and kept from the public eye for three months over accusations that she evaded taxes.

Meng Hongwei, the Lyon-based president of Interpol, remains missing after being mysteriously detained in China in late September. His wife thinks he could be dead.

The New York Times also featured a story about the Xinjiang detention camps on its front page for the first time this September:

Richardson said: "Increasingly, governments are seeing the way in which China uses thuggish tactics at home and overseas on governments and citizens, and are starting to realize it's time to push back against it."

"Three months ago, if you were to tell me there would be critical language coming out of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation, I would have suggested it was unlikely," she said.

Next comes action

Muslim countries' speaking up against China over the Uighurs is a significant first step, but is not likely to do much by itself.

Countries now need to take concrete action to punish or persuade China to end their crackdown on the Uighurs, Richardson said.

"The question now is what everybody is willing to do," she said. "Talking and putting in consequential actions are two different things. That's where the game shifts next."

Countries will also have to be "mindful that China will fight it tooth and nail," she added.

Members of the Muslim world could demand independent access into Xinjiang to investigate reports of the detention camps, for example.

The United Nations has already been doing this for months, but Beijing told it to back off.

Another form of punishment could come in the form of sanctions, or cancelling contracts.

Richardson, the Human Rights Watch director, noted that the latest spate of accusations against China came at a time when multiple Muslim countries started reassessing their economic ties with Beijing.

Malaysia axed $22 billion of Beijing-backed infrastructure projects this August. Egypt's talks with a Chinese building company for a $20 billion development also broke down this week, Bloomberg reported. Neither of those cancellations were over the Uighur issue.

A group of US bipartisan lawmakers last month introduced the Uyghur Human Rights Policy Act ("Uyghur" is an alternative spelling). The act urges the White House to consider imposing sanctions on Chinese officials responsible for the Uighur crackdown, as well as banning exports of US technology that could be used to oppress Uighurs.

Chinese cash could be hard to quit

Whether Muslim countries follow suit remains to be seen, however. China is the largest trading partner of 20 of the 57 member states of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation, according to Bloomberg.

Pakistan, whose religious minister criticized China's Uighur crackdown this year, is also one of the largest recipients of Chinese aid and infrastructure contracts.

Earlier this month its foreign ministry rowed back the religious minister's comments, accusing the media of "trying to sensationalize" the Xinjiang issue, Agence France-Presse reported.

Mohammad Faisal, a spokesman for the foreign ministry, also appeared to echo Beijing's line on the detention camps, saying that some Pakistani citizens who were detained in Xinjiang were "undergoing voluntary training" instead.

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• Government has plans to pend more than £100 million chartering ferries to ease congestion at the Port of Dover after a no deal Brexit.
• According to a BBC report, the Department for Transport has given additional ferry contracts to three major ship operators.
• The plans are in place to ease what is expected to be "severe" congestion at Dover in the event that a deal cannot be ratified by both sides before March 29.
• This includes ensuring key supplies such as medicines are able to get to the UK.

The British government will spend more than £100 million chartering ferries to ease congestion at the Port of Dover, and ensure key supplies can get to the UK in the event of a no deal Brexit.

According to a BBC report, the Department for Transport has given additional ferry contracts to French, Dutch and British companies, which will add capacity for around 4,000 more lorries per week to come through ports such as Plymouth, Poole, and Portsmouth. 

The plans are in place to ease what is expected to be "severe" congestion at Dover in the event that a deal cannot be ratified by both sides before March 29.

In a statement, a spokesperson for the DfT said the contracts would provide "significant extra capacity" to UK ports in the event of a no deal Brexit.

The contracts were awarded to French firm Brittany Ferries, Danish freight company DFDS, and UK-based Seaborne Freight, the BBC reports. The French and Danish firms have been awarded contracts worth around £45 million each, while Seaborne's contract is worth around £14 million.

Read more: Conservative MPs threaten to quit the party if Theresa May pursues a no-deal Brexit

The plans have been roundly criticised by Liberal Democrat leader Vince Cable, who described them as "complete madness," according to the BBC.

"The government has the power to stop "no deal" at any time but instead is spending millions on last minute contracts," he said.

"The fact that this money is predominantly going to European companies is nothing short of ironic, reducing Britain to a laughing stock on the global stage."

Earlier in December the government confirmed plans to commit around £2 billion in additional funding for no deal Brexit planning. At the time Business Insider reported that part of those plans was the booking of space on ferries to ensure that essential medical supplies could make their way into the country from the EU.

As part of those plans, the Department for Exiting the EU will send 80,000 emails to UK business groups and roll out a nationwide advertising campaign warning firms to prepare for a no deal Brexit.

SEE ALSO: The UK government plans to deploy 3,500 British troops to handle no-deal Brexit chaos

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NOW WATCH: Anthony Scaramucci claims Trump isn't a nationalist: 'He likes saying that because it irks these intellectual elitists'

• President Donald Trump issued an executive order Friday that cancels a planned pay increase for federal workers in 2019.
• Trump previously vowed to cancel the 2.1% raise, telling congressional lawmakers in August it was "inappropriate."
• The order comes a week into a partial government shutdown that has caused thousands of employees to be furloughed or working without pay.

President Donald Trump issued an executive order Friday that cancels a planned pay increase for federal workers in 2019.

Trump previously called the raise, a 2.1% increase set to take effect in January, "inappropriate" and an unrealistic burden on the federal budget.

The order also cancels a yearly paycheck adjustment calculated in order with the region of the country where workers are posted.

When addressing lawmakers in an August letter, Trump cited his authority to adjust pay for federal employees as he sees appropriate considering "national emergency or serious economic conditions affecting the general welfare."

Trump said he was pursuing the freeze because of the $25-billion price tag of the raises, though his tax reform bill was calculated to add nearly 10 times the cost of the canceled raises.

The order comes a week after the government entered a partial shutdown that has caused thousands of workers to be furloughed or working without pay.

Read more: Some government contractors could go unpaid even after the shutdown ends

It remains unclear when lawmakers will be able to resolve the shutdown after Trump demanded an agreement that would accommodate a $5-billion wall along the US-Mexico border.

The shutdown does not affect the entire federal government but several major agencies, including the departments of Agriculture, Commerce, Justice, Homeland Security, the Interior, State, Transportation, and Housing and Urban Development.

About 800,000 federal workers have been affected by the shutdown. Some 420,000 workers are being forced to work without pay since they are considered "essential" employees. The other 380,000 workers are furloughed, which means they are barred from work and will not receive pay.

SEE ALSO: Identity of Russian ex-spy who served as Manafort's main foreign contact during 2016 election revealed

DON'T MISS: Deaths of 2 children raise doubts about US border agency's ability to care for surge of migrant kids and families seeking refuge in the US

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NOW WATCH: Anthony Scaramucci claims Trump isn't a nationalist: 'He likes saying that because it irks these intellectual elitists'

• Life insurance is fundamentally hard to sell; it’s morbid to think about, promises no immediate rewards, and often requires a lengthy paper application with minimal guidance.
• Despite the popularity of personalized products in other areas of finance and fintech, life insurance largely remains unchanged.
• A small, but growing pocket of insurtech startups are shaking up the status quo by finding ways to digitize life insurance and increase its appeal.

Life insurance is a fundamentally difficult product to sell; it requires people to think about their deaths without promising any immediate returns.

And, despite tech innovations and the development of personalized services in other areas of finance, life insurance remains largely unchanged.

