Juma and Ayinde discuss whether AI ads are a good idea and why retro technology and physical media are resurging. They analyze a Facebook ad for Blue Wash laundry detergent created by Flambe Media that uses an AI-generated subversion of Trinidad and Tobago stick fighting: instead of fighting, one man buries his face in the other’s shirt to smell it, implying the detergent ends the fight because it smells so good. They note visible AI tells (e.g., a fighter holding two sticks) but argue the ad works because the emotions and story are clear, and they discuss how composites and multiple prompt versions may be used to refine results. The conversation broadens to how new tools initially become creative crutches (e.g., early drone shots, Photoshop emboss effects) until audiences tire of them, after which strategic, story-led use becomes what matters. They argue AI adoption will be inevitable but current output is flooded with low-effort content; successful work will require human creativity and strategy, tailored context (such as local cultural cues), and business discipline rather than paying for multiple subscriptions without returns. Ayinde references viewing data about AI company valuation and a usage pattern where tools like Sora spike at launch and then flatten as novelty wears off, leaving a smaller group of skilled users. The second half explores “retro as the new modern,” prompted by digitizing clients’ MiniDV and VHS wedding tapes, a 13-year-old’s preference for 70s–80s music and CDs, CES-launched smartphone keyboard cases resembling BlackBerry devices, and the rise of feature phones. They discuss tactile, human-centered design (including a button-heavy Ferrari interior by Jony Ive and Marc Newson) and the desire for ownership and agency amid subscription-based services like Spotify and Photoshop. Examples include vinyl’s comeback, a service that turns Spotify playlists into physical mixtapes with a QR code back to the playlist, and personal collections such as a Lionel Richie CD memory, a Mad Men box set, and DVDs/music kept for emotional connection. They conclude that relationships and emotions drive effective communication, and that tools, including AI only work well when guided by skilled practitioners who can translate ideas from mind to medium. 00:00 Kicking Off: What’s on the Table Today? 00:21 AI Ads: The Debate + A Facebook Find 01:38 Breaking Down the Blue Wash Stick-Fighting Ad 03:07 Spotting the AI Tells (and Why the Emotion Still Works) 07:32 From Drones to Photoshop: New Tools, Same Creative Problem 11:44 So… AI Ads: Yes or No? Strategy vs. Low-Effort Flood 14:18 AI Hype Cycles, Valuations, and Why Strategy Never Dies 18:52 New Topic: Is Retro the New Modern? (Digitizing Old Tapes) 20:22 Kids Going Retro: CDs, ’70s/’80s Music, and the Comeback 21:04 Clicks Mobile Communicator & the return of the BlackBerry-style keyboard 22:20 Retro tech is back: dumb phones, tactile design, and why touchscreens fatigue us 24:15 Is retro the new modern? Cycles of sameness and the vinyl comeback 27:06 From Spotify to mixtapes: why people crave physical media and ownership 30:20 Agency vs subscriptions: the psychology of owning (and the Matrix analogy) 32:49 What retro media do we still own? CDs, DVDs, box sets, and comfort rewatches 37:27 Wrap-up: relationships, authenticity, and AI as a tool for real creativity 40:54 Final goodbye & end of the show
