Good morning, Quite a bit happened today across a wide range of industries, but today’s update is all about payments. Max Levchin to be CEO of Affirm A few weeks ago I wrote The Problem with Payments which argued innovation in payments is hard because there isn’t much margin available if you’re building on topSubscribe […]
2014
Why Uber is Worth $18.2 Billion
Christopher Mims’ piece Uber’s $18.2B Valuation Is a Head Scratcher is getting a lot of play, and deservedly so: it’s a good encapsulation of many people’s objections to Uber’s recent round that valued the company at $18.2 billion. However, I think Mims is wrong. I would argue he: Dramatically underestimates Uber’s potential market Undervalues Uber’s […]
Daily Update: The Computex Contrast, Big Screens Dominate, Xiaomi’s Worldwide Ambitions
Good morning, I had a great trip to San Francisco, but it’s very nice to be back on my normal time schedule. Thanks for your patience last week. On to the update: The Computex Contrast As I noted last week, Computex was the same week as WWDC. Paul Thurrott had a brief piece on someSubscribe […]
What Steve Jobs Wouldn’t Have Done
Between a feature-by-feature review (members only) and an analysis of strategic underpinnings, I’ve written nearly three thousand words about Apple’s WWDC announcements. Still, though, it feels like I haven’t written about what is perhaps the most important takeaway. It’s a takeaway I’ve resisted, even as writer after blogger after Twitterer has said the same thing: […]
Daily Update: Amazon’s Phone Announcement, Apple’s New Ad, Twitter Buys Namo Media
Good morning, Today is my last day in San Francisco; I will have a Daily Update for tomorrow, but it may be a bit shorter than usual. I’m looking forward to getting back on my usual schedule next week. On to the update: Amazon Teases Smartphone Event From Bloomberg: Amazon.com Inc. is planning to introduceSubscribe […]
Daily Update: Google Blocked in China, WeChat Ecommerce, LINE IPO?
Good afternoon, I finally posted the WWDC piece I mentioned yesterday: Growing Apple at WWDC. While the number of updates were pretty incredible, I think they mostly fit into a coherent growth strategy. Check it out. I apologize again that today’s update is a little later (tomorrow’s probably will be as well). I’m very muchSubscribe […]
Growing Apple at WWDC
In the end, as with many of Apple strategies, much of what transpired in Monday’s WWDC keynote was telegraphed many months ago, at least from a strategic perspective. Consider the thinking behind iOS 7. As Jony Ive told USA Today: When we sat down last November (to work on iOS 7), we understood that people […]
Daily Update: WWDC Overview
Good morning, I apologize that today’s update is so late; I have been on a fruitless search for Wifi most of the morning after realizing T-Mobile unilaterally disabled my phone’s ability to tether. Fun! But enough about me – on to the update: WWDC As expected there were no hardware announcements, which actually made theSubscribe […]
Daily Update: Apple’s True Differentiation, Two More Beats Tidbits, Computex Starts Today
Good morning, I am writing this from chilly San Francisco; as I noted last week, delivery times may be a bit irregular. Thanks for your patience. I have posted details about tomorrow’s live chat during the keynote on Glassboard, so Access members please check it out there. Apple’s True Differentiation I wrote some big pictureSubscribe […]
WWDC Expectations
Update: bumping to the top of the page Beyond the usual updates of iOS and OS X, there are two significant rumors about what Apple might unveil next week at WWDC. The first is Healthbook, as detailed by Mark Gurman here and here. The second is Apple’s plan for a smart home, first reported by […]