Luckily, there is a small but growing pocket of insurtech startups looking to modernize it. These companies are finding ways to digitize life insurance to  appeal to consumers — and they’re giving incumbents the opportunity to revamp traditional offerings, either by partnering with them or using their technology.

Business Insider Intelligence, Business Insider's premium research service, has forecasted the shifting landscape of life insurance in the The Future of Life Insurance report. Here are the key problems insurtechs are tackling:

• Lack of education: Forty percent of US consumers told the Life Insurance and Market Research Association (LIMRA) that they feel intimidated by the life insurance application process, often drastically overestimating its cost and facing uncertainty about how much or which type of coverage to buy.
• Inconvenient application process: It can take weeks or months for coverage to take effect because of the sheer number of meetings and parties combing through paperwork in each round of the application process. The risk for the insurer often warrants reviews from the carrier, a team of underwriters, a broker, and even a medical examiner.
• Low customer loyalty: Life insurance tends to be a “set it and forget it” type of purchase, with very few people revisiting it after buying. Insurers and consumers therefore have limited contact for most of the relationship — with the exception of an annual bill, of course.
• Inefficient data management and processing: The aggregate data life insurers rely on is typically fed into algorithms that make broad assumptions about particular populations, and often incorporate outdated medical documentation — all of which can delay applications and result in unnecessary rejections.

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The need for modernization in life insurance is clear: Overall sales are slowing and policy ownership is hitting record lows. And because it’s such a tightly-regulated space, innovation from incumbents has stagnated — but they’re not helpless. Consumer-focused and insurer-focused startups have emerged to offer new technologies and process improvements.

The Future of Life Insurance report from Business Insider Intelligence looks at the two main strategies life insurtechs are adopting to drive change in this market, for the benefit of both buyers and sellers. In full, the report discusses best practices incumbents and startups should adopt to steer clear of the risks attached to applying emerging technologies to such a tightly regulated product.

Insurtech startups will soon set new industry standards and consumer expectations around this complex product. That, in turn will serve as a catalyst for innovation among legacy players.

Companies included in this report: Ladder, Haven Life, Getsurance, Tomorrow, Fabric, Atidot, AllLife, Royal London, Polly, Life.io, Legal & General, Vitality, Discovery, John Hancock, Dai-ichi Life.

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This is a preview of a research report from Business Insider Intelligence, Business Insider's premium research service. To learn more about Business Insider Intelligence, click here.

Artificial intelligence (AI), often used as an umbrella term to describe types of technology that can simulate human intelligence, is one of today’s hottest topics across a number of business sectors. AI techniques teach computers to parse data in a contextual manner to provide requested information, supply analysis, or trigger an event based on their findings.

Marketers are already leveraging the power of AI to glean valuable insights about their customers, automate tasks, and improve workflows. Just over half (51%) of marketers currently use AI, and an additional 27% are expected to incorporate the technology by 2019, according to Salesforce. This represents the highest anticipated year-over-year (YoY) growth of any leading technology that marketers expect to adopt in the next year, beating out the Internet of Things and marketing automation. And, as the volume of consumer-generated data grows, AI computing techniques — like machine learning, deep learning, and natural language processing (NLP) — will become increasingly important to data-driven decision-making.

In a new report, Business Insider Intelligence examines the current and potential applications of AI within marketing. We dive into how AI enhances personalization, and identify the best practices for marketers looking to integrate the nascent tech into their strategies. We also look at how marketers cam implement AI to better target audiences, gain a competitive edge, and analyze data from social platforms. Finally, we evaluate how these applications will transform — and enhance — the way marketers analyze data, conduct burdensome tasks, and create content. 

Here are some of the key takeaways from the report:

• AI is advancing beyond data analysis and moving rapidly into data generation, as machines get better at automating two basic human senses: sight and hearing. Gleaning insights from data-rich media like voice and video is now possible, and humans no longer have to manually categorize or describe various types of media.
• AI will transform marketers from reactive to proactive planners. The enhanced analytics that AI provides will help marketers more efficiently plan and execute campaigns in three main areas: segmentation, tracking, and keyword tagging.
• However, the rapid pace of innovation is contributing to marketers’ sense of unpreparedness for AI implementation and future use cases. When asked to choose which trending technology they felt most unprepared for, 34% of global marketing executives chose AI, the most of any option, according to Conductor.
• AI will aid in content creation, but human marketers are still necessary. It’s still early days for marketers to use AI to automatically create editorial content or stitch together the right image with the right messaging for display ads. Machines will help cut down on production time, but humans are needed for their creative juices.

In full, the report:

• Discusses the top use cases for AI in marketing and examines those with the greatest potential in the next few years. 
• Breaks down how the role of marketers will evolve once AI automates remedial tasks. 
• Explores how the customer experience is becoming more personalized, relevant, and timely. 
• Provides potential roadmaps for companies that are beginning to invest in AI and machine learning.

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• In recent years, several states have set minimum wages higher than the federal minimum of $7.25.
• 21 states and Washington, DC are set to increase their minimum wages in 2019, according to data from the Economic Policy Institute and Wolters Kluwer.
• We took a look at what the minimum wage in each state will be in 2019, and how much that wage is increasing.

While the Federal minimum wage of $7.25 hasn't moved in nearly a decade, several states and cities have set their own higher minimum wages, and many of those are planning increases in 2019.

Using data from the Economic Policy Institute's Minimum Wage Tracker and an analysis of changes from information services company Wolters Kluwer, we took a look at where each state's minimum wage will be in 2019. According to those reports, the minimum wage will increase in 21 states and Washington, DC in the next year.

Read more: Here's how many people in each state make minimum wage or less

Here's what the hourly minimum wage will be in each state in 2019:

And here's how much the hourly minimum wage is set to increase relative to the 2018 minimum wage in those states that are seeing a bump:

For most of those states, the new wage will go into effect on January 1.

In New York, the minimum wage is set to rise on December 31, 2018. In Michigan, it will increase on April 1, 2019. In Oregon and DC the chance goes into effect July 1. In Delaware, the wage floor rises on October 1.

In addition to those states, Nevada will evaluate whether to raise its minimum wage in April, according to a USA Today report on state minimum wages.

• Read more about wages and work in the US:
• The most and least expensive places to live in America
• The most disproportionately high-paying job in every state
• Here's how much the typical millennial, Gen X, and baby-boomer worker earns in every US state
• Experts say 'affordable' rent costs 30% of your monthly income. Here are the US cities where people can actually pay that.

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• Lady Gaga's long-awaited Vegas residency, "Enigma" is here. Unsurprisingly, it looks like a giant spectacle.
• Gaga's fans, affectionately called Little Monsters, had a lot to say about the evening.
• Here are the best photos and fan reactions from the opening night of "Enigma."

Lady Gaga's Vegas residency kicked off on December 28 at the Park MGM Resort. The show will be held on various dates throughout November 2019.

Ever since it was announced in December 2017, Gaga fans have been eagerly awaiting "Enigma," one of two Vegas shows Gaga is planning.

After a year of planning, rehearsals, and motion capture teases on Instagram — plus a few Grammy and Golden Globe nominations — Lady Gaga debuted "Enigma." 

At the beginning of the show, Gaga descends from the ceiling playing a keytar. It reminded some people of our favorite sponge who lives in a pineapple under the sea.

Here's Gaga.

And here's Spongebob.

See the resemblance?

Take a closer look.

Later during the show, the "Edge of Glory" singer climbs on top of what can only be described as a Transformer.

Others saw Iron Man.

