Daily – Innovations

A focus cookie, a sleep cookie, a protein cookie — and a famous last name

Liesbeth den Toom — Fri, 29 May 2026 04:15:03 GMT

One cookie carries three grams of creatine and 250 milligrams of citicoline and is sold for focus; another is spiked with L-theanine and pitched as a wind-down before bed; a third packs ten grams of protein into peanut butter. So far, so familiar — the functional food and beverage category is thriving. But Fields Good, an Austin startup that launched this week with USD 1.8 million in pre-seed funding led by Female Founders Fund, is leaning into flavor first and pharmacology second.

Founders Ashley Fields (daughter of Mrs. Fields founder Debbi Fields) and Kim Anderson spent two years developing the recipes with one rule: the functional ingredients had to disappear into the cookie. For years, the category led with function and treated flavor as a compromise; Fields Good leads with the cookie and lets the benefits ride along. The wager is that shoppers have tired of food that feels like a chore. The Mrs. Fields name does quiet work here, too, handing a TikTok-era brand the kind of recognition most startups spend years building. This week's launch was paired with a small-batch pre-order.

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Functional food has become the default growth story in snacking, and the math explains the rush: the US wellness economy reached USD 2.1 trillion, with per capita spending hitting USD 6,293 in 2024, according to the Global Wellness Institute. Consumers now routinely stack protein, sleep, focus and GLP-1-friendly choices into ordinary days. But they also want products that provide a moment of joy. Newcomers like Fields Good are responding by moving away from biohacking toward comforting rituals. Think self-care meets little treat economics. Is your brand still making people choose between pleasure and self-optimization?

The soy brand trolling the trolls who turned “soy boy” into an insult

Liesbeth den Toom — Thu, 28 May 2026 05:26:11 GMT

Why Sojasun turned "homme-soja" mockery on its head, recruiting its loudest critics as ambassadors and making their rejection the point.

A Dutch trade body fills exam gyms with plants, betting greenery calms nerves

Liesbeth den Toom — Wed, 27 May 2026 12:08:42 GMT

Can plants calm stressed teenagers? The Plants & Flowers Foundation Holland staged indoor gardens in exam gyms to find out, and to reframe what plants are for.

ThredUp’s pop-up reframes secondhand as a smart fix for wedding guests’ drained wallets

Liesbeth den Toom — Tue, 26 May 2026 04:32:24 GMT

87% of wedding guests buy outfits they only wear once. ThredUp's new pop-up and dress code decoder offer a cheaper, faster way to dress for the occasion.

Germany’s largest rooftop farm sits above a new REWE supermarket in Berlin

Liesbeth den Toom — Mon, 25 May 2026 14:23:16 GMT

A new Berlin supermarket pairs a rooftop greenhouse with a timber building built to be taken apart and reused, taking a holistic approach to sustainability in retail.

Spotify will reserve concert tickets for an artist’s biggest fans

Liesbeth den Toom — Fri, 22 May 2026 05:57:38 GMT

Reserved by Spotify saves two tickets for superfans. No scalpers, no extra fees. But the partner behind it is the one fans love to hate.

WWF hijacks the recess bell to reconnect French kids with nature

Liesbeth den Toom — Thu, 21 May 2026 05:00:00 GMT

By replacing school bells in 6,300 French primary schools with the calls of threatened species, WWF turns a daily ritual into a wildlife lesson.

A chatbot beat 911 dispatchers at coaching CPR — and its creators want everyone to use it

Liesbeth den Toom — Wed, 20 May 2026 13:36:47 GMT

When someone collapses, the outcome usually depends on instructions provided by an emergency dispatcher. ChatCPR outperformed human guidance on every measure.

Pedal in, get oat: Oatly reworks the drive-thru for a city that runs on bikes

Liesbeth den Toom — Tue, 19 May 2026 05:56:39 GMT

Oatly's Amsterdam bike-thru turns the American drive-thru into a piece of novelty for cyclists, no car (or behavior change) required.

Uninterested in health data, Pulse is a smart ring built for presence

Liesbeth den Toom — Mon, 18 May 2026 08:02:17 GMT

The Pulse ring skips biometric sensors. Instead of measuring sleep or stress, it vibrates a few times an hour to prompt brief mindful pauses.