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Lenovo Want Ashton Kutcher As More Than Just a Pretty Face
Nerval's Lobster writes "It's not clear whether managers at Lenovo were too starstruck to say 'no,' or whether the once-respected PC maker is having so much trouble hiring technical help it genuinely intends to allow lowbrow-sitcom staple Ashton Kutcher serve as both celebrity spokesman and full-on product engineer. Lenovo announced that it had hired Kutcher as a product engineer who will 'work with the company's engineering teams around the world to develop and market the Yoga line of tablets by providing input and decision-making into design, specifications, software and usage scenarios.' Kutcher – former Calvin Klein underwear model, star of such quality entertainment as That '70s Show, Punk'd, current star of Two-and-a-Half Men and, most recently, portrayer of Steve Jobs in the biopic Jobs – has a successful track record of investing in tech companies, Lenovo's announcement said as partial explanation for the arrangement. Kutcher also studied biomechanical engineering as an undergraduate at the University of Iowa, which USA Today and other news outlets used to help bolster the idea that the star of Dude, Where's My Car? could function effectively as part of an engineering product-development team. Kutcher did list his planned major at the university as biomechanical engineering when he enrolled in 1996, but he dropped out during the 1997-98 school year. He did found A-Grade Investments, which has been involved in or funded tech companies including Spotify, Path, Airbnb and Uber, according to Lenovo."
Who's to say someone who knows nothing about the industry doesn't have some useful input on Customer Experience?
Oh, sorry. Were we to also look down our be-spectacled noses at lowbrow actors?
A feeling of having made the same mistake before: Deja Foobar
Someone isn't a fan.. I detect a little bit of bias.
Hedy Lamarr (/hdi/; 9 November 1914 – 19 January 2000)[1] was an American actress and inventor, celebrated for her great beauty, who was a contract star of MGM's "Golden Age."[2] Mathematically talented, she and composer George Antheil invented an early technique for spread spectrum communications and frequency hopping, necessary for wireless communication from the pre-computer age to the present day.[3][4]
Did they confuse him with the real Steve Jobs after watching the Jobs movie?
Heh?
If programs would be read like poetry, most programmers would be Vogons.
Instead of "Dude, you got a Dell!" it's "Dude, you got punked with a Lenovo!"
A computer to appeal to its older users, heh heh.
Laughter is the Spackle of the Soul.
Ashton, please don't forget the unlock the bootlader of Lenovo Android Products.
http://martin.iturbide.com/2013/07/why-you-have-to-stay-away-of-locked.html
I'm sure Ashton gets it, because Lenovo's QA team told me they can't do it.
What short selling means and how it works.
I'm not a fan of his movies nor do I subscribe to his fanboyism of Apple, but Ashton Kutcher follows technology more than any movie/tv star that I know of. I'm definitely curious to see how he pans out in this position.
the Homer Simpson car!
It'll be awesome! :D
already.
I can see it now. Expect helpful input like "This thing is sweet!" or "That screen rocks!" Good luck, Lenovo engineers.
Jealousy is a curse.
And did you exchange a walk on part in the war for a lead role in a cage? - Pink Floyd.
When was Lenovo ever respected?
or they'd know all about The Homer (http://simpsons.wikia.com/wiki/The_Homer).
Those who do not pay attention to history are doomed to drive in it.
Lots of people "study" engineering in college, then drop out after 2-3 semesters. From the article it looks like he made it 4-5? I recall some other musician being hired years back (Will I. Am?) as a PR stunt. Investing in tech companies doesn't imply tech knowledge either.
I swear to God...I swear to God! That is NOT how you treat your human!
star of such quality entertainment as That '70s Show
that is actually a quality series, as far as sitcoms go. dude, where's my car was pretty darn funny as well.
It's been a while since comments on a single article dripped with so much sarcasm. Keep laying it on. Thicker. LOL
While I think it's valid to question what he would bring to the table (and he may bring great ideas, or he may bring no ideas. There's not a clear track record on this.), I'm curious why the author needed to mock the man when posting this summary. That doesn't feel particularly relevant or useful to aid in the conversation.
soldiering.
The Kruger Dunning explains most post on
The fact that he tends to play clumsy, dumb, humorous characters does not make him one. It's a valuable skill for him (playing goof-balls), not a reflection of who he is.
Seriously - you should make a few tens of millions of dollars before criticizing someone who already has.
By all accounts, he's a very bright guy.
What all PC makers need now is someone who understands the market. I suspect they've made a good choice here - someone to advocate for realistic customers.
Despite all the comments that point to them confusing him with Jobs (hehe), I think this is a pretty solid move.
Clearly, they plan to do some subconcious marketing stuff by linking people's impressions of him with their own brand.
And who do they want the most? Apple users! And would Apple users have watched the Jobs movie? Most definitely! So, even if obviously Ashton is just some cool actor and not Jobs, they will see him and associate Apple with Lenovo.
Sounds like somebody can't stand the idea that there might be people in this world who have brains *and* good looks. Maybe he's like a male version of Hedy Lamarr
For all intensive purposes, "whom" is no longer a word. That begs the question, "who cares"?
I didn't know that Ashton Kutcher was a tech investor. Too bad we don't know how large or how deeply he was involved with the companies listed. It would be useful information to gauge this new endeavor. I wonder though, does Lenovo need technical assistance, or an artist? Technical specs are fine (and the Yoga tablet doesn't sound like a power house) but an ugly interface is the kiss of death. People spend far too much for Apple products. Why? They work well (enough) and they like the interface (Apple haters excluded). I use a Nexus phone because I don't like vendor loaded crap, but I will acknowledge the Note as one pretty phone.
