Noahpinion
At least five interesting things for the middle of your week (#29)
AI might help the middle class, Americans can afford food, narratives about science, Europe's...
8 months ago
AI might help the middle class, Americans can afford food, narratives about science, Europe's defense industry, and Native American YIMBYism
Noahpinion
Try patriotism
A repost, with some updates.
7 months ago
A repost, with some updates.
cdixon.org RSS Feed
Why seed investors don’t like convertible notes
A popular option in seed round financing is a convertible note instead of setting a valuation in an...
over a year ago
A popular option in seed round financing is a convertible note instead of setting a valuation in an equity financing. A convertible note is…
Rest of World -...
Influencers are getting young Nigerians hooked on online gambling
While sports betting is legal in Nigeria, experts say the government should have more oversight on...
11 months ago
While sports betting is legal in Nigeria, experts say the government should have more oversight on the influencer culture.
Noahpinion
Western leftists have lost the plot
Gleeful support for the massacre of innocents is simply inhumane.
a year ago
Gleeful support for the massacre of innocents is simply inhumane.
Paul Graham: Essays
How to Make Pittsburgh a Startup Hub
over a year ago
cdixon.org RSS Feed
Trusting platforms
In response to my post yesterday about how an internet of people has enabled a new wave of web-based...
over a year ago
In response to my post yesterday about how an internet of people has enabled a new wave of web-based marketplaces, Nick Mango commented…
Paul Graham: Essays
Chapter 2 of Ansi Common Lisp
a year ago
Internal Tech Emails
Inside Apple's Marcom meeting
To come back and suggest that Apple needs to think dramatically different about how we are running...
9 months ago
To come back and suggest that Apple needs to think dramatically different about how we are running our company is a shocking response.
Rest of World -...
The church of Roblox: How young Filipino Catholics are building more inclusive spaces
Though not officially sanctioned, the role-playing clergy encourage young people to go deeper into...
4 months ago
Though not officially sanctioned, the role-playing clergy encourage young people to go deeper into their faith while providing a safe space for queer Catholics.
Paul Graham: Essays
Chapter 2 of Ansi Common Lisp
a year ago
Steve Blank
A Simple Map for Innovation at Scale
An edited version of this article previously appeared in the Boston Consulting Group’s strategy...
over a year ago
An edited version of this article previously appeared in the Boston Consulting Group’s strategy think tank website. I spent last week at a global Fortune 50 company offsite watching them grapple with disruption. This 100+-year-old company has seven major product divisions, each...
Business Brainstorms
💡 Business Brainstorms 💡- My favorite ideas of the week
Hey, this is Jakob Greenfeld, author of the Business Brainstorms newsletter - every week I write...
a year ago
Hey, this is Jakob Greenfeld, author of the Business Brainstorms newsletter - every week I write this email to share the most interesting trends, frameworks, opportunities, and ideas with you. Let's dive in! #1 💡 It's cool that smartphones have become all-in-one devices. But at...
cdixon.org RSS Feed
Some ideas for native bitcoin apps
Fred Wilson calls applications built using Bitcoin that couldn't have existed prior to Bitcoin...
over a year ago
Fred Wilson calls applications built using Bitcoin that couldn't have existed prior to Bitcoin "native Bitcoin apps". Most of the…
Working Theorys
Full-Stack Something | Theory No. 17
I've realized that one thing I really enjoy about writing is that I can do it all myself. Usually...
a year ago
I've realized that one thing I really enjoy about writing is that I can do it all myself. Usually people tell you this isn't a good mentality to have — the desire to be self-sufficient. But I disagree. Whether it's writing, building products, etc. — I think it's good to be...
Paul Graham: Essays
The Hardest Lessons for Startups to Learn
over a year ago
Rest of World -...
The entrepreneur trying to make thrifting truly eco-friendly with AI
Nofal Khan is the co-founder and CEO of Swag Kicks, one of Pakistan’s largest online thrift...
5 months ago
Nofal Khan is the co-founder and CEO of Swag Kicks, one of Pakistan’s largest online thrift platforms.
SatPost by Trung...
The Greatest Meme Template Ever
Why does Juan Joya Borja (aka El Risitas aka “Spanish Laughing Guy”) always put a smile on our...
8 months ago
Why does Juan Joya Borja (aka El Risitas aka “Spanish Laughing Guy”) always put a smile on our faces.
cdixon.org RSS Feed
The next big thing will start out looking like a toy
One of the amazing things about the internet economy is how different the list of top internet...
over a year ago
One of the amazing things about the internet economy is how different the list of top internet properties today looks from the list ten…
Rest of World -...
Parents turn to AI tablets after China’s tutor crackdown
Tech companies iFlytek, Baidu, and BKK are cashing in on parents who fear their child will fall...
8 months ago
Tech companies iFlytek, Baidu, and BKK are cashing in on parents who fear their child will fall behind their peers.
Rest of World -...
India’s electric cab companies can’t find enough cars to put on the road
There are only a handful of electric taxi manufacturers in India today, slowing the country’s EV...
a week ago
There are only a handful of electric taxi manufacturers in India today, slowing the country’s EV revolution.
Rest of World -...
China’s AI boom depends on an army of exploited student interns
As part of China’s digital underclass, vocational school students work as data annotators – for low...
a year ago
As part of China’s digital underclass, vocational school students work as data annotators – for low pay and little future prospects.
Noahpinion
Japan is not a xenophobic country
It has a substantial amount of immigration, as well as pro-immigration policies and attitudes.
5 months ago
It has a substantial amount of immigration, as well as pro-immigration policies and attitudes.
Data Boutique
How To Improve QA With Data Boutique For In-House Web Scraping
Independent data help you get to 99% reliability
a year ago
Independent data help you get to 99% reliability
Dustin Curtis
Bill Gates is Angry
Steven Levy interviewed Bill Gates for Wired, and it is quite an illuminating conversation. In past...
over a year ago
Steven Levy interviewed Bill Gates for Wired, and it is quite an illuminating conversation. In past public appearances, Gates – like most experts – has attempted to walk the line between antagonizing the Trump administration and promulgating real science. But now he appears to be...
Noahpinion
Why China's economy ran off the rails
A short, simplistic, but fairly reasonable story.
a year ago
A short, simplistic, but fairly reasonable story.
Tech + Economics +...
Another 3 men raise another few million
From Relevance AI (emphasis mine)
We're thrilled to announce our USD$10M raise by leading...
10 months ago
From Relevance AI (emphasis mine)
We're thrilled to announce our USD$10M raise by leading investors from
around the world including King River Capital, Peak XV Partners,
Insight Partners and Galileo Ventures supporting Relevance’s mission to
enable any...
Roberto Vitillo's...
Resiliency patterns of distributed systems
I have released a new chapter of Understanding Distributed Systems : Resiliency Patterns. The...
over a year ago
I have released a new chapter of Understanding Distributed Systems : Resiliency Patterns. The chapter is all about failures and their…
Tech + Economics +...
Why are we so obsessed with the multiverse?
Why are we so drawn to the idea of multiple realities? More than a trend,
it seems to come from a...
11 months ago
Why are we so drawn to the idea of multiple realities? More than a trend,
it seems to come from a deep emptiness within us—a longing for a place
where our world's limits don't exist, where anything is possible. From the
alternate timelines and worlds of Scott Pilgrim Takes...
cdixon.org RSS Feed
To make smarter systems, it’s all about the data
As this article by Alex Wright in the New York Times last week reminded me, when the mainstream...
over a year ago
As this article by Alex Wright in the New York Times last week reminded me, when the mainstream press talks about artificial intelligence…
Ed Zitron's Where's...
Monopoly Money
Last week, in the midst of the slow, painful collapse of the generative AI hype cycle, something...
2 months ago
Last week, in the midst of the slow, painful collapse of the generative AI hype cycle, something incredible happened.
On Monday, a Federal Judge delivered a crushing ruling in the multi-year-long antitrust case filed against Google by the Department of Justice. In 300-pages of...
Noahpinion
Liberalism is losing the information war
Because it's refusing to fight.
11 months ago
Because it's refusing to fight.
cdixon.org RSS Feed
The myth of the Eureka moment
I’ve been involved in the development of a number startups over the years, including three I...
over a year ago
I’ve been involved in the development of a number startups over the years, including three I co-founded. I have also observed the idea…
Internal Tech Emails
Barry Diller: Facebook is trying to "steal" Tinder's cofounder
Their attempts to hire Sean away from us potentially indicate they believe something like Tinder...
over a year ago
Their attempts to hire Sean away from us potentially indicate they believe something like Tinder could be replicated by them. I’d like to avoid that, though I don’t know that FB itself makes it that much more likely to succeed than anyone else.
cdixon.org RSS Feed
Incumbents die due to irrelevance or ineptitude
Judging from the tech press, you’d think the biggest risk to successful companies is competition....
over a year ago
Judging from the tech press, you’d think the biggest risk to successful companies is competition. But when you examine the history of…
Working Theorys
Word Association Fame
The new attention playbooks will be full of old plays.
