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72 DESIGN007 MAGAZINE I APRIL 2023 cost. One might think that this is the result of consumer demands; however, Steve Jobs once made a great observation: "Some people say, 'Give the customers what they want.' But that's not my approach. Our job is to figure out what they're going to want before they do. I think Henry Ford once said, 'If I'd asked customers what they wanted, they would have told me, a faster horse.' People don't know what they want until you show it to them. at's why I never rely on market research. Our task is to read things that are not yet on the page." It is difficult to argue with Jobs' observation because it has turned out to be largely accu- rate. Customers are not the product vision- aries; that is not their role, but they do know what they like and want when they see it. e desire for change is normally sparked by some- thing outside of us rather than something from within—though it is likely that each of has said to ourselves at some point: "I wish somebody would invent a..." In recent years, it is our current dissatisfac- tions that most oen initiate a move to change. It is sparked more with the product designer or design team than by the consumer. ere is an almost biological aspect to the growth and evolution of electronic products. ere is also, of course, a rational force driving the develop- ment and introduction of every new electronic product but at a certain point, electronic prod- ucts seem to take on a life of their own. Moreover, in their development and growth (i.e., change), there is a Darwinian-like qual- ity to the process. Electronic products that adapt quickest and most readily to the winds of change are able to thrive; those that don't are pushed back to wither and die. Adaptation is key to survival and the synergistic (or symbi- otic, if you wish) linking of adaptive technolo- gies that offer obvious and beneficial potential and a prospective path to securing such ben- efit. It is not difficult to assume that evolu- tion is oen preceded and influenced by some moment of inspiration. The Most Adaptive of All Unquestionably, flexible circuits are among the most adaptive and adaptable of all elec- tronic interconnection technologies and per- haps the most inspirational as well. eir adaptability has not been overlooked by keen product developers, from assemblers to pack- agers. Over the last couple of decades, the range of applications for flexible circuits has grown at an impressive rate as the technology has been adapted to a host of new interconnec- tion opportunities. e historical roles of flex circuits, such as wire harness replacement, 3D interconnection enabler, and dynamic interconnection scheme to connect parts of an electronic assembly designed to move relative to one another. ey continue to be exploited, but branching into new areas has accelerated with the creation of consortiums such as NextFlex and its rebrand- ing of flexible circuits as "flexible electronics," "flex hybrid electronics," "stretchable circuits," and more importantly, creating an environ- ment where suppliers of materials, processes, and equipment can come to explore, proto- type, and demonstrate their dreams for the future. Changes continue to roll forth with enabling technologies that support those dreams. is includes e-textiles to the materials mix, recently supported through IPC standards IPC-8921, IPC-8951, and IPC-8972. ese cover the material requirements, design, and testing requirements needed to support the emerging Customers are not the product visionaries; that is not their role, but they do know what they like and want when they see it.