In just 2 days, TechCrunch Sessions: AI takes over UC Berkeley’s Zellerbach Hall for a one-day summit built for the minds shaping AI. Expect hard questions, bold ideas, and real insight—designed to challenge your assumptions, sharpen your competitive

The relationship between strategists and designers is key to creating effective work that meets clients’ needs. But strategists can feel misunderstood, and even undervalued, in their attempts to set a project’s direction through clear and meaningful thinking. We spoke with a range of in-house and independent strategists about what they wish designers knew about their work. Is the role of strategists changing, like so many design industry roles right now? If so, how? “The lightning speed turnaround” of creative work is creating new pressures, says Gardiner Richardson’s associate director and strategic lead, Matt Forster. Partly this is down to the rise of AI, which is front-of-mind according to independent strategist Manfred Abraham, who has held senior roles at Interbrand and Wolff Olins. The two big shifts, he says, are AI’s potential to bring efficiency to the process – using information gathering and analytics to inform insights – and the dramatic changes that AI will bring to the consumer landscape. “Imagine a world where your personal AI agent makes your life much easier,” he says. “What are consumers going to do with their extra time? Strategists will have to work in close collaboration with creatives to be able to imagine the future for our clients.” Beyond AI, consumers’ withering attention spans, coupled with the proliferating demands on their time, creates a big challenge. “Brands are looking for strategists to show them high interest areas of culture where they have a credible role to play, making it easier for them to reach their audience,” says Matt Boffey, chief strategy officer, UK & Europe, at Design Bridge and Partners. As the world becomes more complex, there is a renewed appetite for clarity, says Polly Clark, a strategy consultant for agencies like Buddy Creative in Cornwall. “I’m seeing that simplicity is even more important than ever,” she says. “Overly complex or convoluted thinking isn’t helpful for anyone, and just slows everything down.” And some strategists have noticed a bit of mission creep. “Increasingly, clients are expecting strategists to contribute at a broader business level not purely brand strategy, design or comms,” says Louise Kennedy, who recently joined Into The Light as head of strategy. What don’t designers understand about your role? “Strategy is not a threat or a limit to designers’ creativity,” says Gardiner Richardson’s Matt Forster. “It’s a springboard to a controlled creative leap.” Into the Light’s Louise Kennedy points out that “designers, on the whole, are visual and often want to get to the ‘creative ask’ very quickly so they can start doing what they do best. “But many of us strategists enjoy taking people on the journey of how we got there by unpacking context and patterns. What designers might see as wordy, we see as fascinating storytelling, but perhaps we tell them more than they need to know, to protect our own egos.” There seems to be a recurring tension between the idea of strategists as left brain thinkers – rigorous, analytical, and logical – against designers as right-brain thinkers – more creative and emotional. But Manfred Abraham points out this is a false – if persistent – way of looking at strategy. “Some designers have missed that there might be a strong right brain there as well!” he says. What don’t clients understand about your role? “Unless clients have experienced it before, they aren’t immediately going to understand the value of strategy,” Gardiner Richardson’s Matt Forster says. “They may have worked with agencies who underpin their creative approaches on little substance. “Once we’ve explained our strategic process, why we follow it and the value it will create for all their creative communications and wider business, it’s a no brainer.” Nor does every client understand the commercial power of great design. “In the brand consulting and growth space specifically, clients often think that strategy is communication strategy,” says Manfred Abraham. “The strategies we develop go much further than that – communications is a part of it.” And adding all this value takes time – more than some clients realise. “I think for clients, it is understanding the need to protect the time and space to do a proper job at this stage and the benefit that will bring,” says Into The Light’s Louise Kennedy. “We might even need to commission new insight work if we feel there are big gaps in knowledge,” she adds. How do you balance multiple client meetings with getting the deep thinking done? This, most strategists agree, is a precarious juggling act. “It sometimes feels like ‘manager time’ has won out over ‘maker time,’” says Design Bridge and Partners’ Matt Boffey. “Days are apportioned into slots, from 30 minutes to an hour, which is perfect for meetings but inadequate for building momentum on substantial projects. The goal, he insists, isn’t to eliminate meetings. “Collaboration remains essential. Rather, it’s to create