Slack lost to Microsoft head-to-head, but has smartly shifted to a horizontal strategy that the vertically-oriented Microsoft can’t match.
Chips and Geopolitics
TSMC showed the power of modularization, and now they are core to the U.S. national security strategy.
The Anti-Amazon Alliance
Google Shopping is changing its model, suggesting Google is joining the Anti-Amazon Alliance; 3rd-party merchants should do the same.
Facebook Invests in Jio Platforms, The Building of Jio, Understanding the Deal
Jio showed how the best way to serve the poor is to create a market for them, not simply give them charity like Facebook tried to do with Free Basics. That is why it makes sense for them to work together.
Email Addresses and Razor Blades
The fate of Harry’s and other DTC companies, particularly relative to companies like Credit Karma, highlight how the Internet elevates the importance of demand over supply.
Clayton Christensen Passes Away, Professor Christensen and I, Kobe Bryant and Measuring Your Life
There is no greater influence on Stratechery than Professor Clayton Christensen, but it is another death — Kobe Bryant’s — that reminds me of what truly matters.
The End of the Beginning
The beginning of technology was about the shift from batched computing in one place to continuous computing everywhere. That era of paradigm changes may be over, which means the real changes are only beginning.
Cisco Sells Chips, The Conservation of Attractive Networking, Twitter MoPub Revenue
Cisco is selling chips, which is a fascinating example of the Conservation of Attractive Profits. Then, Twitter’s MoPub revenue is more than it seems.
Integration and Monopoly
Apple has won through integration, but integration combined with network effects and economies of scale can result in bad outcomes that look a lot like monopolies.
Google and Ambient Computing
Google presented a vision of ambient computing that goes beyond the smartphone. The company is well-placed, but faces challenges both in the marketplace and in the mirror.