8 months ago
The new attention playbooks will be full of old plays.
Data Boutique
Web Scraping Legal Context
As the need for data grows, so does the need for clearer regulation
a year ago
As the need for data grows, so does the need for clearer regulation
tomcritchlow.com
Slouching Towards Innovation
A lot of innovation work revolves around shiny objects - maybe a slick interactive prototype, or a...
over a year ago
A lot of innovation work revolves around shiny objects - maybe a slick interactive prototype, or a concept video. A lot of innovation projects never see the light of day.
haseeb qureshi
Another decade
I recently turned 30. When the decade began in 2010, I was still 20, a professional poker player, a...
over a year ago
I recently turned 30. When the decade began in 2010, I was still 20, a professional poker player, a college dropout, and deeply unhappy. What did I believe I’d be doing a decade later? I don’t think I knew, only that I definitely wouldn’t be playing poker anymore. I’d be doing...
Platformer
New cracks emerge in Elon Musk's Twitter
Jira went down, Slack's gone, and site performance is degraded. What's next?
a year ago
Jira went down, Slack's gone, and site performance is degraded. What's next?
Unpacked
Twitter Pays Creators: The Momentum Towards Revenue Sharing
Amidst fierce platform competition, creators stand to gain a lot from the emergence of...
a year ago
Amidst fierce platform competition, creators stand to gain a lot from the emergence of revenue-sharing programs
cdixon.org RSS Feed
Owning equity in your company should be as common as owning equity in your home
What belongs in common to the most people is accorded the least care: they take thought for their...
over a year ago
What belongs in common to the most people is accorded the least care: they take thought for their own things above all, and less about…
cdixon.org RSS Feed
"We leverage the billions of dollars spent on the consumer mobile phone business"
NYTimes has an excellent profile of Planet Labs, a startup that makes low-cost satellites: These...
over a year ago
NYTimes has an excellent profile of Planet Labs, a startup that makes low-cost satellites: These satellites are powered by batteries…
David Perell
People Don’t Actually Read
People don’t read as much as they say they do. This trend is accelerating too. I’m in a friend group...
over a year ago
People don’t read as much as they say they do. This trend is accelerating too. I’m in a friend group of intellectually curious people, and just about everybody says they’re reading fewer books than they used to. But at the risk of sounding like your 5th grade English teacher,...
Rest of World -...
A horrific video sparks a national reckoning in India
The northeastern state of Manipur has plunged into violence since May as the two major ethnic groups...
a year ago
The northeastern state of Manipur has plunged into violence since May as the two major ethnic groups fight over identity, land, and influence.
Noahpinion
Will Elon Musk kill Substack?
The fragmentation of the internet gets a push.
a year ago
The fragmentation of the internet gets a push.
cdixon.org RSS Feed
Crypto Tokens: A Breakthrough in Open Network Design
It is a wonderful accident of history that the internet and web were created as open platforms that...
over a year ago
It is a wonderful accident of history that the internet and web were created as open platforms that anyone — users, developers…
cdixon.org RSS Feed
Shutting down
I’ve seen a number of situations recently where entrepreneurs decided to shut their startups down...
over a year ago
I’ve seen a number of situations recently where entrepreneurs decided to shut their startups down while they still had cash in the bank…
Data Boutique
Historical data now available on DataBoutique.com
Web scraped historical data access
5 months ago
Web scraped historical data access
Platformer
Can Snap snap back?
At its annual summit, the company gets bullish on AI — but feels haunted by the ghost of its past...
a year ago
At its annual summit, the company gets bullish on AI — but feels haunted by the ghost of its past ambitions
Ed Zitron's Where's...
Burst Damage
Soundtrack: Masters of Reality - High Noon Amsterdam
I have said almost everything in this piece in...
2 months ago
Soundtrack: Masters of Reality - High Noon Amsterdam
I have said almost everything in this piece in every one of these articles for months. I am not upset, but just stating an obvious truth. The current state of affairs effectively pushes against the boundaries of good sense,...
Rest of World -...
The chatbot answering modern-day questions about an ancient religion
JainGPT answers inquiries ranging from “What is Jainism?” to “What happens after we die?”
a month ago
JainGPT answers inquiries ranging from “What is Jainism?” to “What happens after we die?”
Platformer
It's time to change how we cover Elon Musk
After a weekend of whoppers about X and fighting Mark Zuckerberg, the press should take a more...
a year ago
After a weekend of whoppers about X and fighting Mark Zuckerberg, the press should take a more skeptical approach
Rest of World -...
Political campaigns embrace AI to reach voters across language barriers
Advocacy groups like AAPI Victory Alliance are using ChatGPT and Claude to reach speakers of Hindi,...
a month ago
Advocacy groups like AAPI Victory Alliance are using ChatGPT and Claude to reach speakers of Hindi, Tagalog, and more.
Rest of World -...
Beyond a Barbie ban, Vietnam sets its censors on Netflix
It’s not just the summer blockbuster that’s hit a nerve.
a year ago
It’s not just the summer blockbuster that’s hit a nerve.
Rest of World -...
Elon Musk said he’d eliminate bots from X. Instead, election influence campaigns are running wild
In a year of global elections, X is making it easy to meddle.
2 months ago
In a year of global elections, X is making it easy to meddle.
Noahpinion
Decoupling is just going to happen
Chinese policy and geopolitical risk are doing a lot of the work here.
a year ago
Chinese policy and geopolitical risk are doing a lot of the work here.
Rest of World -...
Las compañías de autos eléctricos quieren el litio de Argentina. Poco queda para sus ciudadanos.
A los habitantes de la Isla Paulino se les prometió baterías de litio para reducir el uso de...
7 months ago
A los habitantes de la Isla Paulino se les prometió baterías de litio para reducir el uso de generadores. El proyecto se frenó. Mientras tanto, las exportaciones de litio crecen.
Rest of World -...
Catching a break: How gig workers find rest
Rest of World asked over 100 gig workers across 10 cities how they take a break between tasks.
7 months ago
Rest of World asked over 100 gig workers across 10 cities how they take a break between tasks.
Blog posts of...
🇮🇳 India in 2024
In February I made my first business trip to India. Three weeks deep in the Indian tech ecosystem....
7 months ago
In February I made my first business trip to India. Three weeks deep in the Indian tech ecosystem. My summary is simple: I feel like the world needs an update how we view India
Essays - Benedict...
Tech questions for 2022
Sometimes the centre of gravity in tech is very clear, but as we enter 2022
there are lots of...
over a year ago
Sometimes the centre of gravity in tech is very clear, but as we enter 2022
there are lots of areas where trillion dollar questions are wide open.
These are the questions I wonder about today, from crypto to cars to fast
fashion - there are others.
David Perell
Nik Sharma: Building DTC Companies
My guest today is Nik Sharma, the founder of Sharma Brands and an advisor to companies like Judy and...
over a year ago
My guest today is Nik Sharma, the founder of Sharma Brands and an advisor to companies like Judy and Cha Cha Matcha. Nik is one of my very best friends and my go-to person for all things commerce. Since we first met, we’ve spent hours exploring the future of marketing and...
Dustin Curtis
Building new worlds
Earlier this summer, the New York Times published an opinion piece titled The World Is a Mess. We...
over a year ago
Earlier this summer, the New York Times published an opinion piece titled The World Is a Mess. We Need Fully Automated Luxury Communism, by Aaron Bastani:
To say the present era is one of crisis borders on cliché. We inhabit a world of low growth, low productivity and low wages,...
cdixon.org RSS Feed
Computers that can make commitments
Blockchains are computers that can make commitments. Traditional computers are ultimately controlled...
over a year ago
Blockchains are computers that can make commitments. Traditional computers are ultimately controlled by people, either directly in the case…
cdixon.org RSS Feed
Graphs
It has become customary to use “graph” to refer to the underlying data structures at social networks...
over a year ago
It has become customary to use “graph” to refer to the underlying data structures at social networks like Facebook. (Computer scientists…
Aaron's Essays
Generative AI Might Just Save Venture Capital
Originally published in The Information on November 2.
For the past nine months, nearly every...
a year ago
Originally published in The Information on November 2.
For the past nine months, nearly every investor with a Twitter account, blog or board seat has been beating a unified and constant refrain: The go-go days are done. Founders were being pushed to build 36 months of runway,...
Rest of World -...
Bolt’s drive-to-win insurance scheme is putting drivers’ lives at risk
Many drivers who attempted to win health care said they’ve become ill while doing so — and still...
4 months ago
Many drivers who attempted to win health care said they’ve become ill while doing so — and still can’t afford treatment.
cdixon.org RSS Feed
"There's just a tremendous amount of craftsmanship in between a great idea and a great product"
Steve Jobs in 1995: There's just a tremendous amount of craftsmanship in between a great idea and a...
over a year ago
Steve Jobs in 1995: There's just a tremendous amount of craftsmanship in between a great idea and a great product. And as you evolve that…
Rest of World -...
India’s plan to export its wildly successful digital payments system
After starting cross-border payments with Singapore, India is now setting up more international...
a year ago
After starting cross-border payments with Singapore, India is now setting up more international partnerships.