conditions where both discussion and deep work can thrive. We must be careful that ‘talking’ doesn’t completely squeeze out ‘doing’.” He encourages his team to block time between meetings to mentally stretch, as you might after a gym session. “And I’m a strong advocate for reserving longer periods, either half days or full days, for the ‘deep work’ required when writing a discovery debrief or developing brand strategy.” Although Louise Kennedy blocks out time in this way, she finds it doesn’t always work for her. “Often in those moments I can get brainfreeze as I feel under pressure to produce something smart,” she says. “So I like to read everything on a project then leave it for at least a day so my brain can digest it fully and start working behind the scenes.” External consultants can work the schedule that suits them. On most days, Manfred Abraham gets up at 5.30am because that’s when his brain is at its best. It’s also a time of day free of client meetings, “so it’s great thinking time,” he says. Polly Clark, on the other hand, embraces this juggling act. “It’s always something I’ve needed to do, and actually helps sharpen my thinking. Switching focus means I can come back to things fresher, and stops me getting caught up in the weeds.” What’s the worst thing a designer can say to a strategist? Matt Forster – “That they still don’t get it – which means I haven’t involved them enough, explained it well enough or done a good enough job.” Louise Kennedy – “’I’m confused’ or worse, ‘I’m confused and bored’.” Matt Boffey – ‘“Great, the client’s bought the strategy, now we can really start the work.” “This sounds like strategy has become a hurdle to clear before creativity begins, where it should be the foundation that makes creativity powerful and purposeful. The best work happens when strategists and designers see their contributions as interconnected parts of a unified process, rather than unrelated elements.” Polly Clark – “In the past I’ve heard designers question what strategy brings. That’s been when the strategy hasn’t made sense of the challenge, or is overly convoluted – which is sure to make everyone switch off.” Manfred Abraham – “That great design doesn’t need strategic thinking. It’s simply not true. We are great individually but we are brilliant together.”

Nearly two decades ago, scientists made an alarming discovery in upstate New York: Bats, the world’s only flying mammal, were becoming infected with a new, deadly fungal disease that, in some cases, could wipe out an entire colony in a matter of months. Since then, the disease — later called white-nose syndrome — has spread across much of the country, utterly decimating North American bats that hibernate in caves and killing over 90 percent of three bat species. According to some scientists, WNS has caused “the most precipitous wildlife decline in the past century in North America.” These declines have clear consequences for human populations — for you, even if you don’t like bats or visit caves. Bats eat insect pests, such as moths and beetles. And as they decline, farmers need to spray more pesticides. Scientists have linked the loss of bats in the US to an increase in insecticide use on farmland and, remarkably, to a rise in infant deaths. Insecticide chemicals are known to harm the health of newborns. The only reason we know any of this is because of a somewhat obscure government program in the US Geological Survey (USGS), an agency nested within the Interior Department. That program, known as the Ecosystems Mission Area (EMA), is the biological research division of Interior. Among other functions, it monitors environmental contaminants, the spread of invasive species, and the health of the nation’s wildlife, including bees, birds, and bats.White-nose syndrome, a fungal disease, has caused massive declines in a handful of bat species, including the tricolored bat, shown here in flight. J. Scott Altenbach/Bat Conservation InternationalThe Ecosystems Mission Area, which has around 1,200 employees, produces the premier science revealing how animals and ecosystems that Americans rely on are changing and what we can do to keep them intact — or risk our own health and economy. This program is now at an imminent risk of disappearing.Send us a confidential tipAre you a current or former federal employee with knowledge about the Trump administration’s attacks on wildlife protections? Reach out to Vox environmental correspondent Benji Jones on Signal at benji.90 or at benji.jones@vox.com or at benjijones@protonmail.com.In the White House’s 2026 budget request, the Trump administration asked Congress to slash funding for EMA by about 90 percent, from $293 million in 2025 to $29 million next year. Such cuts are also in line with Project 2025, the Heritage Foundation’s conservative policy roadmap, which calls for the government to “abolish” Interior’s Biological Resources Division, an outdated name for the Ecosystems Mission Area.Meanwhile, the Trump administration is also reportedly trying to fire government employees in the Ecosystems Mission Area, though a federal judge has so far blocked those efforts. Eliminating biological research is not good. In