Category: Tidbits

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Tidbits #56 – New Frontiers

Hello, hello! 👋🏻👋🏻

Welcome back to another edition of Tidbits covering all the recent things worth talking about in business, media, and technology.

Less “news” in this edition, but a lot of thought-provoking think pieces that outline how society’s tectonic plates are shifting.

People are really thinking outside of the box!

Indeed a time for change. Perhaps COVID-19 has reminded us of how short life is, and there is never a better time to pursue ideas and dreams.… Read the rest “Tidbits #56 – New Frontiers”

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Tidbits #55 – Cryptolending, Dark Content, Shopee, and Exponential Age + More

Hello, hello! 👋🏻👋🏻

Welcome back to another edition of Tidbits covering all the recent things worth talking about in business, media, and technology.

👻 Cryptocurrencies + NFTs

#1 Bitcoin to Bucks: Crypto Fans Borrow to Buy Homes, Cars—and More Crypto

Crypto enthusiasts such as Mr. Anderson are tapping their holdings to buy homes, cars and, often, more crypto. They are getting these loans from upstart nonbank lenders and automated, blockchain-based platforms.

… Read the rest “Tidbits #55 – Cryptolending, Dark Content, Shopee, and Exponential Age + More”
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Tidbits #54 – CryptoPunks, Quantified Self, India Tech, “I am Groot!” + More

Hello, hello! 👋🏻👋🏻

Welcome back to another edition of Tidbits covering all the recent things worth talking about in business, media, and technology.

In Search of Power

The world has changed a lot in the last few decades.

The world has changed a lot in the last few centuries.

The world has changed a lot in the last few millennia.

But regardless of how the world changes – how people live, what they want – the thing that never changes is the quest for status and power.… Read the rest “Tidbits #54 – CryptoPunks, Quantified Self, India Tech, “I am Groot!” + More”

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Tidbits #53 – Million Dollar Rocks, Invisible Rocks, Burn Burn Burn🔥🔥🔥! + More

Hello, hello! 👋🏻👋🏻

Welcome back to another edition of Tidbits covering all the recent things worth talking about in business, media, and technology.

🗺 Geopolitics

#1 Intel Lands Pentagon Deal to Support Domestic Chip Making

Intel Corp. INTC 1.43% said it would provide commercial foundry services in the first phase of a broader Defense Department program that aims to build up domestic design and production of cutting-edge chips.

… Read the rest “Tidbits #53 – Million Dollar Rocks, Invisible Rocks, Burn Burn Burn🔥🔥🔥! + More”
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Tidbits #52 – Parkour Robots, Common Prosperity, Forgotten Heroes + More

Hello, hello! 👋🏻👋🏻

Welcome back to another edition of Tidbits covering all the recent things worth talking about in business, media, and technology.

🗺 Geopolitics

#1 How Afghanistan’s Ghani Went From President to Villain in Hiding

relates to How Afghanistan’s Ghani Went From President to Villain in Hiding

“I had to move out of Afghanistan to prevent Kabul from bloodshed and destruction,” Ghani said in the video, adding that he left quickly with no belongings after security officials warned him that Taliban fighters wanted to execute them in the same way as former president Mohammad Najibullah, whose body was hanged from a traffic light by Taliban fighters in 1996. 

… Read the rest “Tidbits #52 – Parkour Robots, Common Prosperity, Forgotten Heroes + More”
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Tidbits #50 – Chips, Data, “Spiritual Opium” + More

Hello, hello! 👋🏻👋🏻

Welcome back to another edition of Tidbits covering all the recent things worth talking about in business, media, and technology.

🗺 Geopolitics

#1 U.K. Considers Blocking Nvidia Takeover of Arm Over Security

The U.K. is considering blocking a takeover of Arm Ltd. by Nvidia Corp. due to potential risks to national security, according to people familiar with the discussions.

… Read the rest “Tidbits #50 – Chips, Data, “Spiritual Opium” + More”
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Tidbits #49 – China, China, China…Battle for the Metaverse, BTS, Japanese Toilets, and More

Hello, hello! 👋🏻👋🏻

Welcome back to another edition of Tidbits covering all the recent things worth talking about in business, media, and technology.