But mostly, the Lady Gaga fans are extremely proud of their Mother Monster. She powers through 21 hits and deep cuts from her discography during the show.

Read more: Watch Lady Gaga break down in tears as she performs 'Shallow' for the first time live at her 'Enigma' Vegas residency

During "Born This Way," she dons a nude leotard similar to the one she wore in the music video.

She hangs above the audience more than once during "Enigma."

We'd expect nothing less from Lady Gaga.

Visit INSIDER's homepage for more.

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NOW WATCH: The true story behind the name 'Black Friday' is much darker than you may have thought

This is a preview of a research report from Business Insider Intelligence, Business Insider's premium research service. To learn more about Business Insider Intelligence, click here. Current subscribers can read the report here.

Trucking is set to transform radically in the coming years, with innovative technologies enabling trucks to take over more and more driving responsibilities, saving time and money for operators and businesses that rely on shipping.

Autonomous trucks are being tested on roads around the world, and systems from startups like Peloton and Embark could make their way into commercial trucks as soon as next year. Fleets will be able to leverage autonomous technologies to cut costs and gain a critical edge over competitors.

But to start planning for, and to eventually implement, those technologies, companies need to know what sorts of systems will be ready and when, and what regulatory hurdles will need to be overcome to get autonomous trucks on the road. 

In The Autonomous Trucking Report, Business Insider Intelligence provides an early glimpse into the emerging autonomous trucking market. First, we look at the trucking market as it stands today, offering a basic profile of the industry and highlighting a number of the challenges and issues it faces. Then, we go through the three waves of autonomous technology that are set to upend the industry — platooning, semi-autonomous systems, and fully autonomous trucks — looking at who is making strides in each of these areas, when the technology can be expected to start making an impact, and what companies can do to get ahead of the curve.

Here are some of the key takeaways:

• Advanced and autonomous technology will enable operators and shipping firms to eradicate some of the challenges that have long plagued them. Trucks will take over more and more driving responsibilities, saving time and money for operators and businesses that rely on shipping.
• The impact of autonomous technologies on the trucking industry will come in three major waves: platooning or fuel-saving vehicle convoys, semi-autonomous highway control systems, and fully autonomous trucks.
• Change to the trucking industry will be gradual but inexorable. Companies with foresight can start to make long-term plans to account for the ways that autonomous technologies will change how goods and products move from place to place.

In full, the report:

• Analyzes the development of autonomous trucking technology.
• Explains the waves in which advanced and autonomous technologies will start to impact the trucking industry, providing detailed explanations of how a company can take advantage of the disruptive technology transforming logistics at each stage.
• Profiles the efforts of the companies that are at the forefront of new technology in trucking, looking at what they're working on and when their efforts could start to impact the market.

To get this report, subscribe to a Premium pass to Business Insider Intelligence and gain immediate access to:

	This report and more than 275 other expertly researched reports
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• Voice assistants like Amazon's Alexa, Google's Assistant, Apple's Siri, and Microsoft's Cortana, are pegged to trigger a widespread transformation across the retail industry in the years to come.
• The current interest in, and adoption of, voice assistants for commerce is being driven by recent technological breakthroughs, advantages of the tech over existing channels, and the development of voice apps.
• As consumer demand for voice technology mounts, brands offering this functionality throughout the entire customer journey stand to gain in three key ways.

Not too long ago, if your friend had a smart speaker like Amazon’s Alexa or Google's Assistant in their living room, it seemed like a rare novelty. Within a matter of months, however, smart speakers have started becominghousehold staples — and they’re still only at a fraction of their growth potential.

One of the biggest drivers of adoption has been increased functionality. Smart speakers aren’t just changing the music and turning on the lights; they’re helping consumers find new products and make purchases — and they’re quickly becoming a preferred method of shopping.

In fact, nearly a quarter of consumers globally already prefer using a voice assistant over going to a company website or mobile app to shop. This share will jump to 40% by 2021, according to Capgemini.

Consumers are on board with the prompt, convenient nature of shopping with smart speakers — and brands who join them stand to reap massive rewards. The Voice in Retail Report from Business Insider Intelligence, Business Insider’s premium research service, highlights the value voice brings to the shopping funnel and how retailers can implement it throughout the customer journey.

Here are three ways brands can capture consumers with voice technology:

• Driving product purchases: Voice assistants make spending faster and easier when consumers are unable to use their hands. The ability to make a purchase on any channel and the addition of personalized, intelligent elements to the shopping experience are simplifying the transition from product discovery to product purchase.
• Heightening customer loyalty: Brands can leverage voice assistants in the post-purchase phase to track delivery status, automate part of the return process, interact with customer service, offer feedback, and collect consumer behavioral and transactional data.
• Shifting consumers’ spending behaviors: Smart device ownership has a snowball effect, so as the smart device ecosystem reaches the mainstream, consumers will flock to connected cars, smart home devices and appliances, and connected virtual reality and augmented reality (VR/AR) headsets.

Want to Learn More?

Shoppers are interested in using voice assistants for every stage of the customer journey, from initial product search and discovery to post-purchase customer service and delivery status. And retailers that take advantage of consumers’ desire to leverage voice will be in a stronger position to heighten customer engagement, increase conversion times, drive sales, and boost operational efficiency.

The Voice in Retail Report from Business Insider Intelligence examines the trends driving the adoption of voice commerce, details the role of voice throughout the customer shopping journey, outlines how brands can benefit from implementing voice in their strategies, and explores what's ahead for the technology in retail.

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This is a preview of a research report from BI Intelligence, Business Insider's premium research service. To learn more about BI Intelligence, click here.

Major logistics providers have long relied on analytics and research teams to make sense of the data they generate from their operations.

But with volumes of data growing, and the insights that can be gleaned becoming increasingly varied and granular, these companies are starting to turn to artificial intelligence (AI) computing techniques, like machine learning, deep learning, and natural language processing, to streamline and automate various processes. These techniques teach computers to parse data in a contextual manner to provide requested information, supply analysis, or trigger an event based on their findings. They are also uniquely well suited to rapidly analyzing huge data sets, and have a wide array of applications in different aspects of supply chain and logistics operations.

AI’s ability to streamline so many supply chain and logistics functions is already delivering a competitive advantage for early adopters by cutting shipping times and costs. A cross-industry study on AI adoption conducted in early 2017 by McKinsey found that early adopters with a proactive AI strategy in the transportation and logistics sector enjoyed profit margins greater than 5%. Meanwhile, respondents in the sector that had not adopted AI were in the red.

However, these crucial benefits have yet to drive widespread adoption. Only 21% of the transportation and logistics firms in McKinsey’s survey had moved beyond the initial testing phase to deploy AI solutions at scale or in a core part of their business. The challenges to AI adoption in the field of supply chain and logistics are numerous and require major capital investments and organizational changes to overcome.

In a new report, BI Intelligence, Business Insider's premium research service, explores the vast impact that AI techniques like machine learning will have on the supply chain and logistics space. We detail the myriad applications for these computational techniques in the industry, and the adoption of those different applications. We also share some examples of companies that have demonstrated success with AI in their supply chain and logistics operations. Lastly, we break down the many factors that are holding organizations back from implementing AI projects and gaining the full benefits of this disruptive technology.

