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In the 2018 comedy Tag, a group of childhood friends maintains an offbeat line of connection over 30 years of friendship: the same game of tag, played through weddings, boardrooms, and hospital visits. Its absurd and touching all at once. But the line that echoes throughout the film is where the real wisdom lies: We dont stop playing because we grow old; we grow old because we stop playing. That quote isnt just a nostalgic sentiment. Its a reframing of adulthood itself. What if the erosion of joy, curiosity, and spontaneity is what ages us, not the passage of time, but the loss of lightness? In my work with leaders and teams, I have observed that when we abandon play, we not only lose levity but also access to resilience, creativity, and connection. And in todays workplace, thats a cost we cant afford. Why Play Still Matters Play isnt a childhood indulgence; its a neurological need. When we play, we downshift stress, rewire our thinking, and reopen channels of collaboration. Play functions on two powerful levels: as a circuit-breaker and a spark plug. As a circuit-breaker, it interrupts the relentless mental loops of stress, perfectionism, and overanalysis, disrupting burnout before it calcifies. As a spark plug, it reenergizes our minds, jolts us out of habitual thinking, and ignites new ideas we didnt know we had. Whether its a burst of laughter, a sideways brainstorming prompt, or a spontaneous creative detour, play restores our capacity to be present, inventive, and connected. Research confirms it. Studies from Texas A&M and the University of Massachusetts Boston show that even micro-moments of play increase productivity, creativity, and psychological safety. Play lowers cortisol levels, boosts problem-solving skills, and fosters trust across teams. In essence, play isnt the opposite of work: its a critical ingredient for doing it well. From Micro-Moments to Macro Shifts At a biotech leadership retreat I recently facilitated, we started with a playful micro-recess, including paper airplane races, a five-minute dance party, and a round of ridiculous icebreaker questions. What could have felt like a boring corporate event quickly turned into something more real. People opened up, walls came down, and over the course of the day, that energy translated into richer strategy sessions, unexpected insights, and measurable engagement boosts, which increased by 30% in post-event surveys. Thats not magicits intentional play at work. Play doesnt waste time; it reshapes how time is experienced. Rather than a rigid framework, think of these as three open invitations to shift how you show up that create the conditions for play to thrive. 1. Permission to be unpolished In many leadership environments, perfectionism masquerades as professionalism. But perfection is the enemy of possibility. Play creates psychological permission to show up unpolished. It softens the need to perform and invites people to explore. Try starting a meeting not with status updates, but with curiosity: Whats something weird or wonderful that inspired you this week? When the mask comes off, the mind opens up. 2. Reframe the agenda Play doesnt have to mean ping-pong tables or off-site scavenger hunts. Sometimes its as simple as reframing the purpose of a meeting from decision-making to idea-surfacing. Swap PowerPoints for paper prototyping. Add 90 seconds of creative reflection before moving into action steps. Break rhythm to unlock insight. 3. Honor the absurd Not all brilliance is born in seriousness. Some of the most profound breakthroughs come from absurd beginnings. The most innovative teams I have worked with know how to follow a thread of ridiculousness to the edge of real insight. Celebrate the offbeat idea, the joke that hides a truth, the metaphor that doesnt quite make senseuntil it does. Designing Cultures of Play, Not Just Moments Its easy to treat play as a momentary tactica break between real work. But the most forward-thinking organizations embed it into their culture. They dont just tolerate it; they value it. That could mean incorporating play into onboarding, transforming retrospectives into storytelling circles, or designing workspaces that encourage movement and curiosity. These practices dont dilute performance; they actually fuel it. Were entering an era that prizes agility over efficiency, imagination over repetition, and emotional intelligence over sheer expertise. In that world, play becomes a strategic skill. It strengthens culture, enhances cognition, and helps prevent burnout. Most importantly, it reminds us that even in high-stakes environments, levity is not a luxury; its how we stay human. So if your next meeting feels dry, try something unexpected. Pause, play, and let a little laughter in. Because in a world that races to outcomes, those who stay playful often lead with more presence, more creativity, and, yes, more impact.