Noahpinion
Japan isn't quite "back", but it has a fighting chance
Here are some ideas for what it can do to be truly "back".
8 months ago
Here are some ideas for what it can do to be truly "back".
cdixon.org RSS Feed
Strong and weak technologies
During a media tour in 2007 in which Steve Jobs showed the device to reporters, there was one...
over a year ago
During a media tour in 2007 in which Steve Jobs showed the device to reporters, there was one instance in which a journalist criticized the…
cdixon.org RSS Feed
"A standard protocol for machines to negotiate bitcoin payments for resources"
Great idea from Brian Armstrong of Coinbase: 1/ Seems like there should be a standard protocol for...
over a year ago
Great idea from Brian Armstrong of Coinbase: 1/ Seems like there should be a standard protocol for machines to negotiate bitcoin payments…
Data Boutique
How Data Boutique Works #2: Volume Discounts
The volume-related pricing system explained
7 months ago
The volume-related pricing system explained
42!
My first ever app I made and sold...
I was digging through a cupboard today, when I came across the package shown below.
I was initially...
over a year ago
I was digging through a cupboard today, when I came across the package shown below.
I was initially flabbergasted that I still had a copy on hand, but that soon gave way to feelings of nostalgia that took me back 30 years (yes, that is 3 decades) to when I first created this.
It...
Working Theorys
What I Talk About When I Talk About Reading
Optimize your life for good conversations.
6 months ago
Optimize your life for good conversations.
Internal Tech Emails
When Apple considered buying Bing
Can I imagine that Apple can build a search engine to compete. Yes but it’s probably not the best...
7 months ago
Can I imagine that Apple can build a search engine to compete. Yes but it’s probably not the best way to differentiate our products.
Rest of World -...
These women fell in love with an AI-voiced chatbot. Then it died
An AI-voiced virtual lover called users every morning. Its shutdown left them heartbroken.
a year ago
An AI-voiced virtual lover called users every morning. Its shutdown left them heartbroken.
Paul Graham: Essays
Chapter 2 of Ansi Common Lisp
a year ago
Steve Blank
Profound Beliefs
This post previously appeared in EIX. In the early stages of a startup your hypotheses about all the...
a year ago
This post previously appeared in EIX. In the early stages of a startup your hypotheses about all the parts of your business model are your profound beliefs. Think of profound beliefs as “strong opinions loosely held.” You can’t be an effective founder or in the C-suite of a...
Essays - Benedict...
The AI summer
Hundreds of millions of people have tried ChatGPT, but most of them haven’t
been back. Every big...
3 months ago
Hundreds of millions of people have tried ChatGPT, but most of them haven’t
been back. Every big company has done a pilot, but far fewer are in
deployment. Some of this is just a matter of time. But LLMs might also be a
trap: they look like products and they look magic, but...
Steve Blank
What Does Product Market Fit Sound Like? This.
I got a call from an ex-student asking me “how do you know when you found product market fit?”...
3 weeks ago
I got a call from an ex-student asking me “how do you know when you found product market fit?” There’s been lots of words written about it, but no actual recordings of the moment. I remembered I had saved this 90 second, 26 year-old audio file because this is when I knew we had...
Paul Graham: Essays
Chapter 1 of Ansi Common Lisp
a year ago
Rest of World -...
Nigeria’s economic crisis is fueling a stunt philanthropy boom
A crop of content creators are building fame on MrBeast-style content.
3 months ago
A crop of content creators are building fame on MrBeast-style content.
Working Theorys
Writer-Builders
Theory #39 | The archetype of new kind of renaissance man
6 months ago
Theory #39 | The archetype of new kind of renaissance man
cdixon.org RSS Feed
Capabilities and sensibilities
“The test of a first-rate intelligence is the ability to hold two opposed ideas in the mind at the...
over a year ago
“The test of a first-rate intelligence is the ability to hold two opposed ideas in the mind at the same time, and still retain the ability…
Noahpinion
How we could return to the productivity growth of the 1990s
A guest post by Preston Mui.
7 months ago
A guest post by Preston Mui.
Data Boutique
How to Price Web Scraped Data
5 Factors that Drive Data Pricing
a year ago
5 Factors that Drive Data Pricing
Stephen Diehl
The Twilight of the Securities Act
over a year ago
Internal Tech Emails
Steve Jobs negotiates Apple's deal with Microsoft
Greg, Here is a review of the terms we last discussed, as well as some issues I have encountered....
over a year ago
Greg, Here is a review of the terms we last discussed, as well as some issues I have encountered. Please ping me to let me know that you received this email.
Steve Blank
Hacking for Defense @ Stanford 2024 – Lessons Learned Presentations
We just finished our 9th annual Hacking for Defense class at Stanford. What a year. Hacking for...
4 months ago
We just finished our 9th annual Hacking for Defense class at Stanford. What a year. Hacking for Defense, now in 60 universities, has teams of students working to understand and help solve national security problems. At Stanford this quarter the 8 teams of 40 students collectively...
Noahpinion
Why America fell behind in drones, and how to catch up agaon
A guest post by Cat Orman and Jason Lu
2 months ago
A guest post by Cat Orman and Jason Lu
Platformer
Winners and losers in the race to add AI
ChatGPT is now running inside Snapchat, Notion, and other apps. Will it give them a sustaining...
a year ago
ChatGPT is now running inside Snapchat, Notion, and other apps. Will it give them a sustaining advantage — or just line OpenAI's pockets?
Rest of World -...
Pese a prohibición, apps de préstamos depredadores proliferan en la tienda de Google Play
Google dice que se toma el problema muy en serio, pero más de una docena de apps continúa disponible...
9 months ago
Google dice que se toma el problema muy en serio, pero más de una docena de apps continúa disponible en la tienda.
Ed Zitron's Where's...
They're Looting The Internet
Last week, Meta revealed (in a motion trying to dismiss an FTC anti-monopoly lawsuit) that Instagram...
6 months ago
Last week, Meta revealed (in a motion trying to dismiss an FTC anti-monopoly lawsuit) that Instagram made an astonishing $32.4 billion in advertising revenue in 2021. That figure becomes even more shocking when you consider Google's YouTube made $28.8 billion in the same period....
Tech + Economics +...
Red state politics are too much of a headache for tech.
Is the Texas boom town of Austin losing its luster?
During the COVID-19 pandemic, investors...
10 months ago
Is the Texas boom town of Austin losing its luster?
During the COVID-19 pandemic, investors and startup founders alike
flocked to the Texas capital, attracted to the lower cost of living,
“hip” lifestyle and business-friendly environment (i.e. no state income
...
cdixon.org RSS Feed
I wrote a book: Read Write Own
I wrote a book: Read Write Own I believe blockchains and the software movement around them –...
a year ago
I wrote a book: Read Write Own I believe blockchains and the software movement around them – typically called crypto or web3 – provide the…
Internal Tech Emails
Mark Zuckerberg and Peter Thiel
Peter and I have had a number of conversations about what we expect the world to look like in 2030...
3 months ago
Peter and I have had a number of conversations about what we expect the world to look like in 2030 so we can plan and position our future work accordingly.
Noahpinion
How homogeneous is Japan really? (repost)
It depends on what you mean by "homogeneity".
a year ago
It depends on what you mean by "homogeneity".
Rest of World -...
AI moderation is no match for hate speech in Ethiopian languages
New research raises concerns that moderation tools can't detect violent threats in Tigray and...
a year ago
New research raises concerns that moderation tools can't detect violent threats in Tigray and elsewhere.
Internal Tech Emails
Facebook and Google "at Defcon 2"
From: Sheryl Sandberg We really want a deep relationship – or at this point any relationship – with...
4 months ago
From: Sheryl Sandberg We really want a deep relationship – or at this point any relationship – with Google
Rest of World -...
Chip dreams: Young tech workers are flocking to Taiwan
Southeast Asians are heading to Taiwan to train for semiconductor jobs, which is helping to fill a...
6 months ago
Southeast Asians are heading to Taiwan to train for semiconductor jobs, which is helping to fill a talent gap at the world’s top producer.
SatPost by Trung...
YouTube: The Learning Machine
Can YouTube have a similar impact on education as the printing press did? Yes, and the explosion of...
6 months ago
Can YouTube have a similar impact on education as the printing press did? Yes, and the explosion of sports footage on the platform helps to explain why.
AVC
What Is A Protocol And Why Does It Matter?
USV’s current thesis is: Enabling trusted brands that broaden access to knowledge, capital, and...
a year ago
USV’s current thesis is: Enabling trusted brands that broaden access to knowledge, capital, and well-being by leveraging networks, platforms, and protocols. https://www.usv.com/#thesis-3-0 That last word is powerful but unfortunately less understood than the other words in that...
Rest of World -...
Scammers are cashing in on Worldcoin’s chaotic Kenya launch
Without a cash withdrawal option, Kenyans are turning to the country’s informal crypto economy — and...
a year ago
Without a cash withdrawal option, Kenyans are turning to the country’s informal crypto economy — and some are losing their coins in the process.
