Supply chain transformation has become a key strategy enabler in recent years. According to the survey, 40% of retail and CPG leaders say creating a more efficient supply chain is a core part of their business strategy, second only to direct-to consumer/omnichannel (42%).
Another 35% say supply chain resilience in their top three areas to invest most in the next year. When it comes to technology, 21% say digital supply chain is where they plan to increase investment, ranking only behind AI/ML (31%)
Tyson Foods is just one many CPGs and retailers looking to foster a more connected, end-to-end supply chain ecosystem. In a recent conversation with CGT, Adam Clark, Tyson’s VP of IT business shared services, outlined how it is using control tower capabilities for supply chain logistics and inventory management to generate automated, near-real-time insights that are easy to consume, actionable, and used to fuel decision-making.
P&G has also worked to expand its collaborative abilities, launching a supply chain services platform for retailers to increase collaboration, sustainability, and competitiveness
GenAI-Driven Growth
In news that won’t come as much of a surprise, the vast majority (99.6%) of executives say they are experimenting with AI.
Breaking it down to the use case level, more than 2 in 5 leaders (41%) say their company is implementing AI in the consumer experience through employee virtual assistants.
Kraft Heinz is one of the most recent adopters of gen AI for this purpose, detailing at NRF 2024 that it is building an internal generative AI app, KraftGPT, for employees to obtain quick insights into product sales.
CPGs such as Colgate-Palmolive and Johnsonville have also taken strides in developing genAI copilots for their organization.
In addition, almost a third (32%) of respondents say they are implementing the technology for product purchase reminders.
Unilever is just one CPG giant tapping into similar tools, rolling out a frictionless, digital app that allows retailers to easily stock up on ice cream whenever needed, based on out-of-stock detection, location data-optimized delivery, and real-time inventory insights.
Of the companies experimenting with GenAI, 29% say they are doing so to remain on the cutting edge of innovation.
Subaru’s first electric vehicle (EV) got off to a slow sales start in 2023, but the company has improvements in store for 2024 that may make the car attractive to more buyers. These updates include faster charging times and Subaru’s first-ever hands-off driver assistance system.
Best of all, the price stays flat despite the changes.
The Subaru Solterra is a compact all-electric SUV built in partnership with Toyota, sharing most of its parts and engineering with the Toyota bZ4X. Our expert test driver liked its standard all-wheel drive (AWD) and long list of safety features but found its range (a maximum of 228 miles) and slow charging times to be significant limitations.
Subaru hasn’t boosted the range for 2024 but has addressed the charging time problem. Automakers are learning how to pre-condition EV batteries to help them charge faster. Thanks to new conditioning routines, Subaru says, the Solterra can now “replenish its battery from 10% to 80% in as little as 35 minutes” at a suitable DC fast charger. Charging performance improves in below-freezing conditions, the company says.
The Solterra also debuts a more advanced version of Subaru’s EyeSight safety system. This one can “travel in its lane at speeds up to 25 mph with only driver supervision, including stop-and-go traffic,” Subaru says. Drivers can tap the turn signal and rely on the car to change lanes when it’s safe.
Other changes include a new steering wheel with paddles that adjust regenerative braking and standard roof rails that support up to 700 pounds of gear.
2024 Subaru Solterra Pricing:
Subaru also charges a mandatory $1,395 delivery fee on all Solterra models.
The 2024 Kia Soul and 2024 Hyundai Venue are boxy subcompact SUVs with fuel-sipping engines, outstanding warranties, and excellent outward views. Despite having starting prices right around $20,000, each comes standard with smartphone connectivity and active safety systems like lane-keeping assist and a driver attention monitor.
These two small SUVs are great for car shoppers who want to keep their monthly finance or lease payments as low as possible. Their small turning circles mean the Soul and Venue are great for city driving. Because of their square-shaped designs, headroom is abundant in both rows of seats, although one has a sizable advantage in legroom and cargo space.
Let’s explore key highlights of the Soul and Venue.
2024 Kia Soul
The 2024 Soul starts at $20,190 and is available in four trims: LX, S, GT-Line, and EX. With Kia dropping an optional turbocharged engine from the Soul lineup last year, the sole (pun not intended) powertrain consists of a 2.0-liter 4-cylinder that sends 147 horsepower to the front wheels via a continuously variable automatic transmission (CVT).
