Futurama Got It Right! Ads In Your Dreams Are Coming!

Fourty scientists who work in sleep research signed an open letter in which they urge governments to regulate targeted dream incubation.

Image by Stefan Keller from Pixabay

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While the idea of dreams containing ads may seem ridiculous to most it’s not as much sci-fi as you might think. Large corporations such as Coors or Burger Kings are already doing first experiments and trying to influence what their potential consumers dream of.

Targeted-Dream-Incubation (TDI) advertisement isn’t just a parlor trick but a slippery slope with real and dangerous consequences. Influencing dreams of humans to sell products – not even talking about addictive drugs or ideologies, needs to be deeply examined because of many important ethical questions. Our dreams shouldn’t just become another play-field for corporate advertisements.

To give you a real example of this. Molson Coors performed an experiment shortly before the Super Bowl. According to the press release, the participants of this experiment watched a dream-inducing video before sleep that included images and sounds of waterfalls, mountains, and of course, Coors products. Apart from participating in the experiment itself, they also could get a 12-pack of Coors for free if they sent a link to the video to a friend.

In the end, dream engineering still requires you actively participate. But that doesn’t mean it will need it forever. And unless we take steps to prevent it, someday, companies could make you dream of their products.

Sources:

• https://www.sciencemag.org/news/2021/06/are-advertisers-coming-your-dreams
• https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210204005955/en/

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