Here are some of the key takeaways from the report:

• The current interest in and early adoption of AI systems is being driven by several key factors, including increased demands from shippers, recent technological breakthroughs, and significant investments in data visibility by the industry’s largest players.
• AI can deliver enormous benefits to supply chain and logistics operations, including cost reductions through reduced redundancies and risk mitigation, improved forecasting, faster deliveries through more optimized routes, improved customer service, and more.
• Legacy players face many substantial obstacles to deploying and reaping the benefits of AI systems, though, including data accessibility and workforce challenges.
• AI adoption in the logistics industry is strongly skewed toward the biggest players, because overcoming these major challenges requires costly investments in updating IT systems and breaking down data silos, as well as hiring expensive teams of data scientists.
• Although AI implementations are unlikely to result in large-scale workforce reductions in the near term, companies still need to develop strategies to address how workers' roles will change as AI systems automate specific functions.

 In full, the report:

• Details the factors driving adoption of AI systems in the supply chain and logistics field.
• Examines the benefits that AI can deliver in reducing costs and shipping times for supply chain and logistics operations.
• Explains the many challenges companies face in implementing AI in their supply chain and logistics operations to reap the benefits of this transformational technology.

Interested in getting the full report? Here are two ways to access it:

1. Subscribe to an All-Access pass to BI Intelligence and gain immediate access to this report and over 100 other expertly researched reports. As an added bonus, you'll also gain access to all future reports and daily newsletters to ensure you stay ahead of the curve and benefit personally and professionally. >>Learn More Now
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This is a preview of the Internet of Things (2018) research report from Business Insider Intelligence. To learn more about the IoT ecosystem, tech trends and industry forecasts, click here.

The Internet of Things (IoT) is transforming how companies and consumers go about their days around the world. The technology that underlies this whole segment is evolving quickly, whether it’s the rapid rise of the Amazon Echo and voice assistants upending the consumer space, or growth of AI-powered analytics platforms for the enterprise market.

And Business Insider Intelligence is keeping its finger on the pulse of this ongoing revolution by conducting our second annual Global IoT Executive Survey, which provides us with critical insights on new developments within the IoT and explains how top-level perspectives are changing year-to-year. Our survey includes more than 400 responses from key executives around the world, including C-suite and director-level respondents.

Through this exclusive study and in-depth research into the field, Business Insider Intelligence details the components that make up the IoT ecosystem. We size the IoT market and use exclusive data to identify key trends in device installations and investment. And we profile the enterprise and consumer IoT segments individually, drilling down into the drivers and characteristics that are shaping each market.

Here are some key takeaways from the report:

• We project that there will be more than 55 billion IoT devices by 2025, up from about 9 billion in 2017.
• We forecast that there will be nearly $15 trillion in aggregate IoT investment between 2017 and 2025, with survey data showing that companies' plans to invest in IoT solutions are accelerating.
• The report highlights the opinions and experiences of IoT decision-makers on topics that include: drivers for adoption; major challenges and pain points; deployment and maturity of IoT implementations; investment in and utilization of devices; the decision-making process; and forward- looking plans.

In full, the report:

• Provides a primer on the basics of the IoT ecosystem.
• Offers forecasts for the IoT moving forward, and highlights areas of interest in the coming years.
• Looks at who is and is not adopting the IoT, and why.
• Highlights drivers and challenges facing companies that are implementing IoT solutions.

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• The annual fee for the Business Platinum® Card from American Express is going up from $450 to $595 per year.
• New benefits include credits at WeWork and Dell and increased benefits from hotel stays.
• With the higher fee, the card may be even more valuable to some cardholders, but others may want to look elsewhere for a rewards card with great benefits and a lower cost.

The Business Platinum® Card from American Express is a longtime leader in both the business and personal rewards card spaces, but a newly increased fee may be enough for you to cancel that Business Platinum card.

An update to the Business Platinum card goes into effect soon. Once it does, should it still earn a slot in your wallet?

Let's take a look at the new costs and benefits to help you decide.

Higher annual costs

Let's start with the big downside. The Business Platinum card annual fee is going up by $145 per year. That comes out to a new $595 annual fee compared to the old $450 fee.

The increase in fee is not a shock to anyone with the personal version of the card, which had a similar fee increase last year. The new annual fee for the personal Platinum Card® from American Express is $550 per year.

At $595 per year, the cost of the card averages out to just under $50 per month. With the new benefits (more on them below) and value from existing benefits, including a $200 annual airline fee credit, lounge access, and Membership Rewards points, you may still find the AmEx Business Platinum to be worth keeping.

New WeWork and Dell benefits

With new costs, you do get new benefits. That is not always the case in the finance industry, but the new benefits from the Business Platinum card may be very valuable for some independent workers and small businesses.

First, AmEx will give you a free year of access to WeWork coworking spaces around the world. The package you get from American Express is valued at $2,700 per year, when looking at comparable WeWork plans. If you have been considering coworking or moving your business to WeWork, this more than pays for the annual fee of the credit card.

If you use Dell for computers, printers, or anything else, the card also comes with a new $200 annual statement credit for qualifying Dell purchases. If you need to buy a new laptop or desktop computer every year for a staff member of your small business team, this benefit might come in very handy.

Increased Hotel Collection credit

This credit card has offered a $75 benefit for each stay at the Hotel Collection, which is now going up to $100. I don't put much value in The Hotel Collection myself, so I rarely focus on it in AmEx reviews. But with the new $100 benefit, it is worth taking a second look at how The Hotel Collection and this benefit works.

The Hotel Collection is a group of hotels you can book through American Express Travel. These are generally higher-end properties, and Business Platinum cardholders get a few perks when staying at The Hotel Collection hotels. Those include 5x points per dollar on prepaid bookings, free room upgrades when available, and a hotel/resort credit each stay.

The newly increased credit will give you $100 per stay for qualifying in-hotel purchases including dining, spas, and resort activities like tennis or golf. Depending on the hotel, $100 may get you a message, breakfasts during your stay, or a discount on a big day on the golf course.

Alternatives to the AmEx Business Platinum

If a $595 annual fee is more than you can or want to pay, you have other options available too. AmEx has a wide range of business cards. I'm personally looking to downgrade my Business Platinum to the Blue Business℠ Plus Credit Card from American Express.

While it has far fewer benefits, I get lounge access from my personal Chase Sapphire Reserve and the Blue Business Plus doesn't charge an annual fee. The Blue Business Plus offers 2x points per dollar on all purchases up to $50,000 per year (then 1x).

Other good options include the Ink Business Preferred Credit Card ($95 annual fee), Ink Business Unlimited Credit Card (no annual fee), or Ink Business Cash Credit Card (no annual fee) from Chase.

Choosing the right rewards card

The right rewards card requires finding the right balance between cost and benefits from your card. If you choose a card with a near $600 annual fee, you should get at least $600 in benefits per year from the card.

Between all of the travel, work, and purchase rewards and protections, you may very well get that from the AmEx Business Platinum. If not, it may be time to move on to something new for your small business credit card needs.

Click here to learn more about the AmEx Business Platinum from Insider Picks' partner: The Points Guy.

DON'T MISS: Every small business owner should consider signing up for this Chase card — even freelancers

SEE ALSO: Changes are coming to the AmEx Business Platinum in 2019 that will increase its value for some, but not all, cardholders

Join the conversation about this story »

The healthcare industry is facing disruption due to accelerating technological innovation and growing demand for improved delivery of healthcare and lower costs. Tech startups are leading the way by seizing opportunities in the areas of the industry that are most vulnerable to disruption, including genomics, pharmaceuticals, administration, clinical operations, and insurance.