Only the dead have seen the end of War. - Plato
Giving celebrities fake jobs at companies that they do nothing for except sell product as a PR stunt is all the rage right now.
Will.I.Am is a "Creative Director" at Intel
Alicia Keys is a "Creative Director" at Blackberry
Justin Timberlake is a "Creative Curator" for Anheuser-Busch
Lady Gaga is a "Creative Director" for Polaroid
The only "news" in this story is that Slashdot editors don't keep up to speed on social norms.
Goodbye industrial revolution, hello Attention economy? This is something economist have been talking about for years, its started with hollywood movies where the the currency of attention was often more important than the actually money, its been happening with with CEO being paid ridiculous wages because they have the ability to draw attention to a company. Musicians release records to get people to come to there live gigs where they make their money. It does seem like this is the way things are going.
Kelso...
Let's get one thing crystal clear.
You can have 2 of 3.
1. Butt loads of $
2. Date women that besides your wealth and fame are way way out of your league...
3. Pretend to be an "engineer"
Anything else is impossible, while still maintaining any karmic balance in the universe...
Please choose 1+3... I think I'm Mila's type....
Fluff
if he has half a brain. Bought a Lenovo Twist last year, the thing's a disaster. The screen randomly dims itself, then brightens again, or not, depending on its mood. It's a laptop/tablet, but the orientation sensor is wonky, so sometimes it insists on displaying upside down, you have to futz with it for 10 minutes to get it right. Firmware updates haven't helped, and these problems are fairly common from what I see on das tubes. And the trackpad is a joke compared to my Macbook.
The thing feels like it was rushed out with no QC. I'm not sure hiring Ashton Kutcher will help, but it couldn't hoit.
Never let a lack of data get in the way of a good rant.
it more like those 'celebrity-branded' clothing, watches, shoes...etc. where they help 'design' the stuff. Seriously, 2nd year drop out eng. students will at most fit a hardware verification job.
Apparently they think he literally channelled Jobs in his portrayal, and that he has acquired the Wisdom of Job(s) to lead a company to greatness.
Boy are they ever going to be disappointed when they realize he's just a schmuck actor playing a role with none of the wisdom or intelligence of the character being portrayed.
I do not fail; I succeed at finding out what does not work.
I'm not a fan of his movies nor do I subscribe to his fanboyism of Apple, but Ashton Kutcher follows technology more than any movie/tv star that I know of. I'm definitely curious to see how he pans out in this position.
I'm guessing he buys a beach house from the deceased estate of a guy who's crazy wife stalks and kills him and then takes on the dead guy's room-mate as a free boarder while letting his lesbian niece use his bedroom to seduce other women.
So his looks and the fact that he makes a living in the entertainment industry preclude him from working in the tech industry?
Lenovo is still the best PC maker in my mind. Thinkpads all the way!
Hey now, let's not badmouth That 70s Show. Ok, it's not Masterpiece Theater, but *lowbrow*? Come on.
He's an actor who traditionally plays the "idiot." That doesn't mean he is an idiot. Maybe he is, but painting him as one just because he plays one on TV is pretty low.
I recall some other musician being hired years back (Will I. Am?) as a PR stunt.
It was Intel that hired him. He's the "Director of Creative Innovation" http://www.intel.com/content/www/us/en/sponsors-of-tomorrow/will-i-am-innovator-video.html
They recently sent him on some tour to promote Ultrabooks, where he made 1 song per city he stopped in using his Ultrabook
At least Lenovo is trying something different. Why not at least listen to the views of a very successful young person? We all know the current engineering teams at Lenovo (and pretty much every other PC brand) have been completely failing to design a good laptop lately.
When IBM owned Thinkpad, they were the definitive best professional laptop. Some people used to say that Mac made the best laptop - but it was usually countered with, "Then you've never used a Thinkpad." Now, Mac has definitively the best laptops. It is not even close. Thinkpad is merely a formerly-premium brand attached to a mediocre laptop.
The 'death of the PC industry' is being caused by the lack of innovation in the PC industry. Maybe Ashton will point out something so mind-numbingly obvious to those with their heads in the asses and Lenovo will start making a Thinkpad once again. Maybe he will say something like, "Why are we selling 1920*1080 screens when Mac is selling 2800*1800 screens?"
--- We need more Ron Paul!
There are plenty of internet articles that say he is very intelligent, with high IQ
once again, including OP, a slew of slashdotters who think they know everything based on assumptions, and then make comments to exhibit their arrogance. People here claim to care about science and tech, but routinely don't have even the slightest interest in verifying their claims like a rational being would.
i would think most of you people judging him on his stupid comedy would jump at the chance to be the star of a famous movie like dude wheres my car.
Kutcher plays Jobs in a movie, then works for the renamed IBM PC company. IBM sold their PC division to Chinese Lenevo.
He predicted PC's were the future while everyone was still soldering.
This entire thread consists of people spewing about how someone they don't like could never be successful. A few voices point out that there is a background in Kucher's life that might indicate hidden talents.
But No, a comedian and television star could never do as well as those of us whom no one has heard of or knows the posters insist. He's not a "good fit with the culture."
maybe that is why the "culture" is doing such a piss poor job of producing laptops that people actually want or are willing to buy.
Since I doubt that the management of Levono are the complete idiots that some posters here have suggested I would propose that we wait and see how Kutcher does.
I doubt he could do much worse than Levono has been doing lately.
Regards, Chris