China Policy Direction and Impact on Capital Markets

In recent months, Chinese domestic policy actions have accelerated and seem to embed a sense of urgency.

While the Chinese government and regulators have taken actions in the past (e.g.… Read the rest “Tidbits #49 – China, China, China…Battle for the Metaverse, BTS, Japanese Toilets, and More”

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Tidbits #48 – A New Thing Called Fiat, Netflix Becoming the Metaverse, Softbank’s Comeback + More

Hello, hello! 👋🏻👋🏻

Welcome back to another edition of Tidbits covering all the recent things worth talking about in business, media, and technology.

🤑 Economics + Markets

#1 Ethereum Co-Founder Says Safety Concern Has Him Quitting Crypto

Anthony Di Iorio

“It’s got a risk profile that I am not too enthused about,” said Di Iorio, who declined to disclose his cryptocurrency holdings or net worth.

… Read the rest “Tidbits #48 – A New Thing Called Fiat, Netflix Becoming the Metaverse, Softbank’s Comeback + More”
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Tidbits #47 – Didi Gets Pulled Over, Tech vs Govts, But All We Want to Do is…Shop!

Hello, hello! 👋🏻👋🏻 Welcome back to another edition of Tidbits covering all the recent things worth talking about in business, media, and technology.

This is a double issue due to the July 4th holiday last weekend.

🗺 Geopolitics

#1 130 countries sign on to global minimum tax plan, creating momentum for Biden push

The Biden administration claimed an important victory on Thursday in its drive for a global minimum corporate tax with an announcement from Paris that 130 countries had signed on to the plan.

… Read the rest “Tidbits #47 – Didi Gets Pulled Over, Tech vs Govts, But All We Want to Do is…Shop!”
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Tidbits #46 – Laws in a Digital World, Sneaky Fronts, Digital Reality + More

Hello, hello! 👋🏻👋🏻

Summer is officially upon us. And we’re almost halfway through the year. Moving fast!

As always, thanks for reading. Hopefully this doesn’t take too much time away from the summer festivities. 🍋🍹🏖😎

Laws in a Digital World

Before diving into our usual fare, let’s talk about Law.

One of the most under-discussed topics when it comes to technology and its impact and intersection with society is the implementation of laws.… Read the rest “Tidbits #46 – Laws in a Digital World, Sneaky Fronts, Digital Reality + More”

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Tidbits #45 – Proxies, Titans, Games Games Everywhere + More

Hello, hello!

Have some stuff going on around the house today. Will keep it short and just dive right in.

🗺 Geopolitics

#1 Hackers Thrive in Putin’s Russia as U.S. Seeks New Strategy

Early in his rise to the pinnacle of Russian cybercrime, Maksim Yakubets, leader of one of the most successful hacking syndicates in the world, was asked if he was worried about being arrested.

… Read the rest “Tidbits #45 – Proxies, Titans, Games Games Everywhere + More”
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Tidbits #44 – The Empire Strikes Back + Metaverse, Mobility, and More

Hello, hello! 👋🏻👋🏻

Yikes, this one is long…And this is after I cut out a bunch of other clippings I saved already!

In any case, hope it is enjoyable, and thanks for reading.

The Empire Strikes Back

Before jumping into our regular programming, one thing I think worth diving deeper into is what happens when the Empire strikes back.

We talk a lot about disruptive technology and market evolution around here.… Read the rest “Tidbits #44 – The Empire Strikes Back + Metaverse, Mobility, and More”

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Tidbits #43 – Not “Arming the Rebels”, But “Spawning the Rebels”? + Capital Politics, Gucci Gardens, Doge and More

Hello, hello! 👋🏻👋🏻

Hope everyone had an enjoyable Memorial Weekend last week.

Three day weekends are magical. We need more of them. In our modern, hyper-speed society, it’s very hard for me to keep up. Three day weekends always seem like those much-needed moments where I get to come up for air after holding my breath underwater for a while.