Nadia Asparouhova
Mapping out the tribes of climate
Climate is a gravity well for talent, but why don’t other, equally impactful topics attract talent...
a year ago
Climate is a gravity well for talent, but why don’t other, equally impactful topics attract talent in the same way? Why isn’t everyone dropping everything to work on homelessness, or global poverty, or curing cancer? With many peers in tech now working on climate issues, I tried...
Rest of World -...
Crime victims, ignored by Venezuela’s broken justice system, turn to influencers
To get the authorities’ attention, victims get help from influencers specialized in niches like...
a year ago
To get the authorities’ attention, victims get help from influencers specialized in niches like corruption and pet justice.
Rest of World -...
Google turns to AI in the race to dub YouTube
YouTube’s new automatic dubbing system is competing with with human firms to help creators scale the...
a year ago
YouTube’s new automatic dubbing system is competing with with human firms to help creators scale the language barrier.
Rest of World -...
Google’s Gemini problem will be even worse outside the U.S.
It’s hard to keep a stereotyping machine out of trouble.
8 months ago
It’s hard to keep a stereotyping machine out of trouble.
Paul Graham: Essays
How to Be an Angel Investor
over a year ago
Paul Graham: Essays
The 18 Mistakes That Kill Startups
over a year ago
cdixon.org RSS Feed
Naming your startup
The Name Inspector has a good post today regarding 6 naming myths to ignore. I think it’s generally...
over a year ago
The Name Inspector has a good post today regarding 6 naming myths to ignore. I think it’s generally right on. Naming is so important and…
cdixon.org RSS Feed
Information is the (other) currency of venture capital
Many seasoned entrepreneurs have had the following experience. A VC eagerly wants to meet with you....
over a year ago
Many seasoned entrepreneurs have had the following experience. A VC eagerly wants to meet with you. You have what seems like a very good…
cdixon.org RSS Feed
Flow
Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi in 1996 on the concept of Flow: [Flow] is being completely involved in an...
over a year ago
Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi in 1996 on the concept of Flow: [Flow] is being completely involved in an activity for its own sake. The ego falls…
42!
Embracing AI
I could only avoid AI in my startup for so long before I actually found a
use for it… How I used...
a year ago
I could only avoid AI in my startup for so long before I actually found a
use for it… How I used ChatGPT to make the life of my support team easier.
Internal Tech Emails
Microsoft exec: "my recent discussions with Steve [Jobs]"
some stuff has been tense, as I have really been pushing them on a few issues, and I am forcing...
a year ago
some stuff has been tense, as I have really been pushing them on a few issues, and I am forcing Apple to do a lot of stuff they'd rather not do (using Office as leverage)
haseeb qureshi
Why Decentralization Isn’t as Important as You Think
If you’ve spent any time at all on crypto Twitter, you’re familiar with the web3 narrative. It goes...
over a year ago
If you’ve spent any time at all on crypto Twitter, you’re familiar with the web3 narrative. It goes like this: in the beginning, the web was “truly decentralized.” Against all odds, the World Wide Web won against the corporatist designs of companies like Microsoft, and cyberspace...
Rest of World -...
Overworked and unable to quit: Delivery drivers in Brazil found something worse than gig work
Trapped in a subcontracting nightmare, some delivery drivers are facing grueling hours, low pay, and...
a year ago
Trapped in a subcontracting nightmare, some delivery drivers are facing grueling hours, low pay, and no control over their work.
Rest of World -...
Argentina’s Mercado Pago is like Venmo plus investing
Latin America’s answer to Venmo helps Argentines survive sky-high inflation.
a year ago
Latin America’s answer to Venmo helps Argentines survive sky-high inflation.
cdixon.org RSS Feed
Why you shouldn’t keep your startup idea secret
A frequent question entrepreneurs have when they are just starting their company is: how secretive...
over a year ago
A frequent question entrepreneurs have when they are just starting their company is: how secretive should I be about my idea? My answer…
Noahpinion
Refusing to teach kids math will not improve equity
We have public schools for a reason.
a year ago
We have public schools for a reason.
Rest of World -...
How Bangladesh’s tech industry navigated an unprecedented political crisis
July’s internet blackout and Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s sudden exit is estimated to have cost...
a month ago
July’s internet blackout and Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s sudden exit is estimated to have cost the industry $300 million.
Paul Graham: Essays
Chapter 1 of Ansi Common Lisp
a year ago
cdixon.org RSS Feed
There are two kinds of people in the world
You’ve either started a company or you haven’t. ”Started” doesn’t mean joining as an early...
over a year ago
You’ve either started a company or you haven’t. ”Started” doesn’t mean joining as an early employee, or investing or advising or helping…
Noahpinion
The Super-Scary Theory of the 21st Century (repost)
The haunting specter of techno-authoritarianism has only gotten more haunting
11 months ago
The haunting specter of techno-authoritarianism has only gotten more haunting
Rest of World -...
A preacher who moonlights as a cab driver is suing Uber and Bolt in Kenya
Zakaria Johana believes ride-hailing apps have been playing dirty, and is among a growing group...
a year ago
Zakaria Johana believes ride-hailing apps have been playing dirty, and is among a growing group taking them to court to prove it.
Public Experiments
Natural Language Is an Unnatural Interface
How can we use familiar design patterns to constrain the unwieldy state space of large language...
a year ago
How can we use familiar design patterns to constrain the unwieldy state space of large language models?
Paul Graham: Essays
The Two Kinds of Moderate
over a year ago
Folklore.org:...
Round Rects Are Everywhere!
Steve inspires Bill by pointing out something about the real world
a year ago
Steve inspires Bill by pointing out something about the real world
cdixon.org RSS Feed
SEO is no longer a viable marketing strategy for startups
Many of the today’s most successful informational sites such as Yelp, Wikipedia and TripAdvisor...
over a year ago
Many of the today’s most successful informational sites such as Yelp, Wikipedia and TripAdvisor relied heavily on SEO for their initial…
Noahpinion
The case of the angry history postdoc
Elite overproduction spotted in the wild.
5 months ago
Elite overproduction spotted in the wild.
Rest of World -...
Muzz, the world’s largest Muslim dating app, is struggling in India
India is home to 172 million Muslims, and the world’s second-largest market for dating apps. But...
a year ago
India is home to 172 million Muslims, and the world’s second-largest market for dating apps. But Indian women say Muzz is a bad match.
cdixon.org RSS Feed
Is now a good time to start a company?
Back in 2006, my co-founder at Hunch, Caterina Fake, wrote a blog post called “It’s a bad time to...
over a year ago
Back in 2006, my co-founder at Hunch, Caterina Fake, wrote a blog post called “It’s a bad time to start a company.” There were no doubt…
AVC
Software That You Can’t Shut Down
The term “censorship resistant” is used a lot in the decentralized computing/web3/crypto space to...
a year ago
The term “censorship resistant” is used a lot in the decentralized computing/web3/crypto space to talk about a core feature of these systems. I don’t love the term censorship resistant because it is a wonky term. Software that is encoded in smart contracts (and other ways) on...
Rest of World -...
Nigeria will become a net exporter of tech talent: Nigerian Minister Dr. Bosun Tijani
The tech entrepreneur-turned-bureaucrat spoke to Rest of World about his year in government, his...
a month ago
The tech entrepreneur-turned-bureaucrat spoke to Rest of World about his year in government, his administration’s priorities for advancing AI in Nigeria, and the difficult task of choosing between allies.
Noahpinion
Five big trends that have changed in the last few years
In which I pay attention to the world so you don't have to.
a year ago
In which I pay attention to the world so you don't have to.
Tom Blomfield
Startup Series Part 3: You make what you measure
Merely measuring something has an uncanny tendency to improve it. If you want to make your user...
over a year ago
Merely measuring something has an uncanny tendency to improve it. If you want to make your user numbers go up, put a big piece of paper on your wall and every day plot the number of users. You’ll be delighted when it goes up and disappointed when it goes down. Pretty soon you’ll...
cdixon.org RSS Feed
Who should learn to program?
Recently, there’s been a lot of talk in the tech world and beyond about getting more people to learn...
over a year ago
Recently, there’s been a lot of talk in the tech world and beyond about getting more people to learn computer programming. I think this is a…
Noahpinion
Don't be a decel
Technological progress must be harnessed, not fought
a year ago
Technological progress must be harnessed, not fought
Stephen Diehl
Dive into GHC: Intermediate Forms
over a year ago
Steve Blank
Finding and Growing the Islands of Innovation inside a large company – Action Plan for A New CTO
This post previously appeared in Fast Company. How does a newly hired Chief Technology Officer (CTO)...
over a year ago
This post previously appeared in Fast Company. How does a newly hired Chief Technology Officer (CTO) find and grow the islands of innovation inside a large company? How not to waste your first six months as a new CTO thinking you’re making progress when the status quo is working...
Noahpinion
Plentiful, high-paying jobs in the age of AI
Comparative advantage is very subtle, but incredibly powerful.
