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."

Re:Hey, Apple did alright with Jobs

[petsounds]

Who's to say someone who knows nothing about the industry doesn't have some useful input on Customer Experience?

Sorry, I don't even understand what you're inferring from your title and this statement. You're saying Steve Jobs knew nothing about the computer industry? The industry he helped *start* by building mass-market products out of what was formerly a hobbyist-only, DIY field? The guy who helped design circuitboards for Atari arcade games in the 70s? Yeah, you're right, Jobs was totally on the same clueless level as the guy who portrayed him in a shoddy movie.

Obviously Lenovo has never seen The Simpsons

[Anonymous Coward]

or they'd know all about The Homer (http://simpsons.wikia.com/wiki/The_Homer [wikia.com]).

Those who do not pay attention to history are doomed to drive in it.

Why does the OP hate Kucher so much

[Anonymous Coward]

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.

Re:Hey, Apple did alright with Jobs

[CaptainLard]

I'm not gonna suggest Kutcher is a visionary engineer but he is certainly not as stupid as the roles he plays. This is going to sound completely ridiculous.... but look up his speech from the 2013 teen choice awards. When you get over the screaming teeny boppers he is actually using his pulpit to give useful advice. You can hear the mood shift in the crowd. A good quote from the speech: "Opportunity looks a lot like hard work".

Re:Hey, Apple did alright with Jobs

[petsounds]

I don't really think Kutcher is clueless or stupid. I saw him speak on an internet panel event with the creator of tumblr and a couple other guys. He seems fairly intelligent, and has a decent nose for what will work and won't work on the internet. But being heavily involved in hardware product design? I think that's above his pay grade, unless this is the same sort of in-name-only product "design" as Lady Gaga being hired to be the creative director for Polaroid or any of the other celeb "designer" roles for technology companies. What makes this weirder is Lenovo's use of the term "engineer".