It’s also a great time to think.… Read the rest “Tidbits #43 – Not “Arming the Rebels”, But “Spawning the Rebels”? + Capital Politics, Gucci Gardens, Doge and More”

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Tidbits #42 – A Globalized E-Commerce Market + More

Hello friends! Welcome to another edition of Tidbits.

Summer is almost upon us. Life is starting to return to normal. And the world is healing. All is right with the world!

While businesses and communities are starting to reopen, I can’t help but feel that a lot that has changed will remain changed.

One of the biggest changes is how we shop.… Read the rest “Tidbits #42 – A Globalized E-Commerce Market + More”

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Tidbits #41 – “Everything is Everything” + More

Hello friends! 👋🏻👋🏻

Hope everyone is doing well. Markets are volatile, but hopefully your personal life is starting to return to some semblance of normal.

I’m pretty excited about this edition of Tidbits and to discuss how “everything is becoming everything”. I’ve written a lot over the last few years about mostly convergence in almost all areas I can think about.… Read the rest “Tidbits #41 – “Everything is Everything” + More”

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Tidbits #40 – China’s Third Large Ecosystem + More

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I’ve been thinking about how to evolve this format to make it even better. The first few issues of Tidbits were all organized around themes (e.g. E-commerce, retail, etc). In a way, Tidbits began as a low hurdle way of grouping together a bunch of ideas around a common theme when I didn’t feel like I had enough material for a longer post.… Read the rest “Tidbits #40 – China’s Third Large Ecosystem + More”

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Tidbits #39

Hello, hello!

Here’s what I found interesting recently.

Thanks for reading.

🗺 Geopolitics

#1 Peter Thiel- “I do wonder whether at this point Bitcoin should also be thought in part of as a Chinese financial weapon against the U.S.”

Peter Thiel: Well, you know, I think there’s sort of a lot of different things that fall under digital currency, presumably one that’s electronic form that China envisions is one that can be monitored even more granularly the way they’re being monitored currently.

… Read the rest “Tidbits #39”
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Tidbits #38 – The Pastry AI That Can Detect Cancer

Hello, friends!

There’s a lot to talk about. A lot that is interesting.

A common theme that I think is becoming increasingly prevalent is the fungibility of technology. Not just software, but all of tech, including biotech, across all industries and aspects of life. What I mean is that technology is increasingly not its own confined domain, but something that is becoming foundational to everything that we do, to our future, and to our world.… Read the rest “Tidbits #38 – The Pastry AI That Can Detect Cancer”

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Tidbits #37 – Bottlenecks and Blockages Everywhere

Hi, friends. 👋🏻👋🏻

I missed the beat last week, but now I’m back. Had some personal issues to attend to as I learned a college friend passed away. Moments like these remind me that life is short. There is never a better time than now (or now + 1) to get started on something that you’ve always wanted to do. Because sometimes life ends up being a lot shorter than you expect.… Read the rest “Tidbits #37 – Bottlenecks and Blockages Everywhere”

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Tidbits #35 – Semis, NFTs, Media, and More

I’m sure you already know the market had a crazy week. Maybe it’s tech (and frothy valuations). Maybe it’s interest rates. Maybe it’s ARK Invest?

Who knows.

What I know is that there are a lot of tech / tech-like things going up like rockets 🚀🚀🚀 that do not and are very unlikely to eventually have tech-like economics (e.g. EVs). If I’m proven wrong, great!… Read the rest “Tidbits #35 – Semis, NFTs, Media, and More”

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Tidbits #34

Hi, friends. 👋🏻👋🏻

What a week! Not only were markets extremely volatile, many companies and industries continue to undergo fascinating change. Major change is coming in the media space if Snap, Twitter, and Spotify’s recent investor / product presentations were any indication. And beyond that…the boom in NFTs (non-fungible [crypto]tokens) is wild in its own right.

