Shopify’s earnings were disappointing; worse, they were confusing. The company knows its mission, but needs to clarify its strategy
Elon Musk Buys Twitter, Musk’s Financing, The Status Quo and Future Variance
Twitter accepted Elon Musk’s offer; the nature of his financing suggests what might come next. After that, though, is more uncertain than ever.
Elon Musk Joins Twitter’s Board, Gogoro SPAC
Elon Musk doesn’t just own a part of Twitter; now he’s on the board, in a move that has been in the works for a while. Plus, my experience as a Gogoro owner.
Akamai Buys Linode, Akamai’s Strategy, Cloudflare and Disruption
Akamai’s acquisition of Linode makes lots of sense, even if Linode’s customers won’t be happy. The real winner, though, is Cloudflare.
Peloton’s Operations, Intel Buys Tower Semiconductor, What Now for ARM (plus Intel + RISC-V)
One more point on Peloton’s poor operations, then more news from the chip industry: Intel makes an acquisition and ARM is on its own.
Gaming the Smiling Curve
The spate of recent acquisitions in the gaming space — Take-Two and Zynga, Microsoft and Activision, and Sony and Bungie — make sense in the context of the Smiling Curve.
Microsoft Acquires Activision Blizzard, Notes on the Acquisition, An Interview With Microsoft Gaming CEO Phil Spencer
Breaking down Microsoft’s acquisition of Activision Blizzard, plus an interview with Microsoft Gaming CEO Phil Spencer
Take-Two Acquires Zynga, The New York Times Buys The Athletic
Take-Two buys its way into mobile, and the New York Times re-bundles.
Unity, Weta, and Faceless Platforms
Unity’s acquisition of Weta digital makes sense for both sides, and positions Unity to be an essential platform for tech’s future.
Unity Buys Weta Digital, An Interview with Unity CEO John Riccitiello
The Weta acquisition, Unity’s ambitions, their advertising business and relationship with Apple, and why Riccitiello thinks my understanding of the metaverse isn’t quite right.