7 months ago
Comparative advantage is very subtle, but incredibly powerful.
Tech + Economics +...
God is a crypto bro.
CoinTelegraph:
A Colorado-based online pastor who has been charged with fraud for
...
9 months ago
CoinTelegraph:
A Colorado-based online pastor who has been charged with fraud for
selling a “worthless” cryptocurrency says he only did it because “the
Lord” told him to give his followers a “10X.”
In a strange 9-minute video — posted to INDXcoin’s...
Rest of World -...
ShopeeFood underestimates delivery distances. Gig workers in Vietnam are paying the price
Rest of World reviewed nearly 50 orders on Vietnam’s second most popular food delivery app, and in...
7 months ago
Rest of World reviewed nearly 50 orders on Vietnam’s second most popular food delivery app, and in most cases, the distance was estimated lower than Google Maps’ estimate.
SatPost by Trung...
9 Creative Lessons From Virgil Abloh
Insights from the late designer who went from studying architecture, working with Kanye, founding...
3 weeks ago
Insights from the late designer who went from studying architecture, working with Kanye, founding Off-White and leading menswear at Louis Vuitton.
Rest of World -...
The most popular payment app in the Philippines has a side bet: online gambling
The GCash app is ubiquitous in the Philippines, and is being blamed for rising gambling addiction in...
2 weeks ago
The GCash app is ubiquitous in the Philippines, and is being blamed for rising gambling addiction in the country, particularly among women.
Paul Graham: Essays
What I've Learned from Hacker News
over a year ago
Working Theorys
The Time-Boxed Startup
What if startups had an expiration date?
8 months ago
What if startups had an expiration date?
Paul Graham: Essays
Chapter 2 of Ansi Common Lisp
a year ago
XO Capital - Field...
Acquisition #11 - Journey.io (aka Don't Stop Believing)
Spotify Amazon Apple
Lots of journey puns so sorry in advance.
A little over a year ago I tried to...
11 months ago
Spotify Amazon Apple
Lots of journey puns so sorry in advance.
A little over a year ago I tried to raise a discretionary capital fund by putting all our assets into 1 company and selling shares of that company ... nobody wanted in
Failure To Raise
At the beginning
Nadia Asparouhova
Explaining tech’s notion of talent scarcity
TLDR: Most conversations about “top talent” assume Pareto distribution; however, a closer...
a year ago
TLDR: Most conversations about “top talent” assume Pareto distribution; however, a closer examination suggests that different corporate cultures benefit from different types of talent distribution (normal, Pareto, and a third option – bimodal) according to the problem they’re...
Rest of World -...
The fastest-growing shopping app in the world
Meesho is taking on Amazon and Walmart with its focuse on cheaper goods for small-town consumers.
a year ago
Meesho is taking on Amazon and Walmart with its focuse on cheaper goods for small-town consumers.
Tech + Economics +...
A shared burden: rethinking cybersecurity post the 23andMe breach.
TechCrunch: 23andMe tells victims it’s their fault that their data was
breached
But in a...
10 months ago
TechCrunch: 23andMe tells victims it’s their fault that their data was
breached
But in a letter sent to a group of hundreds of 23andMe users who are
now suing the company, 23andMe said that “users negligently recycled
and failed to update their passwords...
Tech + Economics +...
I hate work.
The piercing sound of my alarm shatters the stillness of my room at the
ungodly hour of 5 AM, and...
11 months ago
The piercing sound of my alarm shatters the stillness of my room at the
ungodly hour of 5 AM, and I reluctantly drag myself out of bed. It’s the
same daily grind, a routine I’ve been stuck in for years, first as a sound
engineer, then as a tech exec, and now as an indie...
Rest of World -...
The Genius Bar in a country where iPhones can’t legally be sold
In the land of the U.S. embargo, Cuba’s Apple technicians are kings.
a year ago
In the land of the U.S. embargo, Cuba’s Apple technicians are kings.
Rest of World -...
Venezuelan migrants helped build Colombia’s tech scene. Now the country is kicking them out
New rules make getting a visa more difficult, even as Colombia struggles to find enough tech...
a year ago
New rules make getting a visa more difficult, even as Colombia struggles to find enough tech workers.
Working Theorys
Second Encounters
Firsts are overrated
7 months ago
Platformer
How two insurgents are taking on Twitter
Artifact's Kevin Systrom on the disruptive power of good comments. PLUS: Substack's naïveté around...
a year ago
Artifact's Kevin Systrom on the disruptive power of good comments. PLUS: Substack's naïveté around Notes
cdixon.org RSS Feed
Predicting the future of the Internet is easy: anything it hasn’t yet dramatically transformed, it...
People love to focus on horse races: NYC vs Silcon Valley, Facebook vs Twitter, IPO markets vs...
over a year ago
People love to focus on horse races: NYC vs Silcon Valley, Facebook vs Twitter, IPO markets vs private exchanges, the valuation of some…
Rest of World -...
Doctor-influencers are going viral in China, provoking authorities
Fueled by the pandemic, medical professionals have cashed in on Douyin, dispensing advice and...
a year ago
Fueled by the pandemic, medical professionals have cashed in on Douyin, dispensing advice and endorsements.
Data Boutique
Economics of Web Data: ROI
Customer's Value Standpoint
a year ago
Customer's Value Standpoint
Rest of World -...
Amazon fends off calls for takedown transparency in message to shareholders
The company does not currently disclose government orders to remove specific products.
a year ago
The company does not currently disclose government orders to remove specific products.
Rest of World -...
Why China still runs on Windows
And what it means for Microsoft.
4 months ago
And what it means for Microsoft.
Essays - Benedict...
Building AI products
How do we build mass-market products that change the world around a
technology that gets things...
4 months ago
How do we build mass-market products that change the world around a
technology that gets things ‘wrong’? What does wrong mean, and how is that
useful?
AVC
The Cleanse
I’ve never done a cleanse. But many of my friends and family members have done them. There are...
a year ago
I’ve never done a cleanse. But many of my friends and family members have done them. There are various flavors of cleanses but the basic idea is you cut back your consumption of food and drink and replace it with mostly liquid nutrition for anywhere from a day to a month. I...
Rest of World -...
How Urban Company built an empire of female gig workers
By disrupting the age-old home services industry, the Indian unicorn offered many women a rare...
a year ago
By disrupting the age-old home services industry, the Indian unicorn offered many women a rare opportunity for social mobility. Now, they want more.
cdixon.org RSS Feed
Increasing velocity
Two common discussions in the startup world right now are 1) the increasing speed at which new...
over a year ago
Two common discussions in the startup world right now are 1) the increasing speed at which new apps/websites can gain mass adoption…
Rest of World -...
Stifled at home, Tunisian tech finds success in the West
Acquisitions of InstaDeep and Expensya, which focused on international customers, are inspiring...
a year ago
Acquisitions of InstaDeep and Expensya, which focused on international customers, are inspiring Tunisian entrepreneurs to look outside the country.
Articles - Alex...
The ageism in advertising
The advertising industry is addicted to youth. We are obsessed and
possessed. We crave it in our...
over a year ago
The advertising industry is addicted to youth. We are obsessed and
possessed. We crave it in our agencies and we covet it in our audiences. We
believe younger staff are more creative and younger consumers are more
valuable. But this is nothing more than received wisdom....
Rest of World -...
South Africa’s competition watchdog takes aim at Google
The group is pushing Google to do more local business promotion, but experts say this could put the...
a year ago
The group is pushing Google to do more local business promotion, but experts say this could put the country’s digital economy at risk.
Rest of World -...
Unleash the bololô: Masses of delivery workers set off horns and fireworks at bad customers’ homes
In Brazil, workers protest nasty customers with bikes, horns and fireworks.
11 months ago
In Brazil, workers protest nasty customers with bikes, horns and fireworks.
David Perell
Tiago Forte & Will Mannon: Building Cohort-Based Courses
I have two guests today: Tiago Forte and Will Mannon. Tiago is my business partner and the creator...
over a year ago
I have two guests today: Tiago Forte and Will Mannon. Tiago is my business partner and the creator of an online course called Building a Second Brain. The two of us record a podcast like this every year to reflect on what we’ve learned about the online education industry. And...
Rest of World -...
A U.S. outsourcing company brought lofty promises to Nepal. Then came the layoffs
Former employees say the company killed the dream it once sold them.
a year ago
Former employees say the company killed the dream it once sold them.
Rest of World -...
The Vietnamese military has a troll army and Facebook is its weapon
Force 47 abuses Facebook's safety tools to silence government critics at home and anywhere in the...
a year ago
Force 47 abuses Facebook's safety tools to silence government critics at home and anywhere in the world.
Roberto's blog
From Gatsby to Hugo: a Markdown minimalist's journey
I have been using Gatsby for my blog and I have never been fond of it’s complexity considering that...
5 months ago
I have been using Gatsby for my blog and I have never been fond of it’s complexity considering that all I need is Markdown rendering. Trying to update Gatsby and its dependencies to the latest version was painful enough to motivate me to jump ship. After looking at what’s out...