fact, it’s very bad.For a decade now, EMA’s North American Bat Monitoring Program, or NABat, has been gathering and analyzing data on bats and the threats they face. NABat produces research using data from hundreds of partner organizations showing not only how white-nose syndrome is spreading — which scientists are using to develop and deploy vaccines — but also how bats are affected by wind turbines, another known threat. Energy companies can and do use this research to develop safer technologies and avoid delays caused by wildlife regulations, such as the Endangered Species Act. The irony, an Interior Department employee told me, is that NABat makes wildlife management more efficient. It also helps reveal where declines are occurring before they become severe, potentially helping avoid the need to grant certain species federal protection — something the Trump administration would seem to want. The employee, who’s familiar with Interior’s bat-monitoring efforts, spoke on the condition of anonymity for fear of retaliation by the Trump administration. A northern long-eared bat with white-nose syndrome. Steve Taylor/University of IllinoisA dead bat infected with white-nose syndrome under UV light. USGS“If they want to create efficiencies in the government, they should ask us,” another Interior employee told Vox. “The damage that can be done by one administration takes decades to rebuild.”In response to a request for comment, an Interior Department spokesperson told Vox that “USGS remains committed to its congressional mandate as the science arm of the Department of the Interior.” The White House did not respond to a request for comment. In a Senate appropriations hearing last week, Interior Secretary Doug Burgum refused to commit to maintaining funding for EMA.“There’s no question that they don’t know what EMA does,” said a third Interior employee, who has knowledge of the Ecosystems Mission Area.Ultimately, it’s not clear why the administration has targeted Interior’s biological research. EMA does, however, do climate science, such as studying how plants and animals are responding to rising temperatures. That’s apparently a no-go for the Trump administration. It also gathers information that sometimes indicates that certain species need federal protections, which come with regulations (also a no-go for President Donald Trump’s agenda).What’s especially frustrating for environmental advocates is that NABat, now 10 years old, is starting to hit its stride.“We should be celebrating the 10-year anniversary of this very successful program that started from scratch and built this robust, vibrant community of people all collecting data,” said Winifred Frick, the chief scientist at Bat Conservation International, an environmental group. “We have 10 years of momentum, and so to cut it off now sort of wastes all that investment. That feels like a tremendous loss.” Meanwhile, the cost of maintaining the program is less than 1 percent of Interior’s overall budget.The government’s wildlife monitoring programs are “jewels of the country,” said Hollis Woodard, an associate professor of entomology at University of California Riverside who works with USGS on bee monitoring. “These birds and bats perform services for us that are important for our day-to-day lives. Literally everything I value, including food, comes down to keeping an eye on these populations. The idea that we’re just going to wipe them out is just terrifying.”Update, June 2, 12:58 pm ET: This article was originally published on May 29, 2025, and has been updated to include newly public details on the 2026 White House budget request.See More:

Image: Nintendo LifeWho had the return of Survival Kids on their bingo cards for 2025? Let alone as a launch title for a brand new Nintendo console? Amidst a storm of third-party ports and first-party giants, Survival Kids quietly sneaked into the Nintendo Switch 2 Direct back in April 2025. And when we saw the Konami logo, something clicked — oh, it's that Survival Kids. The original Game Boy Color game launched way back in 1999 and was just added to the Game Boy app on Nintendo Switch Online. A GBC sequel, the Lost In Blue trilogy on DS, and a Wii game followed, but the series of survival RPGs has been dormant ever since. Until now.Subscribe to Nintendo Life on YouTube815kWatch on YouTube In a partnership with Unity Games — in what is the developer's first-ever game — Konami is flipping the script with this new entry. And, ahead of its Switch 2 release on 5th June, we had a chance to send Richard Jones, Creative Director at Konami Digital Entertainment, some questions about the surprise return of this cult classic series. Available today Nintendo Life: Konami has an extremely deep and rich back catalogue full of games and series that have lain dormant for years. Why did the team choose to bring back Survival Kids? Richard Jones, Creative Director at Konami Digital Entertainment: The reason we wanted to bring Survival Kids back was because the idea of being shipwrecked on an island is such a universally known story throughout the world and throughout generations. It harks back to stories like the Lost Boys from Peter Pan, Swallows and