The race has changed
Why slowing down might be the smartest move you make this year
There’s a strange thing happening right now.
We have more tools, more speed, more answers than ever before. And yet more people are stuck. Frozen. Second-guessing. Drowning in options.
AI can generate ideas in seconds.
Headlines. Layouts. Strategies. Versions. Endless versions.
And somewhere between option 17 and option 42, the work quietly stalls.
Not because we don’t know what to do. Because we’re asking too many terrible questions and the AI is throwing even more back in response.
Welcome to modern work paralysis.
When speed stops helping
AI has turned the volume up on everything. Speed is everywhere. Sense is rarer.
In theory, faster tools should mean faster decisions. In reality, they often do the opposite. They invite us to keep circling, tweaking, refining until we start mistaking movement for progress.
You can sprint forever and still not arrive.
Which is why the old story of the tortoise and the hare needs a rewrite.
The new race: together, not apart
This isn’t about humans versus AI.
It’s about humans with AI.
The hare brings speed. Exploration. Possibility.
The tortoise brings judgement. Taste. Timing.
One without the other is either reckless or painfully slow. Together, they’re formidable.
The brands getting this right aren’t rejecting AI. They’re just refusing to let it drive. They’re using it to explore, stress-test and accelerate, then stepping back in with human instinct to decide what actually matters.
Because you can’t prompt taste.
You can’t automate judgement.
And you can’t outsource meaning.
Why we Printed Brand News
Which brings us to print.
In a world obsessed with digital output, we deliberately did something slower. Heavier. Tactile.
We printed Brand News.
Sure, there’s a little bit of nostalgia in our thinking. But, more because print forces a different kind of thinking. You can’t scroll past it. You can’t A/B test it to death. You have to commit.
Print demands clarity.
It rewards confidence.
It makes you choose.
And right now, choosing is a radical act.
Brand News isn’t fighting the digital world. It’s balancing it. It’s a reminder that not everything needs to be instant to be impactful and that some messages land harder when they’re held, folded, shared over a desk or a cup of tea.
Design in a changing world
Good design has always done this job.
It filters noise.
It brings order to chaos.
It connects logic and emotion in one clear signal.
In an AI-accelerated world, design isn’t about decoration. It’s about direction. Knowing when to push, when to pause, and when enough is enough.
The brands that win next won’t be the loudest or the fastest. They’ll be the ones that combine speed with sense, tools with taste and move forward with intent.
Get your hands on a copy
If all of this resonates, you’ll enjoy Brand News.
It’s our take on craft, clarity and common sense in a world that’s moving very fast indeed. It’s full of thinking we care about - and one very important test of character: how you make your tea.
Send us your real-world address and we'll send you a real-world print copy.
The worst thing that can happen is you find out you’ve been making your brew wrong all along.