Ed Zitron's Where's...
Managing Up
Over the last two newsletters (three, if you include my reply to Google’s “rebuttal” of the...
6 months ago
Over the last two newsletters (three, if you include my reply to Google’s “rebuttal” of the Prabhakar Raghavan newsletter), I’ve made the case that while rot economics are responsible for making technology products manifestly worse, this transformation was only possible thanks to...
Tech + Economics +...
I can't believe this needs to be said.
I can't believe this needs to be said, but no - the reason Disney's movies
have bombed lately is...
10 months ago
I can't believe this needs to be said, but no - the reason Disney's movies
have bombed lately is not because they aren't advertising on Birdchan.
There are a plethora of reasons behind their recent box office failures.
But they have nothing to do with diminishing...
Noahpinion
Energy Bell: The sketch of an idea
How can we get America back to the forefront of energy research?
3 months ago
How can we get America back to the forefront of energy research?
Rest of World -...
Bringing the Philippines’ beloved mom-and-pop stores into the 21st century
Local startups are working to digitize sari-sari shops, or convenience stores, which are a large...
3 months ago
Local startups are working to digitize sari-sari shops, or convenience stores, which are a large part of the Philippine retail industry.
Noahpinion
At least five interesting things for your weekend (#13)
Climate messaging, antitrust, Chinese consumption, the Fed and inflation, marriage and happiness,...
a year ago
Climate messaging, antitrust, Chinese consumption, the Fed and inflation, marriage and happiness, historical data, and some Star Trek recommendations
Internal Tech Emails
Bill Gates tries to install Movie Maker
I am quite disappointed at how Windows Usability has been going backwards and the program management...
a year ago
I am quite disappointed at how Windows Usability has been going backwards and the program management groups don't drive usability issues.
Paul Graham: Essays
Chapter 2 of Ansi Common Lisp
a year ago
Working Theorys
The Granny Hobby Protocol
And the hands-on, thumbs-off economy
7 months ago
And the hands-on, thumbs-off economy
Rest of World -...
Africa fell in love with crypto. Now… it’s complicated
Trust is fading, startups are shutting down, and Web3 workers are reconsidering their career...
a year ago
Trust is fading, startups are shutting down, and Web3 workers are reconsidering their career choices.
Rest of World -...
Around the world with Rest of World
Put your geography knowledge to the test.
a month ago
Put your geography knowledge to the test.
Noahpinion
A vote for Trump is a vote for chaos
Let's leave the 2010s in the past where they belong.
9 months ago
Let's leave the 2010s in the past where they belong.
XO Capital - Field...
Using Chat GPT For Deal Analysis
To say Chat GPT is useful isn't very insightful, but I recently got access to their advanced data...
a year ago
To say Chat GPT is useful isn't very insightful, but I recently got access to their advanced data analysis plugin and it's amazing. If you haven't poked around with it yet, you should!
For a deal we currently have under LOI, I've
cdixon.org RSS Feed
Outsource things you don’t care about
A fundamental principle of business is that you do things in house that you think can give you a...
over a year ago
A fundamental principle of business is that you do things in house that you think can give you a competitive advantage and outsource things…
Rest of World -...
A tale of two feeds
Car smuggling in Bolivia is booming, despite thieves and theft victims widely documenting the...
a year ago
Car smuggling in Bolivia is booming, despite thieves and theft victims widely documenting the problem.
tomcritchlow.com
Don’t Give Advice, Be Useful
“It is not enough for a professional to be right: An advisor’s job is to be helpful.” David Maister...
9 months ago
“It is not enough for a professional to be right: An advisor’s job is to be helpful.” David Maister - The Trusted Advisor
cdixon.org RSS Feed
Accurate contrarian theories
When Google released its search engine in 1998, its search results were significantly better than...
over a year ago
When Google released its search engine in 1998, its search results were significantly better than its competitors’. Many people attribute…
cdixon.org RSS Feed
Stickiness is bad for business
It is common to hear entrepreneurs and investors talk about the high level of engagement (what we...
over a year ago
It is common to hear entrepreneurs and investors talk about the high level of engagement (what we used to call “stickiness”) of their…
SatPost by Trung...
The Science and History of the iPhone Screen
In 2007, one conversation convinced Steve Jobs to pick Corning and Gorilla Glass for the iPhone.
a year ago
In 2007, one conversation convinced Steve Jobs to pick Corning and Gorilla Glass for the iPhone.
Internal Tech Emails
Steve Jobs emails Adobe's CEO
One of us must change our policy. Please let me know who.
a year ago
One of us must change our policy. Please let me know who.
Rest of World -...
Instagram account hacked? “Ethical hackers” will get it back
Meta’s account recovery process is so complicated that people are paying experts to do it for them.
a year ago
Meta’s account recovery process is so complicated that people are paying experts to do it for them.
cdixon.org RSS Feed
Maximizing capacity utilization as a startup premise
In stark contrast to other major airlines, Southwest has been profitable for 40 years. If Southwest...
over a year ago
In stark contrast to other major airlines, Southwest has been profitable for 40 years. If Southwest had one core “startup premise” it was…
Tech + Economics +...
AI does not produce reliable information. As Donald Trump's lawyer has fucked around and found out.
Michael Cohen, the former personal lawyer and fixer for Donald Trump, used
an artificial...
10 months ago
Michael Cohen, the former personal lawyer and fixer for Donald Trump, used
an artificial intelligence program to generate bogus legal citations in his
motion for early termination of his supervised release.
Cohen, who was sentenced to three years in prison in 2018 for...
Steve Blank
Gordon Bell R.I.P.
Gordon Bell passed on this month. I was a latecomer in Gordon Bell’s life. But he made a lasting...
5 months ago
Gordon Bell passed on this month. I was a latecomer in Gordon Bell’s life. But he made a lasting impact on mine. The first time I laid eyes on Gordon Bell was in 1984 outside a restaurant in a Boston suburb when he pulled up in a Porsche. I was the head of Marketing for […]
Rest of World -...
How we’re tracking AI incidents around global elections
Rest of World is collecting examples of AI being used for campaigning, misinformation, and memes in...
6 months ago
Rest of World is collecting examples of AI being used for campaigning, misinformation, and memes in a regularly updated tracker.
Noahpinion
The Democrats are a strong party, the Republicans are a weak party
It's Boss Tweed vs. Boss Tweet.
3 weeks ago
It's Boss Tweed vs. Boss Tweet.
AVC
What Will Happen In 2023
I want to focus this post on the macro environment for tech, startups, web3, and climate because...
a year ago
I want to focus this post on the macro environment for tech, startups, web3, and climate because that is where my head is at right now. I believe that sometime in the first half of 2023, the central banks around the world will start backing off the tightening that they have been...
Working Theorys
Rise of the Silicon Valley Small Business | Theory No. 7
In 2023, we’ll see more Silicon Valley startups that operate like small businesses. And some of them...
a year ago
In 2023, we’ll see more Silicon Valley startups that operate like small businesses. And some of them will have big outcomes. Perhaps even billion-dollar ones. I call this phenomenon the Silicon Valley small business (an SV-SB for short).
XO Capital - Field...
Flip Fund Closed
After about 4 weeks, we've raised a total of $565k from 11 investors. 9 of them have been avid...
a year ago
After about 4 weeks, we've raised a total of $565k from 11 investors. 9 of them have been avid readers of our blog over the years proving (not for the last time) just how important it is to build and own an audience.
Investors put in $510k, and
cdixon.org RSS Feed
Financing risk
Startups that raise seed funding face the risk of not being able to raise additional money. This is...
over a year ago
Startups that raise seed funding face the risk of not being able to raise additional money. This is what is sometimes known as “financing…
Paul Graham: Essays
Disconnecting Distraction
over a year ago
cdixon.org RSS Feed
Ideal first round funding terms
My last 2 posts were about things to avoid, so I thought it might be helpful to follow up with...
over a year ago
My last 2 posts were about things to avoid, so I thought it might be helpful to follow up with something more positive. Having been part of…
Rest of World -...
Mexico’s $100-billion auto parts industry is reinventing itself for the EV era
Behind the excitement around electrification, Mexican manufacturers are figuring out what their own...
a year ago
Behind the excitement around electrification, Mexican manufacturers are figuring out what their own transition will look like.
Unpacked
Epic Games, Google and App Store Monopolies
In a surprise win for the makers of Fortnite, a jury ruled that Google engaged in anti-competitive...
10 months ago
In a surprise win for the makers of Fortnite, a jury ruled that Google engaged in anti-competitive conduct by suppressing other app stores and banning alternate payments
Steve Blank
Startups that Have Employees In Offices Grow 3½ Times Faster
This article previously appeared in EIX – Entreprenuers and Innovators Exchange. Data shows that...
a year ago
This article previously appeared in EIX – Entreprenuers and Innovators Exchange. Data shows that pre-seed and seed startups with employees showing up in a physical office have 3½ times higher revenue growth than those that are solely remote. Let the discussion begin. During the...
tomcritchlow.com
Manifesting My Dream Clients & Projects for 2024
New year, new me, new clients am I right?