Amazons, or Treasure Island. There's something incredibly evocative about kids having adventures on remote islands. Thematically, the idea of kids on an island having fun and adventures is exactly what video games are about. The opportunity to update this game and play with some of the new Nintendo Switch 2 features was just very exciting. So, it just seemed like a really interesting theme to explore – where we could have fun and turn it into a game for all of the family. A sensation that goes back to everyone’s childhood, like running around the playground pretending to be pirates or whatever. How things change in over 25 years... — Images: Konami That idea of combining childhood adventure with modern co-operative gameplay felt like the perfect way to make something both nostalgic and new. We saw an opportunity to build a game that was more accessible, multiplayer-focused, and designed for families and friends to enjoy together. I think that’s why we liked the theme and thought there was a really good opportunity to update and reinvent it in a new, interesting way for modern audiences. You're working with Unity in what is the company's first fully developed video game. How did that partnership come about? I met with Unity a few years ago at Gamescom. It came to light that they were putting together a team for in-house development. I happened to be looking for external studios to work on a Konami IP, and it seemed like we were on the same sort of trajectory – same ideas around scope, budget, and timescale. So, we carried on talking and started exploring which IPs we’d be interested in working on. We quickly realised we were creatively aligned, and that led naturally into working together. Once we met the team at Unity, we realised what an experienced group of people they’d put together. Everyone throws around words like 'industry veteran,' but these were actual veterans – proper experts in their field with years and years of experience shipping all kinds of games. We knew immediately we were in safe hands – the developers and artists really knew their stuff, and we knew we could work really well with them. Are any of the original developers involved, or has Konami reached out to them about the new project? We love the original Survival Kids games – I remember working on Survival Kids (Stranded Kids, as it was called in the UK) when I first joined Konami. It’s a fantastic game, but we wanted to completely redesign it from the ground up. We had a different vision for what this game should be based on its premise. We wanted it to be more fun, more accessible – something people could play together. From the start, it was always about surviving together. this is very much a respectful reimagining based on the original’s premise - not a direct continuation. It was always going to be a group of kids on an island, working together to solve puzzles in fun ways. Rather than being a really hardcore, punishing RPG like the original, this is a lighter, more inclusive experience. So yeah, this is very much a respectful reimagining based on the original’s premise - not a direct continuation. The original Game Boy game is a single-player survival venture with resource management. How do these aspects translate into multiplayer? We wanted to use the idea of cooking and gathering food as something you could do communally. That was one of the really early ideas – we wanted people to come together around the cooking pot. We explored different iterations — should it be a campfire, should it be something else — and landed on a cooking pot. Everyone can throw bits of food in, and you get this communal pot of soup. Everyone gets something out of it. Rather than linking hunger or exhaustion to failure, we tied stats to improving your character. So, for example, if there's a really tall climbing net, you can’t just climb it straight away – you need to cook and eat food to build up stamina. That way, it encourages cooperation without punishing players. You're cooking to get stronger, not to avoid death. Image: Konami So it keeps that survival theme - but reframes it around teamwork and progression, not punishment. It’s a more approachable, co-op-friendly way to explore the same ideas. It’s all part of the shift from surviving alone to surviving together. What can returning fans expect in terms of new gameplay elements? The game is completely new, so it's a fresh experience. The original had a fairly hardcore, punishing survival design, but this version is less about failure states and more about creating time and space for people to have fun together – whether that’s in split-screen mode, using GameShare in the same room, or online with GameChat. this version is less about failure states and more about creating time and space for people to have fun together The whole point was friends and families gathering, solving puzzles, overcoming obstacles, and having fun. There are still challenges linked to the environment and items - and you can try speedrunning if you want, but at its heart it’s about playing together and enjoying the experience as a group. We want players to come away with a smile on their face at the end of a session. Was it always