Venture funds and businesses are taking notice of these startups' potential. In the US, digital health funding reached $1.6 billion in Q1 2018, according to Rock Health — the largest first quarter on record, surpassing the $1.4 billion in venture funding seen in Q1 2016. These high-potential startups provide a glimpse into the future of the healthcare space and demonstrate how we’ll get there.

In this report, a compilation of various notes, Business Insider Intelligence will look at the top startups disrupting US healthcare in four key areas: artificial intelligence (AI), digital therapeutics, health insurance, and genomics. Startups in this report were selected based on the funding they've received over the past year, notable investors, the products they offer, and leadership in their functional area.

Here are some of the key takeaways from the report:

• Tech startups are entering the market by applying the “Silicon Valley” approach. They're targeting shortcomings and legacy systems that are no longer efficient.
• AI is being applied across five areas of healthcare to improve clinical operation workflows, cut costs, and foster preventative medicine. These areas include administration, big data analysis, clinical decision support, remote patient monitoring, and care provision.
  
• Health tech startups, insurers, and drug makers are rapidly exploring new ways to apply digital therapeutics to the broader healthcare market that replace or complement the existing treatment of a disease.
• Health insurance startups are taking advantage of the consumerization of healthcare to threaten the status quo of legacy players. 
• Genomics is becoming an increasingly common tool within the healthcare system as health organizations better understand how to extract the value from patients’ genetic data. 

 In full, the report:

• Details the areas of the US health industry that show the greatest potential for disruption.
• Forecasts the industry adoption of bleeding edge technology and how it will transform how healthcare organizations operate.
• Unveils the top five startups in AI, digital therapeutics, health insurance, and genomics, and how they're positioned to solve big issues that key players in healthcare face. 
• Explores what's next for the leading startups, providing a glimpse into the future of the healthcare space and demonstrating how we’ll get there.

Subscribe to an All-Access pass to Business Insider Intelligence and gain immediate access to:

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• The FBI and New Jersey prosecutors are reportedly investigating whether management at President Donald Trump's New Jersey golf club provided unauthorized immigrants with fake green cards.
• An attorney representing two women who said they worked illegally at Trump's club has shared evidence with prosecutors and federal agents, according to the New York Daily News. 
• The women's allegations were first reported by The New York Times earlier this month. They said managers were aware of their immigration status and willing to produce fake documents.

The FBI and New Jersey prosecutors are reportedly investigating whether management at President Donald Trump's New Jersey golf club provided unauthorized immigrants with fake documents, according to the New York Daily News.

Two women recently came forward publicly to declare they had worked illegally at the Trump National Golf Club in Bedminster, when both were undocumented.

The women's attorney, Anibal Romero, told the Daily News on Friday that he met with investigators from the state attorney general's office and handed over fraudulent green cards and Social Security numbers that management officials at the club gave to his clients, Victorina Morales and Sandra Diaz.

Romero also said met with FBI agents after reaching out to the office of the special counsel Robert Mueller, who is investigating Russian meddling in the 2016 presidential election.

Romero said Mueller's office told him the matter wasn't in its jurisdiction, but FBI agents in New Jersey soon reached out, telling him they had received a referral from Mueller's office.

Read more: An unauthorized immigrant who makes Trump's bed at his Bedminster golf resort says 'we are tired of the abuse, the insults, the way he talks about us'

The allegations from Morales and Diaz were first reported by The New York Times earlier this month.

In an interview with The Times, Morales said she knew she wasn't the only unauthorized immigrant who works for the president. She said she found Trump's rhetoric about immigrants offensive.

"We are tired of the abuse, the insults, and the way he talks about us when he knows that we are here helping him make money," she said. "We sweat it out to attend to his every need and have to put up with his humiliation."

Morales also said managers at the golf resort tried to implement new "immigration compliance" rules after Trump launched his presidential campaign in 2015, but that she was just told to obtain new forged documents.

The Trump organization did not immediately respond to Business Insider's request for comment.

Read more: Step inside Trump's private golf club in Bedminster, New Jersey

But the organization previously responded to Morales and Diaz's comments in The Times, saying in a statement that the company uses "very strict hiring practices."

"If an employee submitted false documentation in an attempt to circumvent the law, they will be terminated immediately," said Amanda Miller, the Trump Organization's senior vice president for marketing and corporate communications.

Romero said Morales and Diaz were afraid to speak out for fear of retribution, but any punishment against them for the practices would be an incorrect response.

"This was a practice and pattern," Romero said. "My clients felt like they were trapped and they felt like the fake documents could be used against them."

Trump's businesses have come under scrutiny for hiring practices before. Legal documents and first-hand accounts describe the regular hiring of unauthorized immigrants at Trump Tower in New York City and at his modeling agency.

Michelle Mark contributed reporting.

• Read more of Business Insider's immigration coverage:
• 'We've seen this coming': Why migrant children are dying in Border Patrol custody
• Trump threatens to close the border over a new caravan forming in Honduras that reportedly isn't even headed for the US
• As the government shutdown over Trump's border wall rages, a journey along the entire 1,933-mile US-Mexico border shows the monumental task of securing it
• The 8-year-old migrant boy who died on Christmas Eve was held in US custody for nearly a week — against Border Patrol's own rules

Join the conversation about this story »

NOW WATCH: Anthony Scaramucci claims Trump isn't a nationalist: 'He likes saying that because it irks these intellectual elitists'

The transportation and logistics industry is undergoing a massive shift as a result of surging deliveries. Daily parcel volumes are higher than ever before — but so are customers’ expectations for cheap and fast fulfillment. 

To keep up with mounting demand, retailers and their logistics partners have been racing to develop more efficient processes with experimental supply chain models like crowdsourced delivery — the Uber model in which customers use mobile apps to connect directly with local couriers for on-demand or same-day fulfillment.

And it’s not just startups like Deliv and Postmates getting in on the action. This year Amazon not only launched its own shipping service to deliver packages for other businesses (“Shipping with Amazon”) but also announced its “Delivery Service Partner” program, which provides capital incentives for people to launch their own delivery companies fulfilling orders on behalf of Amazon itself.

With emerging delivery models like these aggressively stealing away customers, the pressure is on for legacy players like FedEx, UPS, the USPS, and the thousands of businesses who depend on them every day, to respond. But it will take more than just material resources or a large fleet of vehicles to truly compete. These companies need to earn the trust of consumers.

Business Insider Intelligence, Business Insider’s premium research service, has obtained exclusive survey data to paint the 2018 delivery landscape and the trends of its major players. The findings comprise the team’s latest Enterprise Edge Report, The 2018 Delivery Trust Report, and give transportation, supply chain, and logistics companies the tools they’ll need to win back customers.

Enterprise Edge Reports are the very best research Business Insider Intelligence has to offer in terms of actionable recommendations and proprietary data, and they are only available to Enterprise clients.

In full, the study:

• Uses proprietary consumer survey data to evaluate how the largest delivery companies in the US stack up on customer service, package tracking, package protection, and timeliness of delivery.
• Assesses how at risk these providers are to new challengers entering the space.
• Shares strategies on how delivery companies can achieve feature parity and, ideally, differentiation, in customer experience.

So, which delivery features do consumers care about?

First and foremost, speed. It makes sense that consumers value fast delivery, but did you know just how many of them prioritize this feature? According to a recent survey from Dropoff, it’s 99%. And with millions of packages delivered nationwide every single day, that’s a lot customers with high expectations.

But customers don’t just want their packages delivered quickly; they want to follow the journey from store to doorstep. Another one of the most important offerings delivery companies boast is real-time tracking, with nearly 90% of consumers noting it in the Dropoff survey.

