Jun 16, 2020Deployment Led Innovation; a policy algorithm to create markets that fix climate change with spectacular resultsIn this essay I’m developing my thoughts on how we can use markets to fix climate change. I’m calling it Deployment Led Innovation. It’s based on lessons we can draw from four spectacular cleantech success stories of the past forty years. Back to 1985 Back in 1985 I started my studies in Environmental…Innovation26 min readInnovation26 min read
Published inThe Startup·May 27, 2019Member-onlyTesla’s Fart Mode Problem — It’s survival depends on attracting ‘early majority’ customers and that requires drastic changeTesla may finally fail to outrun the financial realities of normal companies. The company reported negative results over the first quarter of 2019, and it’s share price has dropped to a level not seen in years. By any measure it has been a remarkable run for the company that was…Tesla16 min readTesla16 min read
May 8, 2019Tesla sales of Model S and X are down 44% year over yearIt seems that the media have missed something pretty crucial in Tesla’s latest quarterly report: the tanking of the sales of it’s high end Model S and X. This post is a bit late, because I’ve been waiting for people to write about this. But it seems nobody is. …Tesla3 min readTesla3 min read
Nov 20, 20177 reasons why having a top notch advisory board is crucial to start-up successCrucial resources to turn your venture into a success are talent and networks. Get ready to convince the smartest, most knowledgeable and best-connected people to join you in your quest to revolutionize the world. You not only need these people on your team, you also need them as advisors. I…Startup7 min readStartup7 min read
Nov 10, 2017Saving the Planet Star Wars Style, Founder Narcissism and Why Ideas Are OverratedWhen you see loads of start-ups you start to discover patterns. I’ve probably seen over a thousand start-ups by now, most of them in cleantech. One of the patterns emerging is Founder Narcissism, which is especially prevalent when a start-up is working on an idea that feels like it will…Startup8 min readStartup8 min read
Oct 26, 2017For hard tech startups, this is the closest you can get to heaven (and you have 4 days left to apply…)For much of 2017 I’ve been working with at Cyclotron Road. Since I’ve moved back to Europe after the summer, I’m not formally engaged with the team anymore. But I thought it would be good to tell startups in my network about the work they do. Because I think it’s…Startup4 min readStartup4 min read
Published inHackerNoon.com·Jun 25, 2017Why false positives kill start-ups and how a headache is the solutionFounders often ask me: Do you think my idea is good? I tell them all the same thing: It doesn’t matter what I think. There are only two things that matter: whether YOU believe your idea is good, and whether you can find customers that want to buy your product…Startup7 min readStartup7 min read
Aug 31, 2016Dear Tim, please explain how being a ‘responsible corporate citizen’ fits with paying <0.005% taxes…Dear Tim Cook, Today you wrote: ‘As responsible corporate citizens, we are also proud of our contributions to local economies across Europe, and to communities everywhere.’ That is a great statement. And you have made quite an impact in the past years to show that Apple is really serious about…Politics3 min readPolitics3 min read
Jun 25, 2016Everything you always wanted to know about Startup Accelerators but were afraid to askStartup Accelerators have taken the world by storm. Pioneered by Paul Graham and Jessica Livingstone in 2005 with Ycombinator, they have grown into an industry of it’s own. …Startup7 min readStartup7 min read