Hot Takes
Fascinating move from the EU parliament that is trying to set up a regulatory framework for crypto money. The critical piece of legislation would be constraints so that these coins... > ... shall be subject to minimum environmental sustainability standards and set up and maintain a phased rollout plan to ensure
Hot Takes
These last years I haven't been shy about my growing disinterest in innovation conferences and tradeshows. That being said, I was a bit titillated by CURBIVORE in Los Angeles, which is about restaurant business model and retail innovation, last-mile delivery, mobility, and civic tech. What I like here
Hot Takes
While China is (for now) winning the tech race on commercial nuclear fusion reactor [https://www.newsweek.com/china-artificial-sun-breaks-record-120-million-farenheit-nuclear-fusion-1666265] s, Europe is still pushing energy innovation on many fronts. One of them is off-shore renewable electricity production. Denmark is, for instance, funding the first artificial island project [https://www.windisland.
Hot Takes
The long string of short-sighted moves from automotive incumbents that painted themselves in a corner, refusing to take on the electric vehicle, is just starting. In that regard, VW's announcement of a future Porsche IPO is certainly up there. Volkswagen Plans IPO of Porsche to Ignite EV Shift
Strategy
In January, Ben Thompson wrote a prescient article about how the Internet was now maturing from a pure economic scale machine leveraging network effects (Internet 2.0) to politics, or more accurately, geopolitics (Internet 3.0). > It turns out that when it comes to Information Technology, very little is
Strategy
Most successful companies have slim chances of sustaining their future business because they are a one-trick pony. Not Apple. Last month Scott Galloway discussed how Apple will probably do very well for the next ten years. His main argument is that Apple has mastered several aspects of business, from customer
Weak Signals
Working on innovation for so many years, you end up developing a knack at seeing weak signals before current trends eventually set in. Seeing as quickly ATMs are disappearing from our streets in the Netherlands is such a signal. Dutch banks closed nearly 1,000 ATMs last yearDutch banks closed
Weak Signals
The core issue of multinationals trying to innovate is that they are rarely in the position of starting from first principles. They depend on legacy technology; they have factories already running, sales channels organized in a certain way, etc. All this is fine and dandy when it allows an inherent
Strategy
Biotech startups may no longer need to get funded over their IP. It's difficult to call it a trend yet, but a significant part of the VC deal flow in this sector might be soon with startups letting go of public research tech transfer and/or patents. In
Hot Takes
In 2016, Bozoma Saint John made quite a splash during Apple yearly WWDC mass. Since then, she has worked at Uber, Endeavor (don't ask), and lately at Netflix. Bozoma Saint John Departs As Netflix Chief Marketing OfficerMarian Lee, the company’s vice president of marketing in the U.
Hot Takes
And what is probably an unprecedented move in modern corporate history, Ford announced that they would cut the company in half: the legacy thermic-engine automaking part promised a slow and painful death, and the electric-car part that might survive the future. [https://www.npr.org/2022/03/02/1083913314/ford-modele-split-units-electric-gas]
Culture
Amazon is closing most of its physical stores to double down on Amazon Fresh and WholeFood brick and mortar locations. Amazon is closing all 68 of its Books, 4-Star, and Pop Up physical storesAmazon ends most of its retail experimentsThe VergeChaim Gartenberg [https://www.theverge.com/2022/3/2/22958745/