9 months ago
New year, new me, new clients am I right?
AVC
Voice Input
Smartphones have had voice input for over a decade now and yet I don’t know that many people who use...
a year ago
Smartphones have had voice input for over a decade now and yet I don’t know that many people who use voice input regularly. I would guess that maybe 10 to 20% of smartphone users are using voice input regularly. That’s a guess based on absolutely no data other than observing...
AVC
The Newest Members of the USV Team
Last Thursday, three new blog posts hit USV.com announcing our three new analysts: This is our...
a year ago
Last Thursday, three new blog posts hit USV.com announcing our three new analysts: This is our tradition at USV. When someone starts at USV, we ask them to write a post on the USV blog introducing themselves. This helps founders who come to talk to us about their companies...
Rest of World -...
Samsung knowingly exposed workers to highly toxic chemicals, whistleblower claims
In Vietnam, a key production base, a former safety officer alleges the factory also dumped chemicals...
a year ago
In Vietnam, a key production base, a former safety officer alleges the factory also dumped chemicals into waterways.
Noahpinion
How Ireland got so rich
Once an underdog, the Emerald Isle is now on top.
12 months ago
Once an underdog, the Emerald Isle is now on top.
Unpacked
DOJ v. Google: Case outline & arguments analysis
The DOJ is going after specific anti-competitive mechanisms, and the specifics of Google's onerous...
a year ago
The DOJ is going after specific anti-competitive mechanisms, and the specifics of Google's onerous Android deals might be the smoking gun
Working Theorys
The Idea That Won't Go Away | Theory No. 24
In a battle of new and old ideas, which one wins?
10 months ago
In a battle of new and old ideas, which one wins?
Paul Graham: Essays
A Word to the Resourceful
over a year ago
Rest of World -...
Singapore doubles down on lab-grown meat as Silicon Valley backs off
Global funding in the cultured meat industry dropped by 75% in the last year. Singapore sees its...
4 months ago
Global funding in the cultured meat industry dropped by 75% in the last year. Singapore sees its chance to become a world leader, backing local and international firms.
cdixon.org RSS Feed
Coinbase
One of the interesting things about Bitcoin is the contrast between how it is portrayed in the press...
over a year ago
One of the interesting things about Bitcoin is the contrast between how it is portrayed in the press and how it is understood by…
Rest of World -...
Uber drivers are melting amid Nigeria’s historic heat wave and record fuel prices
As temperatures soar and fuel prices triple, drivers are having to choose between their health and...
7 months ago
As temperatures soar and fuel prices triple, drivers are having to choose between their health and livelihood.
Noahpinion
Americans are still not worried enough about the risk of world war
In which I try to be Gandalf instead of Cassandra.
6 months ago
In which I try to be Gandalf instead of Cassandra.
Rest of World -...
Meet the “digital parents” giving millions in China a vision of family love they never had
Creators Jiang Xiuping and Pan Huqian, a viral Douyin duo, act as fictional parents, providing...
5 months ago
Creators Jiang Xiuping and Pan Huqian, a viral Douyin duo, act as fictional parents, providing solace to young adults and adolescents amidst economic inequalities and a scarcity of mental health support in China.
cdixon.org RSS Feed
Thales the Milesian
Like a lot of things we think are obvious today, financial options were first invented by a...
over a year ago
Like a lot of things we think are obvious today, financial options were first invented by a philosopher: There is the anecdote of Thales the…
Rest of World -...
It’s not (just) Ticketmaster’s fault
A Mexican superstar’s concert tour proves no ticketing company’s tech is a match for fans and fraud.
a year ago
A Mexican superstar’s concert tour proves no ticketing company’s tech is a match for fans and fraud.
Nadia Asparouhova
Early stage funding markets for science - an analysis
In the summer of 2022, with support from Schmidt Futures, I took a closer look at several emerging...
a year ago
In the summer of 2022, with support from Schmidt Futures, I took a closer look at several emerging science funding mechanisms – rapid grants, scout programs, and focused research organizations (FROs) – to understand how they serve the needs of early stage science. I also...
cdixon.org RSS Feed
The internet is reshaping our economy from one of huge corporations with lots of jobs to huge...
From Innovation and the Bell Labs Miracle in today NYTimes: Innovation is an important new product...
over a year ago
From Innovation and the Bell Labs Miracle in today NYTimes: Innovation is an important new product or process, deployed on a large scale and…
Folklore.org:...
The Father Of The Macintosh
Who is the father of the Macintosh?
a year ago
Who is the father of the Macintosh?
Rest of World -...
Riders in the smog
Rest of World equipped gig riders across South Asia with pollution monitors. The readings were off...
8 months ago
Rest of World equipped gig riders across South Asia with pollution monitors. The readings were off the charts.
Rest of World -...
How AI shook the world in 2023
With commercial tools like ChatGPT and Midjourney becoming widely available, AI was used for all...
10 months ago
With commercial tools like ChatGPT and Midjourney becoming widely available, AI was used for all things wonderful … and worrying.
Noahpinion
Let us pause to appreciate the remarkable U.S. economy
It really doesn't get much better than this, folks.
3 weeks ago
It really doesn't get much better than this, folks.
Throwable
AI is Coming for Software Engineers (I'm a Software Engineer)
There seems to be a lot of AI anxiety across professions and I'm here to tell you that no one should...
a year ago
There seems to be a lot of AI anxiety across professions and I'm here to tell you that no one should worry as much as software engineers.
Tech + Economics +...
Sam Bankman-Fried is a feature, not a bug.
Imagine a philosophy so focused on the ends that it becomes blind to the
means. This is the...
12 months ago
Imagine a philosophy so focused on the ends that it becomes blind to the
means. This is the seductive trap of Effective Altruism (EA), a doctrine
born to the rationalist cradle, promising to solve the world's woes through
a calculator. Into this world stepped Sam...
Rest of World -...
A local ride-hailing service can’t beat Uber and Bolt, so its drivers are beating up their rivals
Shesha was launched as a fair-minded local competitor to Western companies in South Africa. It has...
a week ago
Shesha was launched as a fair-minded local competitor to Western companies in South Africa. It has acquired an ugly reputation for intimidating drivers and passengers.
Tech + Economics +...
Nazis don’t deserve free speech.
Reality check: Nazism is not an intellectual hypothetical that bears good
faith discussion. It's...
10 months ago
Reality check: Nazism is not an intellectual hypothetical that bears good
faith discussion. It's not a controversial thought experiment. It is a
historical movement designed to demonise and exterminate the Other. Born in
the tumultuous aftermath of World War I, Nazi...
Rest of World -...
Why African tech companies are ditching Google for a small Indian competitor
Zoho has positioned itself as a cheaper alternative to Google and Microsoft, attracting the...
6 months ago
Zoho has positioned itself as a cheaper alternative to Google and Microsoft, attracting the attention of African startup founders.
Rest of World -...
The startup founder bootstrapping his creator economy business
Douglas Kendyson, a former engineer at Flutterwave and Paystack, has built a profitable bootstrapped...
8 months ago
Douglas Kendyson, a former engineer at Flutterwave and Paystack, has built a profitable bootstrapped African startup.
SatPost by Trung...
Jensen Huang, Dario Amodei and Manufacturing Intelligence at Scale
PLUS: SpaceX's Starship miracle, Taco Bell's franchise model.
a week ago
PLUS: SpaceX's Starship miracle, Taco Bell's franchise model.
Steve Blank
Founders Need to Be Ruthless When Chasing Deals
One of the most exciting things a startup CEO in a business-to-business market can hear from a...
6 months ago
One of the most exciting things a startup CEO in a business-to-business market can hear from a potential customer is, “We’re excited. When can you come back and show us a prototype?” This can be the beginning of a profitable customer relationship or a disappointing sinkhole of...
AVC
Leading From The Heart
I have watched so many leaders over the years in my various roles as lead investor, board member,...
a year ago
I have watched so many leaders over the years in my various roles as lead investor, board member, board chair, investor, and advisor. And one thing I have learned from this front-row seat is that leading from the heart is very powerful. A leader can be the most brilliant product...
cdixon.org RSS Feed
Platform distribution risks
When your product extends a platform’s functionality, one of the main risks you face is that the...
over a year ago
When your product extends a platform’s functionality, one of the main risks you face is that the platform could embed your product’s key…
Paul Graham: Essays
Chapter 1 of Ansi Common Lisp
a year ago
Essays - Benedict...
Who cares about tech regulation?
Tech regulation gets a lot of headlines, and seems like a big deal, but
most people in tech don’t...
7 months ago
Tech regulation gets a lot of headlines, and seems like a big deal, but
most people in tech don’t seem to care much. It’s boring, and years away,
but more fundamentally, it really doesn’t affect what people spend their
time working on.
cdixon.org RSS Feed
The challenge of creating a new category
One of the hardest things to do as a startup is to create a new category. Bloggers and press have a...
over a year ago
One of the hardest things to do as a startup is to create a new category. Bloggers and press have a natural tendency to “pigeonhole” – to…
Noahpinion
Turkey, you were doing so well! (repost)
An economic success story runs off the rails.
a year ago
An economic success story runs off the rails.