This and more below. 👇🏻👇🏻👇🏻

As always, thanks for making the time to read.… Read the rest “Tidbits #34”

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Tidbits #33 – “I am not a cat”

Hello, hello. 👋🏻👋🏻

I usually start off each Tidbits with some overarching theme relative to what’s going on in the world in order to make sense of it all or themes that I believe people should spend more time thinking about…

But nothing I say can better encapsulate the disruptive (but rejuvenating?) chaos that is bubbling underneath all of society at the moment than Keith Gill’s (a.k.a.… Read the rest “Tidbits #33 – “I am not a cat””

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Tidbits #32 – The World Continues to Spin

Hi, friends. 👋🏻👋🏻

Hope you’re all enjoying the long weekend. If you have a significant other, hopefully you were able to do / enjoy something nice together for Valentine’s Day. For all my Asian readers, happy lunar new year! And for all my American readers, happy President’s Day!

As always, thanks for sharing a little bit of your time to hear what I have to say.… Read the rest “Tidbits #32 – The World Continues to Spin”

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Tidbits #31

🎭 Society

In light of the impact that tech is having on society, this article seems like a good place to start the discussion.

What’s amazing is that these concerns have been going on for a very long time, and yet we are no closer to knowing the answer on whether our lives are better or worse because of it.

#1 A 25-Year-Old Bet Comes Due: Has Tech Destroyed Society?

… Read the rest “Tidbits #31”
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Tidbits #30

Hello, hello! 👋🏻 👋🏻

Thanks for reading.

A little longer than usual, but I hope you have as much fun reading it as I did writing it.

If you can’t get through all of it, please at least check out #20! It’s awesome. I guarantee it.

🗺 Geopolitics

#1 Twitter Locks Out Chinese Embassy in U.S. Over Post on Uighurs

Twitter Inc.

… Read the rest “Tidbits #30”
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Tidbits #29 – “All Roads Lead to Rome”

Given the heaviness of the last edition of Tidbits in which the most consequential development was the storming of the U.S. Capitol by rioters, you may think that edition #29 would be (should be) dull in comparison.

But that could not be further from the truth.

Because we are starting to see and feel the consequences of those events only now and only much more in the future.… Read the rest “Tidbits #29 – “All Roads Lead to Rome””

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Tidbits #28 – “Did not expect that” Déjà vu

I bylined Tidbits #26 with “Did not expect that” in reference to the year 2020.

Well, the start of 2021 is certainly no less surprising.

Did not expect that…

We are in a weird cauldron of convergence across everything – geopolitics, politics, tech, media…the old way of doing things is out the door. The physical, digital, and psychological maps of the 21st Century are be rewritten.… Read the rest “Tidbits #28 – “Did not expect that” Déjà vu”

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Tidbits #27

Pretty quiet few days over the holidays as you would expect…less to talk about. But it should pick up, again, next week.

🗺 Geopolitics

The world is changing, and geopolitics is one of the most consequential areas where this is playing out.

There is no “navy” on the internet. And all the countries of the world are now “closer” than ever before as we all find ourselves trying to co-exist in just a few shared social media / internet ecosystem gardens.… Read the rest “Tidbits #27”

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Tidbits #26 – “Did Not Expect That”

Hope you had a restful Christmas / holiday season!

Here’s what I found interesting recently.

2020 is not the year that anyone expected. But a lot of unexpected things continue to happen.

Good thing it’s almost over.

🤑 Economics

#1 Why the US Dollar Could Outlast the American Empire

But modern trade has gotten more complicated, largely due to the rise of containerization.

… Read the rest “Tidbits #26 – “Did Not Expect That””
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Tidbits #25 – The World Reminds the US They Exist

Happy holidays, and thanks for reading! 🎄🎁🦌

🗺 Geopolitics

Russia has hacked entities across the US, creating a historic mess…it will take time before the US realizes the full scope of the attack and what has been taken.

#1 How to Understand the Russia Hack Fallout

THIS WEEK NEWS broke that United States government agencies and corporations alike—as well as international targets—were  victims of a massive nation-state espionage campaign.

… Read the rest “Tidbits #25 – The World Reminds the US They Exist”