If they can get it right, tracking is a twofold advantage for delivery companies; it entices consumers who want to know when their packages are coming, and it appeals to merchant partners who might be willing to switch delivery service providers for the added visibility and customer benefit.

And the field is still wide open for companies to differentiate on this feature. Among those who had a package delivered from UPS, FedEx, USPS, or DHL in the last year, nearly 30% of Business Insider Intelligence survey respondents couldn't actually say which company offered the best tracking features. Whether it means using mobile apps, SMS texting, or chatbots to communicate with customers, there’s plenty of opportunity for logistics companies to hone and become known for this feature.

Want to learn more?

This is just a snapshot of the Business Insider Intelligence 2018 Delivery Trust Report, which compiles the complete survey findings to dive deeper into the opportunities delivery companies have to engage and delight customers.

The multi-part report also presents actionable insights that transportation and logistics companies can use to fight back against Amazon’s continuous push into deliveries.

Join the conversation about this story »

The Insider Picks team writes about stuff we think you'll like. Business Insider has affiliate partnerships, so we get a share of the revenue from your purchase.

• Hungryroot sends healthy meals to your doorstep that you can make in under 10 minutes.
• Each meal is packed with nutrients, complex carbohydrates, and healthy fats, and is free of gluten, dairy, preservatives and trans-fats.
• Meals break down to about $7 or $6 each, though your first week is less expensive.
• I tried Hungryroot and was impressed by the taste, quantity, and how easy it made eating healthy. I'm not a vegan or vegetarian, but I enjoyed every meal without feeling like I was "eating healthy" and it required zero free time or grocery shopping.

When it comes right down to it, my biggest hurdle to healthy eating is convenience. 

I love neither grocery shopping nor cooking, and I don't want to spend my limited free time deep diving into (often contentious) online nutritional resources to construct balanced meals each week.

But, I do want to eat healthy foods that are good for me. So when I heard about Hungryroot through a colleague, I was intrigued.

Hungryroot is a meal subscription service that sends healthy, nearly-ready meals to your door, with ingredients and sauces that you essentially just heat and mix together. Each serving costs about $6-$7 when you do the math, and they take fewer than 10 minutes to prepare. 

Hungryroot meals solve the problems caused by a lack of cooking expertise or time to dedicate to figuring it out. The foods sent are 100% vegan and gluten-free, and they're packed with nutrients, complex carbohydrates, and healthy fats. Healthy fats (olive oil, coconut oil, cashews, almonds, and avocados) and complex carbs (sweet potatoes, cauliflower, quinoa, beans, and oats) keep you energized and satisfied without the pitfalls of "bad" fats and carbs, which can raise your cholesterol and spike your blood sugar, among other concerns. 

Generally, I’m willing to spend a bit more than I would on the ingredients for the convenience. Hungryroot is more expensive than buying these ingredients in bulk, but you could make the argument that anyone buying single-person groceries may find that— with shelf life of fresh ingredients factored in — it's not altogether that much pricier.

What I personally appreciate about Hungryroot is that it aims to make truly healthy foods convenient and inexpensive, since affordability and convenience are what make people (myself included) settle for unhealthy options packed with trans fats, sodium, and preservatives.

And this sounded pretty hard to beat: simple, delicious meals that were pretty much already made by the time they got to my doorstep.

How Hungryroot works:

Choose between The Starter Set or The Good Life. 

• The Starter Setis four meals (two servings each) and two sides, snacks, or sweets. The weekly box is $69 typically, but $59 for your first. Including the sides, snacks, or sweets, each serving comes out to about $7.
• The Good Life is five meals (two servings each) and five sides, snacks, or sweets. The weekly box is $99 typically, but $79 for your first. Including the sides, snacks, or sweets, each serving comes out to a little over $6.50.

Shipping is free for both plans, and you can skip or cancel any time in your account online.

Once you select your plan and make an account, you can view what meals your shipment will include. If your meal is set to arrive Monday, August 27, you'll have until 5 p.m. the Friday before (in this case, the 24th) to edit it. Since it’s all fresh food, you may get an email prior to shipment that one meal has been altered due to stock (not enough high-quality cauliflower one week, for instance).

If you want to change delivery dates, it's as easy as clicking the "Manage Schedule" icon on the upper right and selecting a new date. 

What Hungryroot is like in person:

Shipping was fast and my box arrived as scheduled. Inside, I was happy to find it included biodegradable insulation.

I was surprised by how much I liked what Hungryroot sent. I let the company auto-generate the first shipment, and my box included ingredients for the following foods:

1. Southwestern Quinoa Tofu Scramble
2. Cherry Chia Maple Oatmeal
3. Green Goddess Lentil Salad
4. Italian Chickpea Quinoa Bowl
5. Moroccan Spiced Chickpea Tagine
6. Kohlrabi Peanut Takeout Noodles
7. Ginger Brussels Yuba Lo Mein
8. Pad Thai Fried Rice
9. Black Bean Brownie Batter
10. Almond Chickpea Cookie Dough

The box is supposed to include an instructional recipe booklet but I may have thrown mine away in a primitive hunger-driven craze. Thankfully, you can find everything you need to know online and by clicking on a select meal in the email Hungryroot sends detailing what's in your box.

The meals were delicious, easy to make, and the entrees filled me up. I'm not a vegan, and I balance an interest in taste over an interest in strictly healthy food, but I enjoyed everything as meals. It didn't feel like I was eating "healthy" in the sense that I was making compromises. And while I do eat meat, I enjoyed the tofu included. If you really wanted to, though, you could easily substitute and make the recipe with your own choice of meat. 

I typically wind up eating more than one serving for meal plans that I've tried, but Hungryroot delivered enough ingredients and variety where I ended up making most entrees last for dinner and for lunch. Having said that, the ingredients initially seemed small and few when unpacking, and I'm still not willing to say I'm entirely confident all future plant-based meals would entirely stave off hunger, though these actually did.

The standouts were the delicious (and pretty big) Moroccan Spiced Chickpea Tagine, both the ridiculously tasty black bean brownie batter and almond chickpea cookie dough (both ok to eat as is or after baking), and Pad Thai Fried Rice. To be honest, though, everything was really good.

True to promise, each meal took under 10 minutes to make — and that's probably the only reason I finished the fresh food before it went bad and ate healthy meals all week. I don’t like cooking, and my schedule usually allows only 30 minutes to cook and eat. For me, Hungryroot succeeded in making it possible to eat healthy in a convenient, fast, and pretty affordable way.

Who should get it:

If you like the sound of healthy, tasty food you can make in under 10 minutes, you’re probably going to like Hungryroot. It's more expensive than buying the ingredients yourself, but I probably wouldn't do the research and grocery shopping if left to my own devices. If you want convenience and consistency, this is a good tool.

The biggest upsides for me were convenience, time-saving (no research, minimal prep), and the ability to learn more about eating healthy if I wished. The company sends emails (not too many) about your upcoming shipment as well as "Nutrition 101." They also include succinct, healthy eating insight under your prep instructions so you can learn as you go.

If you don’t have a reliable way to pick up packages day-of, you may want to steer clear. The food is fresh and doesn't include preservatives, so it likely won’t keep for longer than a day or so. And if you'd prefer to be more involved in cooking the meals rather than mixing ingredients together, you'll be better suited to a Blue Apron, Sun Basket, Hello Fresh or anothermeal kit delivery service. If you just need help with constructing healthy meal plans, you should check out PlateJoy. 