your goal to be a Switch 2 launch title? Will players be able to use GameShare between Switch 1 and 2? When we started the pitch and early design work, we didn’t even know about Switch 2. But during pre-production, speculation about the new console started to emerge, and it aligned closely with our schedule. We made some educated guesses – assuming the console would have a similar audience, and continue to target ways to play socially. We took a few leaps of faith early on, designing with those assumptions in mind - and they turned out to be close enough. Once we started designing around that, it all made sense – and we reached out to Nintendo to get dev kits and approval. Once they saw what we were doing, I think they realised it was a natural fit. So yes, it now supports new social features like GameChat but also GameShare with compatibility between Switch 1 and Switch 2. (EN: It's since been revealed that you can play Survival Kids via GameShare with up to two additional Switch 1 and/or Switch 2 consoles) Subscribe to Nintendo Life on YouTube815k Are you taking advantage of Switch 2 features like mouse mode or 120fps? We looked into mouse mode, but it didn’t really add anything meaningful to our gameplay. Instead, we focused on features like GameShare and GameChat, which made much more sense for the co-op experience. We also had to be mindful of performance – we’re supporting split screen and GameShare simultaneously, which puts constraints on frame rate. Those trade-offs were intentional - made to ensure a smooth, stable multiplayer experience across all supported modes. With games like Overcooked and Moving Out gaining popularity, how will Survival Kids stand out in a crowded multiplayer launch lineup? Games like Overcooked were definitely in our minds when we started this – the idea of co-op chaos is something we really liked. We approach it slightly differently – using real-time physics, for example. Things like logs rolling away from you or two players struggling to carry a heavy object. It’s deceptively simple, but ends up being chaotic, funny, and memorable - the kind of co-op experience where things go wrong in the best way. What sets Survival Kids apart is its tone - it’s light-hearted, session-based, and designed for friends and family to pick up and play. And it’s one of the few titles launching with full GameShare and GameChat support right out of the box. Image: Konami This interview has been edited lightly for clarity. Thank you to Richard Jones at Konami for taking the time to speak to us! Survival Kids washes onto the Switch 2's shores on the console's launch day, Thursday 5th June. Let us know if you're looking forward to this. Every game coming to Switch 2 on launch day Related Games See Also Share:0 0 Alana has been with Nintendo Life since 2022, and while RPGs are her first love, Nintendo is a close second. She enjoys nothing more than overthinking battle strategies, characters, and stories. She also wishes she was a Sega air pirate. Hold on there, you need to login to post a comment... Related Articles Pokémon Legends: Z-A's Switch 2 And Switch 1 Prices Have Been Revealed And we're pleasantly surprised Nintendo Updates Switch 2 Backwards Compatibility List Doom Eternal, NBA 2K25, and more to get an update Nintendo Appears To Have Updated Mario Kart World's Switch 2 File Size Some other file sizes have also changed Fantasy Life i Gets Switch 2 Release Date With Paid Upgrade Path For Switch 1 Players And it's coming launch day Title: Survival Kids System: Nintendo Switch 2 Also Available For: GBC Publisher: Konami Developer: Unity Games Genre: Adventure Players: 1 Release Date: Nintendo Switch 2 5th Jun 2025 — $49.99 5th Jun 2025 — £44.99 Series: Survival Kids Official Site: nintendo.com Where to buy: Buy on Amazon

Marc Simonetti is a French concept artist and illustrator. Best known for his work on GRR Martin’s books “A Song of Ice and Fire”, and his Iron Throne, he’s also illustrated some of the most well-known fantasy and SciFi novels, such as The Discworld by Terry Pratchett, The Royal Assassin trilogy by Robin Hobb, Terry Goodkind’s “Sword of truth”, or Dune Saga by Frank Herbert.He’s also worked for many video game companies such as Activision, Ubisoft, Magic The Gathering, EA, Square Enix, and King Isle Entertainment. He has just released an art book, “Coverama,” and is currently working on several projects, including long feature films and concept art for video games, as a freelancer.His most recent work as a concept artist, which includes creating visual development and staging dramatic lighting and designs, is featured in Aladdin, Maleficent 2, Aquaman 2, and the upcoming Transformers Movie, Rise of the Beasts, among many others. He also serves as the Art Director at DNEG, one of the world’s leading visual effects and animation studios.

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Three days from now, the future of AI walks through the doors of TechCrunch Sessions: AI at UC Berkeley’s Zellerbach Hall. This Thursday, June 5, TC Sessions: AI brings together the minds shaping what’s next. Builders, dreamers, and disciplined think

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