Nothing Human
Meditations on Machinic Desire
The philosopher and accelerationist Nick Land writes, in his 1994 essay Machinic Desire, three of...
a week ago
The philosopher and accelerationist Nick Land writes, in his 1994 essay Machinic Desire, three of the most insight-dense paragraphs I’ve ever encountered:
Rest of World -...
Brazil’s flood disaster set off a torrent of AI misinformation
Platforms like Instagram and Facebook are failing an early test of misinformation safeguards.
5 months ago
Platforms like Instagram and Facebook are failing an early test of misinformation safeguards.
Platformer
Google unveils Gemini
CEO Sundar Pichai and DeepMind's Demis Hassabis talk to Platformer about the promise — and product...
11 months ago
CEO Sundar Pichai and DeepMind's Demis Hassabis talk to Platformer about the promise — and product roadmap — of their answer to GPT-4
cdixon.org RSS Feed
"A lot of the best tech startups are ideas that have been around for years"
A lot of the best tech startups are ideas that have been around for years but the time is finally...
over a year ago
A lot of the best tech startups are ideas that have been around for years but the time is finally right. * Some people get jaded. "We tried…
XO Capital - Field...
What business are you really in?
I spoke with an entrepreneur recently who, after 5 years of running a successful and growing...
7 months ago
I spoke with an entrepreneur recently who, after 5 years of running a successful and growing business, said "After 5 years I finally know the real business we're in.".
It means they outwardly do X but on the inside the hard part is Y.
As an
Tom Blomfield
When to join a startup
Something has changed in the last few years which has made an increasing number of people want to...
over a year ago
Something has changed in the last few years which has made an increasing number of people want to join startups. It seemed to start around the time the Social Network movie came out - perhaps it’s just a coincidence, but part of me imagines a group of MBAs sitting around watching...
David Perell
Annual Review 2021
I’ll start this Annual Review by reflecting on 2021. I’ll share highlights and reflect on the goals...
over a year ago
I’ll start this Annual Review by reflecting on 2021. I’ll share highlights and reflect on the goals I set at the beginning of the year. Later, I’ll outline how I plan to improve my life and set a new vision for 2022.
The post Annual Review 2021 appeared first on David Perell.
Data Boutique
How to Estimate Sales Using Inventory Web-Scraped Data
A powerful use case for web data
8 months ago
A powerful use case for web data
Blog posts of...
Easy, but easy to f*ck up. 3 Rules to Setup Analytics Tools correctly.
As a consultant for analytics i see a fair share of integrations of analytics tools. One of the most...
over a year ago
As a consultant for analytics i see a fair share of integrations of analytics tools. One of the most common mistakes is how people...
cdixon.org RSS Feed
Founder Stories
Erick Schonfeld from TechCrunch asked me a few months ago if I’d be on a TechCrunch video show where...
over a year ago
Erick Schonfeld from TechCrunch asked me a few months ago if I’d be on a TechCrunch video show where we interviewed startup founders. I love…
Rest of World -...
The AI startup outperforming Google Translate in Ethiopian languages
"Chatbots like ChatGPT are utterly broken or useless for these languages."
a year ago
"Chatbots like ChatGPT are utterly broken or useless for these languages."
Noahpinion
Why some franchises go downhill while others stay great
A little break from our typical economics fare.
4 months ago
A little break from our typical economics fare.
Platformer
YouTube restores Trump
Meta explained its Trump decision in full. YouTube went another direction
a year ago
Meta explained its Trump decision in full. YouTube went another direction
Platformer
How a single engineer brought down Twitter on Monday
The high cost of cutting expenses
a year ago
The high cost of cutting expenses
Ed Zitron's Where's...
Silicon Valley's False Prophet
The tech industry has craved a messiah since the death of Steve Jobs, but in OpenAI CEO Sam Altman...
4 months ago
The tech industry has craved a messiah since the death of Steve Jobs, but in OpenAI CEO Sam Altman they’ve discovered more of a false prophet — a seedy grifter that uses his remarkable ability to impress and manipulate Silicon Valley’s elite to mask a total
Stephen Diehl
The Underlying Technology Shibboleth
a year ago
Roberto Vitillo's...
How to review a data analysis
Writing good code is hard, writing a good analysis is harder. Peer-review is an essential tool to...
over a year ago
Writing good code is hard, writing a good analysis is harder. Peer-review is an essential tool to fight repetitive errors, omissions and…
David Perell
Chrisman Frank and Ana Lorena Fabrega: How Childhood Education Will Change
This week, I have two guests. Both are affiliated with Synthesis, a new kind of online school where...
over a year ago
This week, I have two guests. Both are affiliated with Synthesis, a new kind of online school where kids learn through games and simulations. One is Chrisman Frank, the CEO of Synthesis. The other is Ana Lorena Fabrega, who is their Chief Evangelist. Here’s the backstory: A few...
Nadia Asparouhova
Does meditation experience improve success with the jhanas?
Jhanas – a series of altered mental states that are accessed via concentration – are often described...
4 months ago
Jhanas – a series of altered mental states that are accessed via concentration – are often described as an “advanced meditation practice,” a phrase that suggests that one must be a skilled meditator to access them: just as only a skilled outdoorsman would embark upon an...
Rest of World -...
Our favorite Rest of World photos from 2023
39 photographers, 31 cities, 22 countries. This is what global tech looked like this year.
10 months ago
39 photographers, 31 cities, 22 countries. This is what global tech looked like this year.
Noahpinion
Harris needs to be Pennsylvania fracking's biggest champion
Biden already boosted fracking. Harris needs to promise more of the same.
a month ago
Biden already boosted fracking. Harris needs to promise more of the same.
cdixon.org RSS Feed
Builders and extractors
Tim O’Reilly poses a question every entrepreneur and investor should consider: are you creating more...
over a year ago
Tim O’Reilly poses a question every entrepreneur and investor should consider: are you creating more value for others than you capture for…
Noahpinion
Who's "weird"?
A campaign insult offers a window into American society in the 2020s.
3 months ago
A campaign insult offers a window into American society in the 2020s.
42!
Finding and fixing slow queries
Photo by Caspar Camille Rubin on Unsplash
I love dashboards, and I run several on my system to...
over a year ago
Photo by Caspar Camille Rubin on Unsplash
I love dashboards, and I run several on my system to monitor my HR startup in real time. I love collecting data points around subscriptions, user activity, and most importantly, server uptime and performance. Especially now that we are...
Paul Graham: Essays
The Pooled-Risk Company Management Company
over a year ago
Noahpinion
Bad and good arguments for industrial policy
Has China invented a better way to run an advanced economy?
3 months ago
Has China invented a better way to run an advanced economy?
Noahpinion
At least five interesting things for the middle of your week (#43)
Slop wars; Poland and Ukraine; AI bubble; MMT reversal;
3 months ago
Slop wars; Poland and Ukraine; AI bubble; MMT reversal;
cdixon.org RSS Feed
Two eras of the internet: pull and push
The evolution of the internet is an extremely complex topic. Sometimes it is helpful to find broad...
over a year ago
The evolution of the internet is an extremely complex topic. Sometimes it is helpful to find broad patterns that make it easier to…
Rest of World -...
Tears of a get-rich-quick guru
Influencers like Sunny Ali promote the Amazon seller dream, but not everyone buys the hustlepreneur...
a year ago
Influencers like Sunny Ali promote the Amazon seller dream, but not everyone buys the hustlepreneur fantasy.
cdixon.org RSS Feed
“If you asked people in 1989 what they needed to make their life better, it was unlikely that they…
“If you asked people in 1989 what they needed to make their life better, it was unlikely that they...
over a year ago
“If you asked people in 1989 what they needed to make their life better, it was unlikely that they would have said a decentralized network…
XO Capital - Field...
Deal Structures
A couple of people have asked about deal structures so here are a few we commonly use for buying...
9 months ago
A couple of people have asked about deal structures so here are a few we commonly use for buying micro saas companies.
All Cash
Pretty straight forward. You do all cash. Usually it's 100% into escrow.com and release maybe 50% before asset transfer and 50% after asset
cdixon.org RSS Feed
Revenue vs margin
Three years ago, Fred Wilson wrote a great blog post called When Talking About Business Models,...
over a year ago
Three years ago, Fred Wilson wrote a great blog post called When Talking About Business Models, Remember that Profits Equal Revenues Minus…
Rest of World -...
Lithium is only as dirty as we make it
We’re building a new supply chain for electric vehicles. Are we building the right one?
a year ago
We’re building a new supply chain for electric vehicles. Are we building the right one?
David Perell
Why You’re Christian
Becoming an educated citizen starts with understanding the lineage of your beliefs. For example,...
over a year ago
Becoming an educated citizen starts with understanding the lineage of your beliefs. For example, look at this iconic line from one of America’s founding documents:
"We hold these truths to be self-evident that all men are created equal.”
The post Why You’re Christian appeared...
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