Acceleration is modest, though perfectly fine for routine driving in city and highway traffic. EPA fuel economy of 30 mpg combined on most trims is average for a small SUV. The EX model scores one better at 31 mpg combined.
Kia Soul Highlights
Warranty coverage: The Soul comes with an excellent 5-year/60,000 bumper-to-bumper warranty, plus a 10-year/100,000-mile powertrain warranty. This alone might give the Soul the win, except for the fact the Hyundai Venue has the exact same level of coverage.
Larger infotainment screen: Upgrading one trim above the base LX model nets a Soul buyer a 10.25-inch touchscreen with navigation, satellite radio, smartphone connectivity, wireless device charging, and multiple USB ports. The Soul S also brings with it handy add-ons like a power-adjustable driver’s seat, automatic climate control, blind-spot alert, and rear cross-traffic alert.
Passenger space, cargo volume: Compared to the Venue, the Kia Soul has about 4 inches more rear legroom and 5 extra cubic feet of cargo space behind its split-folding second row.
Sporty (looking) GT-Line: It’s not any quicker than the regular-brew Soul, but the GT-Line looks racier thanks to its 18-inch alloy wheels, trim-specific front and rear bumpers, flat-bottom steering wheel, and center-exit exhaust.
The Hyundai Venue starts at $19,800, excluding destination fee. Trims consist of the SE, SEL, and Limited. Similar to the Kia Soul, the Venue is strictly front-wheel drive. There is no option to add all-wheel drive. Getting the Venue down the road is a 121-hp 1.6-liter 4-cylinder paired to a CVT. This powertrain is tuned for maximum fuel economy, not 0-60 mph bragging rights.
Hyundai Venue Highlights
Wireless smartphone connectivity: A Venue buyer gets wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto on the Venue SE and SEL trims. This convenient feature is not to be found on the Kia Soul.
Low ownership costs: Opting for the Hyundai Venue won’t just save you money at the dealership; it will save you cash in the long run. Among subcompact SUVs, the Venue takes the top slot in our Lowest 5-Year Cost to Own rankings.
Hyundai SmartSense: Paying less for a new car or SUV doesn’t mean sacrificing safety. Every Venue comes with a Hyundai SmartSense, a bundle of driver aids consisting of automatic emergency braking, rear occupant alert, lane-keep assist, automatic high beams, and more.
Limited amount of cash needed for the Limited trim: Venue buyers who throw caution to the wind and choose the range-topping Limited will only be spending $23,050, or about $4 grand more than a no-option base model. The Limited brings along LED headlights and taillights, navigation, heated front seats, and wireless device charging.
These two boxy subcompact SUVs have identical warranties, and they won’t cost a bundle when you start adding options. Both of these small SUVs are targeted at car shoppers who want a lot of value but also like to have a bit of fun.
Conclusion
These subcompact SUVs are very evenly matched, though the Soul has key advantages when you compare them side by side. It has a more powerful engine, a roomier rear seat, and a larger cargo area. The Soul also has near-identical fuel economy figures compared to the Venue, despite the fact it has 26 extra horsepower.
We like the Venue’s blend of budget-mindedness and versatility. You can get a couple of adults in the second row, though you might want to keep the journey short to maintain friendships. Seeing as how it’s 6 inches shorter than the Soul and has a tighter turning circle, the Venue is that little bit easier to navigate through the urban jungle.
As the Kia Soul offers slightly more vehicle for your money, we give it the edge in this comparison.
Atlas Ocean Voyages recently unveiled a new collaboration with ORCA, a pioneering marine conservation charity dedicated to the study and protection of whales, dolphins, and porpoises, along with their ocean habitats globally. ORCA’s mission is to give everyone who cares about whales and dolphins an active role in safeguarding their future so that we can once again see oceans alive with whales and dolphins.
Atlas Ocean Voyages Orca Partnership
Onboard the World Navigator, Atlas Ocean Voyages introduces dedicated Ocean Conservationists to Antarctica on 2023/2024 expeditions. These specialists will focus on raising awareness, collecting vital scientific data, and actively contributing to safeguarding whales and dolphins. The initiative aims to involve Atlas Ocean Voyages guests in citizen science projects, allowing them to play an integral role in conservation efforts.