Another thing to consider is that the snacks are not meal replacements, so it's not necessarily fair to say each part of the box is worth its respective $6-$7 equally. But, if the other pros are worth it to you (or you get more snacks and greater variety with the Good Life Plan), then it may even out for you anyway. 

All in all, Hungryroot is a great option for anyone looking to eat healthier or learn by doing. In my experience, meals were delicious, filling, and extremely simple to make. It helped me with consistency, provided useful tidbits, and was just enough personalization and minimal effort. If you're looking to make healthy eating convenient or despise cooking, grocery shopping, and are willing to pay a few bucks more for someone else to do the legwork, Hungryroot is worth looking into. 

Sign up for Hungryroot here.

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• In a new book, physicist and network scientist Albert-László Barabási gives a simple formula that describes how successful a given endeavor will be.
• His research suggests that success is a combination of a good idea and the talent and skill needed to bring that idea to fruition.

The key to success comes down to a mix of finding what you are good at and sticking with it.

Physicist and network scientist Albert-László Barabási recently published a book, "The Formula: The Universal Laws of Success," laying out his and his colleagues' research into the nature of success.

In an excerpt from the book at TED, Barabási describes his basic findings in the form of a simple equation. The degree of success for a given product, scientific paper, artwork, or other endeavor, denoted "S," is broken down into two components: The essentially random quality of the underlying idea, symbolized by "r," and the ability of the creator behind the project to actually bring ideas in a given field to fruition, which Barabási calls the "Q-factor."

With that framework in mind, success is the product of the random initial idea and the Q-factor of the creator: S = Qr.

As an example of the importance of both components of the success formula, Barabási points out that Steve Jobs — someone with an undoubtedly high Q-factor in the realm of designing consumer electronics — had a list of unsuccessful products to his name as well. Barabási wrote, "Think AppleLisa, NeXT, the G-4 Cube, MobileMe. Never heard of them? They're in the graveyard of Jobs's many failures. If an idea has a small r value, no matter how high the Q, the product will be cheapened."

Of course, Barabási also noted that a strong combination of a capable, high-Q-factor creator with a really good initial idea can create extremely successful results: "When the Q-factor and r are both high, they enhance each other, leading to a career-defining breakthrough. Think of the iPhone — a fantastic idea with brilliant execution, resulting in the product that defined Jobs's legacy."

Read more: A Wall Streeter turned venture capitalist uses a strategy from his investing career to make the personal decisions that stress him out most

One perhaps surprising result Barabási and his colleagues found was that a given individual's Q-factor in a particular field tended to stay more or less constant over time. That is, they found that a creator's ability to take advantage of good ideas in their field neither improved with experience nor atrophied with age.

That presents a double-edged sword to anyone trying to find success in their career. On the one hand, repeated struggles in a particular field could suggest an underlying lack of talent in that field. Barabási wrote, "if our Q-factor isn't resonating with our job, we should consider if we've pinned our hopes on the wrong career path."

On the other hand, Barabási noted that the relative constancy of a Q-factor in a given field means that one's best work can happen at any point in their career. Barabási gave the example of the physicist John Fenn, who after a long and fairly low-impact scientific career developed a revolutionary technique for measuring the masses of large molecules at the age of 67. Fenn would later go on to win the 2002 Nobel Prize in Chemistry for his late-career work, Barabási noted.

Barabási's research suggests that a good way to succeed is to find what you are good at and then keep trying new things in that field. "The key to long-term success from a creator's perspective is straightforward: let the qualities that give you your Q-factor do their job by giving them a chance to deliver success over and over," he wrote.

Read the full excerpt at TED here »

• Read more:
• When Michelle Obama told her mother she hated being a lawyer, her mom told her to 'make the money, worry about being happy later'
• A Microsoft exec and marathoner holds business meetings while running — and goes just fast enough that her negotiating partners can't talk
• Here's exactly what to do if you leave a job interview and realize you totally flubbed a question
• The best answer to 'What's your greatest weakness?' in a job interview comes down to two parts

Join the conversation about this story »

NOW WATCH: Barbara Corcoran on Donald Trump: 'He is the best salesman I've ever met in my life'

This is a preview of a research report from Business Insider Intelligence, Business Insider's premium research service. To learn more about Business Insider Intelligence, click here.

What is eSports? History & Rise of Video Game Tournaments

Years ago, eSports was a community of video gamers who would gather at conventions to play Counter Strike, Call of Duty, or League of Legends.

These multiplayer video game competitions would determine League of Legends champions, the greatest shooters in Call of Duty, the cream of the crop of Street Fighter players, the elite Dota 2 competitors, and more.

But today, as the history of eSports continue to unfold, media giants such as ESPN and Turner are broadcasting eSports tournaments and competitions. And in 2014, Amazon acquired Twitch, the live streaming video platform that has been and continues to be the leader in online gaming broadcasts. And YouTube also wanted to jump on the live streaming gaming community with the creation of YouTube Gaming.

eSports Market Growth Booming

To put in perspective how big eSports is becoming, a Google search for "lol" does not produce "laughing out loud" as the top result. Instead, it points to League of Legends, one of the most popular competitive games in existence. The game has spawned a worldwide community called the League of Legends Championship Series, more commonly known as LCS or LOL eSports.

What started as friends gathering in each other's homes to host LAN parties and play into the night has become an official network of pro gaming tournaments and leagues with legitimate teams, some of which are even sponsored and have international reach. Organizations such as Denial, AHQ, and MLG have multiple eSports leagues.

And to really understand the scope of all this, consider that the prize pool for the latest Dota 2 tournament was more than $20 million.

Websites even exist for eSports live scores to let people track the competitions in real time if they are unable to watch. There are even fantasy eSports leagues similar to fantasy football, along with the large and growing scene of eSports betting and gambling.

So it's understandable why traditional media companies would want to capitalize on this growing trend just before it floods into the mainstream. Approximately 300 million people worldwide tune in to eSports today, and that number is growing rapidly. By 2020, that number will be closer to 500 million.

eSports Industry Analysis - The Future of the Competitive Gaming Market

Financial institutions are starting to take notice. Goldman Sachs valued eSports at $500 million in 2016 and expects the market will grow at 22% annually compounded over the next three years into a more than $1 billion opportunity.

And industry statistics are already backing this valuation and demonstrating the potential for massive earnings. To illustrate the market value, market growth, and potential earnings for eSports, consider Swedish media company Modern Times Group's $87 million acquisition of Turtle Entertainment, the holding company for ESL. YouTube has made its biggest eSports investment to date by signing a multiyear broadcasting deal with Faceit to stream the latter's Esports Championship Series. And the NBA will launch its own eSports league in 2018.

Of course, as with any growing phenomenon, the question becomes: How do advertisers capitalize? This is especially tricky for eSports because of its audience demographics, which is young, passionate, male-dominated, and digital-first. They live online and on social media, are avid ad-blockers, and don't watch traditional TV or respond to conventional advertising.

So what will the future of eSports look like? How high can it climb? Could it reach the mainstream popularity of baseball or football? How will advertisers be able to reach an audience that does its best to shield itself from advertising?

Business Insider Intelligence, Business Insider's premium research service, has compiled an unparalleled report on the eSports ecosystem that dissects the growing market for competitive gaming. This comprehensive, industry-defining report contains more than 30 charts and figures that forecast audience growth, average revenue per user, and revenue growth.