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E-Commerce
Tesla launched its Robotaxi service Monday in Austin, Texas, with a limited pilot featuring a small fleet of self-driving cars. Tesla has encountered challenges getting its Robotaxi service up and running, and now it’s facing a new hurdle of its own making: the Robotaxi logo. The self-driving taxis feature a “Robotaxi” logo written out in a graffiti style on the car’s front doors. The scrawled typeface is reminiscent of the branding for the video game Cyberpunk, and hearkens directly back to the Tesla Cybertruck logo (a puzzling choice considering how poorly the Cybertruck has been received). With its sharp edges and careening forward slant, the logo doesn’t exactly scream safe. And yet, that’s exactly what a new autonomous vehicle brand should be doing. AVs require a higher level of consumer trust than your average product or service, since you’re putting your life in its hands. A logo that looks spray-painted doesn’t communicate that, nor does the pilot program’s flat $4.20 ride fee. The logo looks sloppy and casual, not reassuring, Eben Sorkin, art director of the type foundry Darden Studio, tells Fast Company, calling it aesthetically anachronistic and out of sync with current cultural vibes. Would you board a flight with an airline logo that looks like this? he asks. [Photo: Tim Goessman/Bloomberg/Getty Images] The Robotaxi rollout represents a chance for the beleaguered electric vehicle company to change the narrative after CEO Elon Musk’s unpopular foray into government. And indeed, after the Robotaxi announcement, Tesla’s stock rose. From a branding perspective, though, the Robotaxi wordmark isn’t suggestive of a company moving away from the Cybertruck aesthetic that has now become associated with Musk’s DOGE efforts. Rather than using a visual identity that communicates safety, trust, or reliability, the logo is a sign that the company sees the graffiti-style cyberpunk aesthetic of its Cybertruck as the model for branding future products and services. A good logo always tries to convey the brand promise, says type designer and Hoefler & Co. founder Jonathan Hoefler. And this one definitely foreshadows the tragic collisions ahead.
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E-Commerce
It doesn’t matter how you spell ithomophones can get you sued for trademark infringement. The startup iyO has filed suit for trademark infringement against former Apple designer Jony Ive’s company iowhich spells its name differently but sounds the same. OpenAI acquired Ive’s io last month for $6.5 billion with the goal of creating a new family of AI devices; iyO, which launched as an independent company from Google’s moonshot initiative X in 2021, makes an AI device of its own. The company describes its iyO One, an AI wearable worn like an earbud that’s available only as a preorder, as “the world’s first audio computer.” It reportedly pitched to Sam Altman’s investment fund and Ive’s design studio in 2021 and 2022, respectively. Following a ruling from U.S. District Judge Trina Thompson, OpenAI erased any mention of its deal with Ive over io on its website Sunday, including a promotional video. The company told The Guardian it took action because of iyO’s legal complaint, which will be addressed in a hearing come October. This page is temporarily down due to a court order following a trademark complaint from iyO about our use of the name io. We dont agree with the complaint and are reviewing our options.https://t.co/suwMRPTHqB— OpenAI Newsroom (@OpenAINewsroom) June 22, 2025 OpenAI has reason to take iyO’s claims seriously. Trademark infringement has been found in plenty of cases in which defendants mark is spelled differently from plaintiffs but pronounced the same, even when the two terms have different meanings, Alexandra Roberts, a professor of law and media at Northeastern University tells Fast Company. The key question in infringement cases is likelihood of confusion. The singer Pink filed suit last year over Pharrell Williams’s proposed P.Inc trademark, for example, and infringement has been found in cases like Seycos and Seiko, both watchmakers, and X-Seed and XCEED, which both made agricultural seed. Courts assessing the likelihood of confusion between two marks consider a number of factors, including the similarity of the marks, relatedness of the goods and services, strength of the plaintiff’s mark, and sophistication of the relevant consumers, Roberts says. Similarity weighs toward a likelihood of confusion, and lack of similarity weighs against it. The I/O naming convention, which stands for Input/Output, is popular with AI companies since their products generate AI output from user input. For iyO, blocking OpenAI from using the io name is about protecting its brand against the combined power of the maker of ChatGPT and a designer who’s worked with Apple on products like the iPhone and iPad. The outcome of the legal dispute could play a role in naming whatever the AI giant and design legend end up creating together.
Category:
E-Commerce
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