The ride-sharing era is just getting started: New mobility services, including car and bike sharing and ride-hailing, as well as on-demand bus pooling, are projected to jump by almost 10% annually until 2030, compared with 5% for the overall mobility sector, according to a report (pdf) by the Oliver Wyman Forum the Institute of Transportation Studies. The shift from traditional mobility is set to bring annual revenue up by c.154% to USD 660 bn in 2030, up from USD 260 bn in 2020. “These new services are expected to grow over the next decade about twice as fast as traditional mobility, with potential benefits for climate, pollution, and the livability of cities,” it said.

Driving the change: Technology, consumer demand, and regulations. Smartphones are making it easier for ride-hailing services and micromobility, while governments are promoting services through the introduction of taxes on carbon dioxide emissions and subsidies for several new operators, with cities introducing restrictions on older vehicles and outright bans on vehicles powered by gasoline and diesel engines. People are all for inexpensive mobility, with over half of the 9k+ respondents surveyed saying that affordability is key in their choice of transportation mode.

But there are some regional disparities: European cities, which are more population-dense than Asian and North American areas covered in the study, are set to see an easier deployment of micro-mobility services. Europe is poised to surpass Asia to become the fastest-growing region for electric mobility in the upcoming years. North America is expected to see smart parking payment services growing the most due to heavy reliance on private vehicles, while Asia might see a further expansion of shared mobility services and micro-mobility due to the traditional use of bikes or mopeds.

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Could mood-boosting drinks be the magic (metaphorical) pill for stress? With a new trend of wellness drinks sweeping consumer markets, the products promise to cheer you up. The taglines sell peace, happiness and a sharper mind by infusing the sparkling non-ethanolic drinks with nootropics (supplements for enhanced cognitive function), adaptogens (non-toxic herbs and mushrooms used for regulating hormones), and CBD (a non-psychoactive compound of cannabis plant that can counteract anxiety and boost serotonin levels).

But do the drinks work? “The problem is that you need a good dose for them to be effective,” Frank Lipman, a pioneer of functional medicine, tells the Financial Times. He also cautions that these therapeutics may have different effects on people depending on genetics and should be consumed intelligently.

It may help, it may not, but there’s money in the wellness drinks game: Market research reports predict the functional beverages market (which includes non-alcoholic drinks and those infused with vitamins, minerals, dietary fibers, probiotics and added fruits) will reach USD 200 bn by 2030.