The 9 big design trends of 2019

December 19, 2018 Good morning! Amazon’s original Echo speaker helped jump-start a new era for smart homes. And the company has done a stellar job of turning that inflection point into an ecosystem. [As Jared Newman reports](, more than 28,000 devices now talk to Amazon’s Alexa voice assistant, a far larger quantity of gadgets than support any other platform. And Amazon is working aggressively to keep that lead with new technologies that help third-party developers hop aboard the Alexa bandwagon. Just how Amazon intends to turn a profit on all this remains unclear—if the company has any ideas, it isn’t sharing them—but an awful lot of devices and the households that contain them are now locked into its vision. —[Harry McCracken]( [Amazon’s three-pronged plan for taking over your home]( [Amazon’s three-pronged plan for taking over your home]( With 28,000 Alexa-friendly devices—and a healthy lead over other players—Amazon’s smart home strategy is entering a new phase. [The 9 big design trends of 2019]( [The 9 big design trends of 2019]( Design leaders at Microsoft, Google, Ideo, Pentagram, Gensler, and more weigh in. [12 maps that tell the extraordinary story of 2018]( [12 maps that tell the extraordinary story of 2018]( These maps helped visualize all the happiness, heartbreak, terror, and turmoil that 2018 has wrought. [Why so many brands on Instagram look the same]( [Why so many brands on Instagram look the same]( A single design studio is responsible for branding a slew of mega-successful startups like Casper and Allbirds. Here’s how it took over the world–or at least your feed. [How Goldfish crackers took over the world]( [How Goldfish crackers took over the world]( The snacks we munched on after soccer practice have become a worldwide phenomenon, with huge sales growth and a ridiculous variety of flavors. And they might just salvage the fortunes of their flailing parent company. [Fitter, healthier, happier? How wellness drinks took over Instagram]( [Fitter, healthier, happier? How wellness drinks took over Instagram]( Companies like LaCroix, Dirty Lemon, and Recess have boomed on the platform. Their sales pitch is less about a flavor and more about something stronger: a feeling. [Turns out that morning people really are more productive than night owls]( [Turns out that morning people really are more productive than night owls]( You might think that you are a night owl, but new research says that less than 1% of the population are actually genetically programmed to work best later in the day. [Facebook doesn’t care about you]( [Facebook doesn’t care about you]( New revelations about how the company mishandled user data show just how much it doesn’t care for its users. [Stanford professor: ‘The workplace is killing people and nobody cares’]( [Stanford professor: ‘The workplace is killing people and nobody cares’]( From the disappearance of good health insurance to the psychological effects of long hours, the modern workplace is taking its toll on all of us. Share This Newsletter Did someone forward you this email? Subscribe [here!]( Like this email? Consider signing up for our other newsletters [here](. Too many emails? Update your subscription preferences [here](. No longer want to receive this newsletter? Unsubscribe [here](. Mansueto Ventures, 7 World Trade Center, New York, NY 10007-2195