The partnership will empower Atlas Ocean Voyages guests to become Citizen Scientists, participating in hands-on workshops and utilizing ORCA’s OceanWatchers app. By recording environmental and sighting information, guests will contribute valuable data to understand the behavior and movements of these magnificent marine mammals.
Over the last three decades, ORCA’s survey data has been instrumental in enhancing protection measures for whales and dolphins in crucial ocean hotspots. “This collaboration represents a significant stride in fostering a profound connection between travelers and marine conservation, benefiting the world’s oceans and their unique inhabitants,” stated James A. Rodriguez, the line’s president and CEO. “Together with ORCA, we look forward to fostering a deeper connection between our travelers and the incredible marine life they will encounter, ensuring a meaningful and enriching experience for all.”
Become An ORCA Citizen Scientist
Join us in partnership with ORCA as a Citizen Scientist aboard our 2023/2024 Antarctica expeditions on World Navigator. Engage in hands-on workshops and contribute to conservation and marine life protection efforts. Participants will use the OceanWatchers app, learn to photograph marine life, and enjoy enriching lectures and workshops with knowledgeable Ocean Conservationists.
Atlas Ocean Voyages is redefining luxury adventure cruising by delivering awe-inspiring experiences in the world’s most sought-after and remote destinations. Combining an intimate and luxurious environment with genuine hospitality, Atlas Ocean Voyages ensures that each journey is a once-in-a-lifetime expedition.
Get To Know ORCA
Founded in 2001, ORCA is a respected and growing marine conservation charity dedicated to the long-term study and protection of whales, dolphins and porpoises and their habitats in oceans worldwide. ORCA’s dedicated Ocean Conservationists enable so many people every day, to experience and appreciate the diverse wildlife found in the world’s oceans. There’s no better way to inspire someone about the amazing world of whales and dolphins than to show them these wonderful animals in the wild.
For information and reservations, call a travel advisor or 1.844.44.ATLAS or visit www.AtlasOceanVoyages.com.
During the pandemic, many of us shifted priorities, but homeowners Taylor Collins and Katie Forrest decided to shift lifestyles. In 2020 the couple and their young family was living in their native Austin, Texas, during the week and spending weekends working their bison, pig, and poultry ranch in Fredericksburg, an hour and a half drive away. Though their custom home in the city was admittedly not as urban as most—its location on a lot with preserved Barton Creek Greenbelt views gave the impression of living in nature—it was nothing like the wide open spaces Hill Country offers. That year, they decided to move to the ranch full-time and engaged Austin-based design firm Baldridge Architects to make it a suitable place for family living that embraces its connection to the land.
“Our goal for the project was a modern take on the historic settler-built houses in this part of Texas,” explains Collins. “Any residence here from the 1800s had a breezeway and was oriented to work with the ecosystem’s prevailing winds and sun patterns throughout the day. For our house, it also made a lot of sense as a functional architecture approach.” At the beginning of the pandemic, the Fredericksburg property was a mix of existing historic structures including barns, feed silos, and a 1,934-square-foot dogtrot-style house with bedroom and dining wings separated by a breezeway. Collins and Forrest had the small home built as a weekend retreat, but to live and run a business there full-time, it needed reimagining and expanding. Baldridge Architects renovated and designed a compound of porch-wrapped, gable-roofed volumes around it, creating a nearly 4,400-square-foot home where outdoor living is possible most days of the year.
“Separation is what really makes this work,” says principal architect Burton Baldridge, who had previously designed the family’s Austin home with colleague Brian Bedrosian. “The in-between spaces are key.” In the spirit of the central Texan dogtrot, the center of the house is a void—a carport and walkway to access the detached sleeping and living wings. A gabled roof covers the entirety of the home’s new building, visually uniting the bedrooms, kitchen, offices, dining and living room, home gym, and breezeway. Most of these spaces have outdoor covered porches that are built continuously like a wraparound terrace, while the carport has a corrugated polycarbonate section of roof to protect it from wet weather while allowing light to penetrate the home’s interiors. Because the project included both a renovation and new construction, Baldridge and his team chose materials carefully and aimed to make the old and new indistinguishable. The exterior is clad in plain sawn Douglas Fir and Corten steel siding with Clear Cedar vertical battens. The porch overhangs are braced by steel beams and Douglas Fir and steel columns, left untreated to naturally patina in the elements. The same steel is used for ceiling trusses, to particularly handsome effect in the monumental dining room.
