| | | | | | | Presented By Vivint | | | | Axios What's Next | | By Alex Fitzpatrick, Joann Muller and Jennifer A. Kingson · Dec 13, 2022 | | Brands have figured out yet another place to put ads, Alex reports today, as they compete for our eyeballs and dollars. - Join Axios' Hope King, Sara Fischer and Eleanor Hawkins virtually at 5:30 p.m. ET tomorrow to explore the value of communication in today's world. Register here.
Today's newsletter is 977 words ... 3½ minutes. | | | | | | 1 big thing: The rise of "skyvertising" |  | | | A drone display near New York City advertising Candy Crush. Photo: Gary Hershorn/Getty Images | | | | Look, up in the sky! It's a bird, it's a plane, it's... an ad? - The constant battle for our attention — and money — is going airborne, Alex Fitzpatrick reports.
Why it matters: Advertisements are showing up everywhere as brands get increasingly desperate for sales amid a rocky economic stretch, as Axios' Sara Fischer and Hope King recently reported. - The sky above our heads is no exception.
Driving the news: Increasingly sophisticated drone show technology — which enables massive swarms of tiny lit-up drones to fly in sync with one another, displaying well-known logos, characters and so on — is pushing "skyvertising" to new heights. - The company behind popular mobile game Candy Crush recently launched 500 drones from New Jersey, just across the Hudson River from downtown Manhattan, to celebrate the game's 10th anniversary.
- The drones took the shape of hearts, candy, and other game and brand imagery.
- The NBA also deployed drone advertising over the Hudson to promote its 2022 Draft this past summer.
Companies that run such shows promote them as the future of aerial advertising — the 21st century equivalent of having a banner ad towed slowly across the sky. - While some people enjoy the displays, others are dismayed to have yet another annoying ad thrust upon them.
- "I think it's outrageous to be spoiling our city's skyline for private profit," New York state Sen. Brad Hoylman told Gothamist, a local news site, regarding the Candy Crush show. "It's offensive to New Yorkers, to our local laws, to public safety and to wildlife."
Background: Using aircraft to get consumers' attention is a time-honored tradition — the country's oldest banner plane outfit, Paramount Air Service based in southern New Jersey, has been operating since 1945. The big picture: Drone displays are just one emerging technology messing with our nighttime views. - Astronomers and amateur stargazers alike frequently bemoan SpaceX's Starlink internet satellites, which can pollute otherwise pristine night skies.
- The counter-argument: Starlink and similar tech help provide internet access in far-flung places that are hard to connect by other means.
Go deeper: Some communities are embracing drone shows as a climate-friendly fireworks alternative, as Jennifer A. Kingson has reported. - Miami Beach is hosting a holiday drone display this year, Axios' Martin Vassolo reports.
What's next: Forget the sky just over your head — researchers are hard at work figuring out how to develop satellite-based "space billboards." - Similar past plans, including a "moonvertising" scheme, have largely fizzled due to cost, complexity and similar hurdles.
- But as humanity looks to colonize the Moon and beyond, you better believe we'll take our billboards along with us — eventually, anyway.
Share this story. |     | | | | | | 2. Siemens plans Texas EV charging plant |  | | | Illustration: Annelise Capossela/Axios | | | | Siemens eMobility is establishing a manufacturing hub in Carrollton, Texas, to meet the country's rapidly growing demand for electric vehicle (EV) chargers, Axios' Joann Muller is first to report. Why it matters: EVs are a tiny fraction of today's U.S. auto market, accounting for 6% of new car sales and less than 2% of all vehicles in operation. But ownership is forecast to grow significantly over the next decade, meaning the country will need millions of new chargers. Details: Siemens eMobility's goal is to produce more than 1 million EV chargers for the U.S. market over the next three years. - The Carrollton facility — about 20 miles north of Dallas — will make "Level 2" AC chargers for offices, hospitals, airports, campuses and parking garages.
- It will be the company's second U.S. charging equipment manufacturing hub. Siemens also has a plant in Wendell, North Carolina, that makes fast chargers for electric bus and truck fleets.
The big picture: The German industrial giant has a 100-year history in electric infrastructure. - It produces low- and medium-voltage devices that connect buildings and other facilities to the grid.
- It's now moving into electric vehicle charging to meet demand spurred by U.S. government policies that strongly favor made-in-the-USA equipment.
Share this story. | | | | | | | | 3. Fusion "breakthrough" |  | | | The National Ignition Facility at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory. Photo: Damien Jemison/Lawrence Livermore | | | | U.S. energy officials are expected to announce a major step forward in nuclear fusion energy today, Axios' Ben Geman reports. Why it matters: Decades of effort have gone into fusion, which promises almost limitless carbon-free power — without the dangerous waste from traditional fission reactors. Driving the news: Scientists have produced "a fusion reaction that creates a net energy gain — a major milestone in the decades-long, multibillion-dollar quest to develop a technology that provides unlimited, cheap, clean power," the Washington Post reports. - The breakthrough came in the past two weeks at the National Ignition Facility of the federal Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory in California, per the Financial Times.
Reality check: Progress in showing conceptual viability would be just one stop on the long scientific, technical and financial road to commercializing this long-elusive holy grail. Share this story. | | | | | | | | A message from Vivint | | Feel safe in your home | | |  | | | | Vivint home security systems go beyond just detecting crime. They stop it from happening by deterring threats with light and sound features. Our special offer includes up to 6 months of free security monitoring with code GUARDIANS. Find peace of mind with Vivint. | | | | | | 4. 📸 Splashdown! |  | | | Photo: Mario Tama/Getty Images | | | | NASA's Orion space capsule splashed down Sunday after a successful 26-day trip around the Moon and back. - This first mission, dubbed Artemis I, was uncrewed. A similar, crewed orbit-the-Moon-and-return flight is set for 2024.
- NASA's first crewed lunar landing since the Apollo days, the Artemis III mission, is expected in 2025 — but key components, like a lander, are still in the works.
| | | | | | | | 5. One fun thing: Pickleball's pro plans |  | | | Illustration: Annelise Capossela/Axios | | | | Major League Pickleball (MLP) has finalized its format and schedule for the upcoming year, Axios' Kendall Baker reports, as it gears up to capitalize on pickleball mania. - MLP is going from 12 to 24 teams with six events, while ushering in soccer-style promotion and relegation.
State of play: Pickleball became a massive hit during the COVID-19 pandemic, growing from 3.4 million U.S. players in 2019 to 4.8 million in 2021. - What began as a safe, outdoor activity has evolved into a booming industry, with an average of three new pickleball facilities opening each day.
The big picture: Some question whether pickleball can succeed as a spectator sport. - MLP, which merged with the Professional Pickleball Association's VIBE League last month, is out to prove that it can.
Read the rest. | | | | | | | | A message from Vivint | | Beyond detecting crime | | |  | | | | Vivint security systems deter crime before it happens, so you can feel safe and secure in your home. Here's how: Our home security systems are designed to scare off threats using features like light and sound. Get up to 6 months of free security monitoring with code GUARDIANS. | | | | Big thanks to What's Next copy editor Amy Stern. Was this email forwarded to you? Get your daily dose of What's Next by signing up here for our free newsletter. |  | | Are you a fan of this email format? Your essential communications — to staff, clients and other stakeholders — can have the same style. Axios HQ, a powerful platform, will help you do it. | | | | | | Axios thanks our partners for supporting our newsletters. If you're interested in advertising, learn more here.
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