Companies and organizations mentioned in the report include: NFL, NBA, English Premier League, La Liga, Bundesliga, NHL, Paris Saint-Germain, Ligue 1, Ligue de Football, Twitch, Amazon, YouTube, Facebook, Twitter, ESPN, Electronic Arts, EA Sports, Valve, Riot Games, Activision Blizzard, ESL, Turtle Entertainment, Dreamhack, Modern Times Group, Turner Broadcasting, TBS Network, Vivendi, Canal Plus, Dailymotion, Disney, BAMTech, Intel, Coca Cola, Red Bull, HTC, Mikonet

Here are some eSports industry facts and statistics from the report:

• eSports is a still nascent industry filled with commercial opportunity.
• There are a variety of revenue streams that companies can tap into.
• The market is presently undervalued and has significant room to grow.
• The dynamism of this market distinguishes it from traditional sports.
• The audience is high-value and global, and its numbers are rising.
• Brands can prosper in eSports by following the appropriate game plan.
• Game publishers approach their Esport ecosystems in different ways.  
• Successful esport games are comprised of the same basic ingredients.
• Digital streaming platforms are spearheading the popularity of eSports.
• Legacy media are investing into eSports, and seeing encouraging results.
• Traditional sports franchises have a clear opportunity to seize in eSports.
• Virtual and augmented reality firms also stand to benefit from eSports.  

In full, the report illuminates the business of eSports from four angles:

• The gaming nucleus of eSports, including an overview of popular esport genres and games; the influence of game publishers, and the spectrum of strategies they adopt toward their respective esport scenes; the role of eSports event producers and the tournaments they operate.
• The eSports audience profile, its size, global reach, and demographic, psychographic, and behavioral attributes; the underlying factors driving its growth; why they are an attractive target for brands and broadcasters; and the significant audience and commercial crossover with traditional sports.
• eSports media broadcasters, including digital avant-garde like Twitch and YouTube, newer digital entrants like Facebook and traditional media outlets like Turner’s TBS Network, ESPN, and Canal Plus; their strategies and successes in this space; and the virtual reality opportunity.
• eSports market economics, with a market sizing, growth forecasts, and regional analyses; an evaluation of the eSports spectacle and its revenue generators, some of which are idiosyncratic to this industry; strategic planning for brand marketers, with case studies; and an exploration of the infinite dynamism and immense potential of the eSports economy.

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	This report and more than 250 other expertly researched reports
	Access to all future reports and daily newsletters
	Forecasts of new and emerging technologies in your industry
	And more!

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Purchase & download the full report from our research store

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This is a preview of a research report from Business Insider Intelligence, Business Insider's premium research service. To learn more about Business Insider Intelligence, click here. Current subscribers can read the report here.

Esports, which is short for electronic sports, refers to competitive video gaming watched by spectators. Esports are not as mainstream as traditional sports in the US, but the number of esports fans globally is still sizable. The worldwide esports audience reached 335 million in 2017, according to Newzoo. 

And there’s still significant room for growth beyond that — we predict that 600 million consumers globally will watch esports in 2023, up 79% from 2017. 

A growing number of brands are acting to capitalize on the growth of esports as the majority of professional gaming fans are millennials and open to brand sponsors. Sixty-two percent of US esports viewers are aged 18-34, according to Activate, while 58% have a positive attitude towards brand involvement in esports, per Nielsen.

Meanwhile, Newzoo anticipates global esports sponsorship revenue to reach $359 million in 2018, up 53% year-over-year. The growing esports audience and brand activity helps explains why high-profile public figures are jumping in to capitalize on the action: In late October, basketball legend Michael Jordan and platinum-selling artist Drake both made investments into separate esports ventures, for example. 

In this report, Business Insider Intelligence will explain the growth of the esports audience and why it presents an attractive advertising opportunity for brands. We'll begin by exploring the key drivers and barriers affecting esports audience growth. Finally, we'll detail the benefits of advertising to esports fans and outline the best practices for implementing a successful esports ad campaign.

The companies mentioned in this report are: Alibaba, Arby's, Audi, Bud Light, Hyundai, Intel, Mastercard, McDonald's, Red Bull, Skillz, and Turner.

Here are some of the key takeaways from the report:

• The number of esports fans globally is anticipated to climb 59% over the next five years, but there’s still significant room for growth.
• This expansion will be driven by many factors, including investment from traditional sports leagues, a higher number of broadcast deals, and the expansion of the mobile-based esports scene.
• The majority of esports fans are millennials, while data suggests that Gen Zers are more receptive to nontraditional sports, like esports, than traditional sports.
• Brands can sponsor esports leagues, competitions, and players as well as advertise on digital platforms like Twitch to reach the eyeballs of esports fans.
• Whatever shape a brand's esports ad campaign eventually takes, displaying an authentic commitment to the gaming world is paramount.

 In full, the report:

• Outlines the drivers and potential barriers to esports audience growth.
• Details the various reasons esports fans are a compelling advertising opportunity for brands.
• Discusses the different ways brands can invest spend to reach the eyeballs of esports fans.
• Explains best practices brands advertising to esports fans should adopt in order to make inroads with the gaming community. 

SEE ALSO: The eSports competitive video gaming market continues to grow revenues & attract investors

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This is a preview of a research report fromBusiness Insider Intelligence, Business Insider's premium research service. To learn more about Business Insider Intelligence,click here. Current subscribers can read the reporthere.

Virtual reality (VR) offers immersive experiences in which users can hear, see, and interact with 360-degree digital environments using head-mounted displays (HMDs) and handheld motion devices. The technology has been historically associated with consumer-facing gaming, but it’s been gaining traction in the enterprise over the past year.

In fact, companies such as Macy’s, Lowe’s, Walmart, and UPS, among others, have all launched new VR programs since 2017. And as more businesses look to tap the technology, this will drive enterprise VR hardware and software revenue to jump 587% to $5.5 billion in 2023, up from an estimated $800 million in 2018, according to Business Insider Intelligence estimates.

This shows that retailers and brands should look into implementing VR as early as possible to better compete with other industry players who’ve started to use the tech, especially in three key areas: sales, employee training, and product development. All of the companies mentioned above are using VR to in at least one of these areas, enabling them to increase product sales, reduce product design costs, or speed up employee training processes, for instance.

In the VR In The Enterprise report, Business Insider Intelligence explores how VR can provide value to retailers and brands in three areas: sales, employee training, and product development.

The report begins by discussing potential pain points the technology addresses for each use case, examining in-depth case studies to illustrate how companies have implemented the technology, and outlining the broader takeaways each use case presents for brands and retailers.

Finally, it looks at some of the potential barriers to further enterprise adoption and how both companies and VR incumbents are actively addressing those obstacles.

The companies mentioned in the report are: Audi, Lowe's, Macy's, McLaren Automotive, Walmart, and UPS, among others.

Here are some key takeaways from the report:

• VR enables consumers in brick-and-mortar stores to make more informed purchases, which could increase sales conversion rates.
• Brands and retailers looking to ramp up their employees quicker should consider bringing VR into their training processes.
• The tech can shorten brands' and retailers' product development life cycles by cutting down on the time associated with building expensive physical prototypes.

In full, the report:

• Identifies key VR vendors and device form factors for businesses to consider.
• Discusses key benefits the tech brings businesses for their sales, training, and product development processes.
• Illustrates those key benefits by discussing real-world case studies from companies and the takeaways from those implementations.

SEE ALSO: When it comes to VR hardware, consumers are balancing price point and experience

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