The interiors are largely fabricated of white oak, including the many built-ins the architects designed to integrate storage, from a wet bar to a custom office-cum-podcast studio to the ebonized kitchen cabinetry. Where they are not, the architects chose hand-wrought finishes, like gypsum plaster walls and terra-cotta zellige tiles. Because so much of the house has exterior doors and windows to its porches and countryside views beyond, the spaces are warm and sunlit—a pretty backdrop to the family’s collection of what Collins calls “nature treasures,” including arrowheads discovered on-site by his daughter, Scout. Most of the furnishings were curated by Forrest, who prioritized natural materials and colors in the contemporary pieces to balance out rustic antiques like the large dining table set with BluDot leather chairs.
Beyond the collected decor, the real focus of the house is the ranch surrounding. Not only is the family constantly aware of their environment, but they are confronted by it daily as they traverse their pavilion-like abode.
“I don’t know of too many people who would want to live like this,” admits Baldridge. “But I’m really grateful that they did because I think the plan is extraordinary.” “The house’s design is an invitation for more of our life to be lived outdoors,” Collins adds. For a former city-slicking family looking to embrace their rancher life, it’s a perfectly unusual fit.
Enabled by artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML), an emerging class of smart video applications now goes beyond just surveillance. With the adoption of new technologies like smart video analytics (which can be deployed across cameras, cloud, and hybrid environments), video surveillance storage solutions must also evolve. Western Digital’s smart video storage solutions serve a widening array of use cases, from smarter cities and factories, to more secure homes thanks to smart video doorbells.
After nearly three years of cruising the skies over Mars, NASA’s Ingenuity helicopter has been grounded for good due to rotor damage. The end of the historic mission, which constituted the first time that an autonomous aircraft had ever taken flight on another world, was announced by the space agency on Thursday. Arriving on the Red Planet aboard the Perseverance rover in February of 2021, Ingenuity far exceeded NASA’s expectations as it was only meant to fly five times as a proverbial proof of concept for possible future projects. However, it held up remarkably well and ultimately performed a staggering 72 flights since its initial takeoff in April of 2021.
Our Connected Home product series offer smart, high-endurance storage solutions for write/read intensive connected and smart home applications. Engineered and tested to meet the service provider’s demanding reliability, endurance and quality requirements, our embedded flash drive, SD and microSD card, USB, SSD and HDD are helping our customers to achieve cost-effective DVR implementations and reduce TCO for system/network architecture.
I know what you’re thinking; “the Northern Lights in New Mexico?! Impossible!”
That’s what I thought too- until I saw that even in Texas you can catch a glimpse of the Northern Lights. While the Aurora Borealis is typically seen in the northern hemisphere- hence, the “northern lights”, many in both Texas and New Mexico have gotten a chance to see the phenomenon! This is what it looked like in Texas:
Just as it did in Texas, New Mexico saw the same red-hued Aurora Borealis last year- and this spring, it looks like those in New Mexico can prepare to be dazzled once again!
According to astronomers, the intensity and visibility of the auroras are influenced by solar activity, with periods of increased solar activity, such as solar storms, leading to more spectacular displays.
Back in April, Melanie Templet with the Rio Rancho Astronomical Society told KOB that the lights are real and could happen again soon. And this year, towards the end of March, it looks like New Mexico will be blessed with the lights hitting parts of New Mexico like Taos and Rio Rancho.
Just as New Mexico will get to see the Northern Lights, it’s possible that us here in Texas will also get to see them. KOB says that if you want to track the auroras, you can do so here to see where your best chance of seeing them in New Mexico are.
So, it looks like if you’ve always wanted to see the Northern Lights, but don’t want to travel to, say, the arctic circle, New Mexico is your next best choice- it definitely beats going through freezing temperatures! And, luckily, New Mexico has many great choices for some camping!
Whether you’re new to NAS, have a bit of experience, or consider yourself an old pro, the right NAS system can help you bring home the benefits of networked storage.
Beginners can stream the content they love from a single connected device to computers, TVs, and home theaters. Intermediate users can manage creative workflows and business tasks on laptops, tablets, and smartphones. And experts can configure multi-bay, RAID-ready NAS enclosures for heavy-duty, multi-user workloads.
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