Saturday Trendspotting: AI videos and solo travel

Welcome back, Superhuman

The office has left the building. Across the world, remote workers are connecting with their colleagues from beachfront cafés, jungle retreats, and European town squares, as millions ditch traditional work structures for solo traveling and digital nomadism. As more people embrace this lifestyle, solo travel and nomad work are emerging as some of the biggest trends this decade.

P.S. The Saturday Trendspotting Special is designed to help you find the next big idea, trend, or opportunity that you can leverage to get ahead at work or start your own thing. Regular AI and Tech updates will resume as usual on Monday.

AI & CONTENT CREATION

Lights, Camera, Action: AI-powered video tools are your personal Hollywood production crew

The Trend: Until recently, becoming the next Tarantino or Oprah required millions of dollars and dozens of skilled employees. But with smartphones, the internet, and video editing apps, a decent smartphone now packs as much filmmaking firepower as an entire 1990s Hollywood studio. And AI is now accelerating the democratization of video production — the gap between amateur and professional video is collapsing into just a few clicks.

And I would know. I’ve been dabbling with AI-powered video tools to create videos these past few weeks. Using just HeyGen for AI video generation, ElevenLabs for AI audio generation, and Descript for video editing, I whipped up this short that got over 10,000 views on YouTube organically. The face and the voice in the video look and sound like me, but they’re fully AI-generated.

The Opportunity: More businesses are beginning to cash in on the rising demand for video content across platforms like YouTube, TikTok, and Instagram. With 91% of brands using video as a key marketing tool, and 92% reporting a satisfactory ROI for video marketing on socials, there is a significant opportunity for aspiring entrepreneurs and content creators.

If you’re looking to tap into this space for your own project or side hustle, here are a few promising places you can explore:

• AI-Enhanced Virtual Production Studios: Filmmakers and content creators are using AI to create professional-looking graphics, special effects, and animations. Most recently, The Brutalist, which generated significant Oscar buzz, leveraged generative AI in post-production. Apps like Captions AI, Veed IO, and OpusClip make it ridiculously easy to whip up social-ready clips in minutes

• Video Restoration Services: With technology evolving every few months, old video formats are becoming relics of the past, but AI can bring them back to life — sharper, clearer, and better than ever. Whether it’s film studios reviving classics, content creators upscaling vintage footage, or families preserving precious memories, AI tools like Topaz Video AI make it easy to enhance and restore degraded videos.

• AI-Powered Video Localization: With creators and studios vying for global eyeballs, there is a need to tailor videos to every geographical location. You can use tools like Flawless AI to offer video localization services, which dubs dialogues into different languages while perfectly syncing lip movements to match.

• AI-Based Video Personalization: AI is turning one-size-fits-all content into one-to-one experiences, making marketing and communication way more effective. More brands are now opting for custom video messages for marketing, customer onboarding, or even tailored content delivery — all without hiring a production crew. AI tools like Synthesia can help you create and scale avatars, generating personalized and engaging videos for brands and clients at scale.

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TRAVEL AND WORK

Table for one: The loneliest number is turning into travel's biggest trend in 2025

The Trend: Traveling solo used to be code for 'couldn't find anyone to go with'. But fast forward to 2025, and Instagram feeds are flooded with people posting solo selfies from remote locations around the world. Solo travel has evolved beyond being an edgy, niche activity for teenagers on a gap year to a much more popular travel choice, with more than 69% of global travelers now opting for solo adventures, according to American Express. There's even a name for it: 'MeMooning' — a term for solo vacations that focus on self-care and independence. It’s especially popular among millennials, Gen Z, and women travelers.

As remote work becomes the new normal in a growing number of companies across the US, many employees are packing their laptops and jetting off to exotic locations around the world. Almost 11% of the US workforce now identify as 'digital nomads' — professionals who work remotely while traveling and exploring the world. Most of this traveling is done solo, and with another 70M remote workers planning to join in on the nomad life, places like Bali, Mexico, Spain, and Canada are ramping up digital nomad visa approvals and providing an attractive blend of affordable rentals, high-speed internet, and good infrastructure. 

The Opportunity: We couldn’t find reliable data on the size of the solo travel and nomad work markets so we did some very rough napkin math to size the opportunity:

• In 2022, some 25% of Americans (83M) were thinking of taking a solo trip

• If only 10% follow through, that’s still 8M+ solo travelers in a single year

• Most solo travelers spend $1-2k on average per week. Assuming that all solo travelers take one-week trips, that’s still a $16.6B market.

This is a very rough estimate and you should take it with a grain of salt. But even if you add or subtract a few billion, it’s clear that this is a huge market. Some estimates put the global market size around $500B.

Here are a few ideas that could potentially be promising starting points for folks looking to build products and services in the solo travel and nomad workspace.

• Online communities and resources for solo travelers: Traveling alone doesn’t mean being antisocial. In fact, solo travel can often get overwhelming, confusing, and downright scary. A large number of communities and travel resources are popping up online, where independent travelers can connect, share experiences, and find valuable information. Building these communities and resources can be a lucrative side or main hustle — Nomads makes $47k/month while RemoteOK pulls in $26k/month in revenue.

• Apps targeted to solo travelers and nomad remote workers: Travel is a great opportunity to learn about new cultures, places, and people. Building apps that offer unique features, such as real-time updates, integration with local events, or specialized itineraries focusing on niche interests like culinary tours or adventure activities, can be very lucrative. AI integration is always a plus, with apps like Trip Planner AI and GuideGeek being able to analyze user interests and constraints to generate tailored travel plans.

• Personalized Solo Tours and Experiences: There’s a growing demand for specialized, small-group tours designed for individuals who want the benefits of guided travel without the hassle of traditional group dynamics. With many solo travelers joining tours part-time for a sense of community, curating personalized tours that balance independence with connection could resonate with travelers.

• Safety and Wellness Services: With women accounting for a large portion of solo travel and nomad work, safety is one of the biggest concerns in the market. You could develop services such as real-time safety apps, local emergency contacts, or virtual check-in systems to help solo travelers and digital nomads take the necessary precautions and travel with peace of mind.

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WHAT’S NEXT

The big events prediction markets are forecasting 

Here are the top predictions we found this week:

• 29% of the market is betting on Oracle to win the bid to acquire TikTok.

• 59% of predictors are expecting Apple to introduce the foldable iPhone before 2027.

• Almost 1 in 10 predictors think that DeepSeek R1 will be banned in the US before April.

• 72% of the market expects OpenAI to reveal ChatGPT-5 this year.

• 59% of predictors are expecting the reenactment of the AI safety bill this year.

In case you’re not familiar with prediction markets, think of them like a stock market for guessing future events. People buy and sell shares (basically bets) based on what they think will happen. While not 100% accurate (no one can tell the future for certain), they offer a glimpse into what the market thinks will unfold in the coming weeks and months.

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Until next time,

Zain and the Superhuman AI team